Landscape Architecture Portfolio

A A R O N

J O H N S O N

0.0 This portfolio is a culmination of my undergraduate, graduate, and professional work during my time at Kansas State University. Being born in Tucson, AZ; raised in Chicago, Illinois; and earning my Master in Landscape Architecture in Manhattan, Kansas has subjected me to a wide array of cultures, climates, and landscapes My childhood was spent learning culinary and artistic skills as these were both encouraged by my parents and a fascination of my own. My parents are both musicians and this has been a large influence on my life and personal philosophy.

In an act of pseudo-rebellion against my artistic upbringing I focused my high school career on drafting engineering, and sciences. These two faces of my adolescence would later define my passion for landscape architecture.

Deciding to attend schooling at Kansas State was simple because I had concluded high school knowing that I wanted to pursue a career that was both artistic and scientific; this meant design. An architecture independent study became 2

one of my favorite classes and so I would go to college for architecture. Kansas State is one of the top ten schools for the architecture professions and at my time there 3rd in the nation for landscape architecture.

The undergraduate component of the curriculum was focused primarily on design, fostering artistic and conceptualization skill sets. This was a redundancy for me and it was not until the scientific oriented graduate component of the curriculum that I learned what it meant to be a landscape architect.

Landscape architecture is the leading profession for ushering in a sustainable future. We are the bridge between nature and the built environment. We bring scientific evidence to the previously losing battle of environmental stewardship. It is our responsibility to make beautiful spaces that perform in an sustainable way.

T A B L E

O F

C O N T E N T S

0.0 TABLE OF CONTENTS philosophy 1.0 ART hand graphics 2.0 MENNONITE CONGREGATION planting design, schematic design, construction documentation 3.0 ARAPAHOE SQUARE master planning, programming, schematic design 4.0 SPRINGER CONSERVATION DEVELOPMENT master planning, construction documentation 5.0 GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE SUITABILITY FOR DOWNTOWN WICHITA master’s report 6.0 WICHITA DOWNTOWN DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION landscape architecture intern 7.0 RESUME undergraduate, graduate, professional 3

1.0 Art is the basic form of graphic communication as a designer.

Graphics have no exclusive language and act as a common denominator for understanding. Graphic communication was the foundation of my education throughout both high school and college and will continue to guide my career as a designer.

My artistic inspiration comes from cartooning at a young age.

Realistic representation is something that does not come easy to many, including myself. Looking through my notes before college, every white space was filled with doodles that represented what my mind was interpreting in lectures. This was a trait that I lost as time went on and it was not until my time in Orvieto, Italy that I began to sketch again.

The graphics represented in section 1.0 of this portfolio were completed as part of my first graduate class: Landscape Architecture Graphics. Taught by Professor Dennis Law, an emphasis on black and white sketching and rendering focused the class. Next, the bridge to color rendering was explored by combining marker techniques with pen sketches.

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The final component to the graphics class was water color experimentation.

Hand sketching and rendering is something that must always be practiced. To this day art is a skill that is personally under development and will be forever.

A R T

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1.1 Cathedral Entrance. Hand pencil sketch.

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1.2 Kansas Barn. Hand pencil sketch 7

1.3 Tower Bridge. Hand pen sketch.

8 Undergraduate

1.4 Swedish Half Timber. Hand pen sketch with marker overly.

Graduate 9

1.5 Pine & Rock. Marker & pen.

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1.6 Hong Kong Market. Marker & pen.

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2.0 Collaborating with the Manhattan Mennonite Congregation and fifth year architecture students a master plan for one of two sites in Manhattan, KS was constructed. Working in groups of two, a schematic design was fast tracked. This allowed for the majority of time spent to be focused on developing a planting design for the schematic design of the site. Each planting designs was produced individually.

Plant taxonomy has never been a key area of interest to me. The relevance of knowing plant characteristics quickly became clear during this project. The schematic design I produced created many unique site conditions that had to be addressed when creating a plant schedule. Professor Lee Skableund was a significant asset for teaching the importance of proper plant selection.

Later in the curriculum this design had a set of construction documents developed for our design implementation course.

A grading plan was developed and an end area method was used to determine cut and fill. Construction documents were also developed for several site specific features. A layout and 12 Undergraduate

dimension plan was produced as well as an irrigation and lighting plan.

This design is based on a series of regulating lines mimicking the center-pivot irrigation pattern set up by the cropland surrounding the site. Plants were placed with regards to key views, seasonal interest, and ideal growth suitability.

