| Description |
A Service Learning Scholars Program project: "I have had the opportunity to partner with the Bend in the River over the past semester to create my final Integrated Service Project. Community partners expressed a need to expand storage and greenhouse space on their site. I was able to draw upon my architectural education to develop a solution to address building a new structure on a very environmentally sensitive site. Through design reviews with the Bend in the River, community members, local architects, and the city we have created a space that will be pleasant and usable for all disciplines. Through design reviews with the Bend in the River, community members, local architects, and the city we have created a space that will be pleasant and usable for all disciplines. The structure itself is created by a gabion, or caged rock, living wall facing the neighborhood. Direct access to park functions allows volunteers to easily address work from the new storage shed. Elevated planters within provide growing tables capturing warm winter sunlight and below a delivery space for other materials. The majority of the tools were placed in a secondary secure area to allow multiple levels of access to several volunteer members of the community. In my design, I hoped to capture the essence of the most literal "bend in the river" with the slight curvature of the structure matching that of the river and pathway. The term "levee" was applied early on since we created a physical barrier to the structure from residential homes. The large levee anchors the structure to the site and will provide a very natural and growing perspective. Through the use of green and sustainable design practices we can foster an advanced engagement with our environment as well as our community. With projects such as the Bend in the River our social responsibility to grow and maintain crucial urban ecological area will increase as the human impact on our planet decreases." |