M E N N O N I T E

C O N G R E G A T I O N

Undergraduate 13

2.1 Design Development. Pen Sketch.

2.2 Design Development. Chipboard model.

14 Undergraduate

2.3 Seasonal Planting Design. SketchUp model and Photoshop rendering.

Undergraduate 15

2.4 Planting Plan. AutoCAD and LandF/X. 16 Undergraduate

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MMC BUILDING FFE: 1070

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12/10/2010

A 0’ 15’ 30’

60’

120’

EARTHWORK 2.5 Grading and Earth Work.

AutoCAD and LandF/X. DIAGRAM

Undergraduate 17

SCALE HORIZONTAL SCALE: 1”=30’ 0”

L-3.00

2.6 Irrigation Plan. AutoCAD and LandF/X.

18 Undergraduate

2.7 Lighting Plan. AutoCAD.

Undergraduate 19

3.0 Located adjacent to the Central Business District in downtown Denver, Arapahoe Square has the highest percentage of homeless in the area. This site has some of the most potential for economic development in the area because of its location to the CBD. The focus of this studio was tectonics; looking at the site from a large context all the way down to a small scale design. This approach had been used in several charettes before but was not the primary focus.

As a studio we stayed on site for five days, each day was focused on a different issue or topic. Our class was divided into large groups and assigned different elements of the environment to inventory; vegetation, social trends, infrastructure, and site inventory. After returning home we were divided into new, smaller groups and created a cohesive master plan under which each member would produce their own site design. I focused on a pedestrian street corridor, taking precedent from the 16th street mall in downtown Denver.

20 Undergraduate

The design produced is a series of possibilities for pedestrian movement and interaction with the site both during the day and at night. Each element is intended to serve a multitude of functions and the sculptural elements play with scale to human form. This schematic design also works to create a pedestrian link to Coors Field from the proposed residential development. This design would create a streetscape that would promote economic development adjacent the CBD.

A R A P A H O E

S Q U A R E

Undergraduate 21

3.2 Design Development. SketchUp. 22 Undergraduate

ERVIEW 3.1 Metropolitan Analysis. ESRI ArcScene.

G CHAMPA PLAZA ACROSS BROADWAY BEFORE A HOME GAME

3.3 Design Development. SketchUp.

FROM COORS FIELD DOWN THEfeet HOTEL 0 BOARDWALK 450 900 1 inch = 1,000

1,800

2,700

Feet 3,600

Undergraduate 23

24 Undergraduate

3.5 Concept Ideagram. Photoshop Montage.

3.4 Design Development. SketchUp.

3.6 Small Scale Site Plan. SketchUp, Photoshop Rendering.

Undergraduate 25

4.0 My final studio before departing for Italy was a specialization.

Students were allowed to select from either a resort development, water focused design, or a conservation development. Each project had a different sub topic. I chose the conservation development because it had a construction/ design implementation focus and I feel that the ability to develop construction documentation is valuable.

Wildwood Development is a conservation community centered on the character of Flint Hills. The design calls for a change in the typical subdivisions of Manhattan Kansas.

The focus of this community is to bring neighbors together under the pleasure of nature. Instead of developing the entire site, housing has been clustered in a dense yet comfortable manner, encouraging the residents to socialize in nature.

This development is intended to serve as a precedent for Manhattan’s population growth.

Because conservation development is a new practice in community development, the structure of phasing has been setup to ease Manhattan home buyers into different housing 26 Undergraduate

typologies. Phase 1 is designed to mimic the historic district near Poyntz. Phase 2 is a camping site and equestrian stable intended to give a multitude of users’ activity space in a secluded park space. Phase 3 is intended to house those interested in the community and serve as a pseudocohousing development. As the site is located across the Kansas River it is important that neighborly bonding occurs.

The target home owner is that of empty nesters all the way to senior citizens looking to participate in community development. The architecture and land both work to acknowledge the succession from the prairie grass cuestas to the cedar that exist now.

S P R I N G E R C O N S E R V A T I O N D E V E L O P M E N T

Undergraduate 27

4.1 Conservation Development Plan. AutoCAD Civil 3D, Marker Rendering, Photoshop Rendering.

Horse Stable Camp Ground

28 Undergraduate

Lawn

Detenton Area

Undergraduate 29

4.2 Graded Entry Road For First Phase Development. Vue.

4.3 Second Phase Development Atop Cuesta. Vue. 30 Undergraduate

4.4 Phase One And Two Aerial. Vue.

4.5 Road Alignment. AutoCAD Civil 3D.

4.6 Earthwork Calculations. AutoCAD Civil 3D. Undergraduate 31

5.0 Wichita is an historic keystone in American history Since 2002 Wichita has begun another period of urbanization and the Wichita Downtown Development Corporation (WDDC) was formed to help facilitate the needs of both the people wanting to move downtown and the developers who aim to realize the city’s historic potential. With the help of the WDDC the City of Wichita adopted the Project Downtown Master Plan developed by the Boston based firm Goody Clancy in 2010.

The Project Downtown has a market driven development strategy that has little concern for ecology. The economically driven master plan gives little reason for a developer to be ecologically and socially oriented. The City of Wichita does have a rudimentary incentive focused on public infrastructure. Essentially, the City of Wichita will front the money to help develop the public infrastructure of a site to ease the total development costs. This is the key to begin defining the Project Downtown’s green spaces that are socially and ecologically oriented. Green infrastructure is a method of developing land used by pedestrian, automobile, 32 Graduate

and other human needs in a way that is ecologically sensitive. The general idea of green infrastructure is to open up the barrier of an impermeable infrastructure created by urban development to the soil below. The goal is to get as close to an undeveloped footprint as possible while still meeting the needs of the humans who occupy the area.

This project looks at the Catalyst Site C-2 (chosen by the Project Downtown as an integral step of development) and designs the given program using several green infrastructure techniques. The proposed design is treated as a pilot project intended to treat 80% of the stormwater runoff developed by the building, automobile, and pedestrian space during a two year, one hour storm. This schematic design would cost roughly $536,00 designed using traditional grey infrastructure of impervious pavements that drain directly to the Arkansas River. By implementing green infrastructure the costs total roughly $533,000 saving $4,000 and greatly improving the ecological and social benefits of the design.

G R E E N I N F R A S T R U C T U R E S U I T A B I L I T Y F O R D O W N T O W N W I C H I T A

Graduate 33

5.1 Green Infrastructure Suitability Analysis. ESRI ArcScene.

RasterT_Recla ss1_Merge

Feature to Raster (9)

Merge (10)

RasterT_Recla ss4_Merge

Feature to Raster (12)

Feature_Rast5

Merge (8)

RasterT_Recla ss2_Merge

Feature to Raster (10)

Feature_Rast3

Merge (11)

RasterT_Recla ss5_Merge

Feature to Raster (13)

Feature_Rast6

RasterT_Recla ss3_Merge

Feature to Raster (11)

Feature_Rast4

Merge (7) Reclassify (15)

Reclass_Rain 1

Raster to Polygon (5)

RasterT_Recla ss1 (4)

Erase (6)

Dissolve (5)

RoadDistill

Dissolve (6)

Slab_Dissolve

Dissolve (7)

Sidewalk_Diss olve

Dissolve (8)

Ditch_Dissolv e

Reclassify (16)

Dissolve (9)

RoofArea_RA S

Reclassify (4)

Reclass_Gree 2

Reclass_Pave 1

Raster to Polygon (8)

Raster to Polygon (6)

RasterT_Recla ss4

Pavement_Me rge

Merge (6)

Parking_Disso lve

Add Field (3)

DowntownBou ndary (3)

Feature to Raster (8)

Pavement_Ra ster

Reclassify (14)

Pavement_Ra ster_Reclass

Reclassify (19)

Reclass_Rain 1 (3)

Raster to Polygon (9)

Erase (9)

WichitaBound ary_Erase3

Erase (7)

WichitaBound ary_Erase1

Erase (10)

WichitaBound ary_Erase4

RasterT_Recla ss2

DowntownBou ndary (5)

RasterT_Recla ss5

Calculate Field (3)

Multiple Ring Buffer (2)

Feature to Raster (3)

Feature_Rast2

WichitaBound ary_Erase

Reclassify (18)

Roads.shp

BuildingOffset

RoofArea_RA S_Reclass

Weighted Sum (2)

RainHarvest_ Suit

Raster to Polygon (3)

GreenRoofSuit PLGN

slabs.shp

Feature to Raster

Roof_Type_R AS

Reclassify

Roof_Type_R AS_Reclass

Extract by Mask

Roof_Slope

Reclassify (6)

Roof_Slope_R eclass

sidewalks.shp

DowntownBou ndary (4)

buildingfootpri nt.shp

Reclassify (2)

BuildingHeight _RAS_Reclas s

Raster to Polygon

Slope

Downtown_Slo pe

Select

RasterT_Buildi n1_Select

Select (3)

RasterT_Buildi n1_Select2

Select (4)

RasterT_Buildi n1_Select3

RasterT_Buildi n1

GreenRoof_Su it

Reclassify (3)

Reclass_Gree 1

paved_ditch.s hp

Merge

Select (2)

Weighted Sum

BldgHeightMer ge

Feature to Raster (2)

Select (8)

GreenRoofSuit PLGN_Sel3

Dissolve (4)

GreenRoofSuit PLGN_Sel3_D issolve

Buffer (4)

Erase (13)

bldgbuffer

Merge (13)

DowntownBou ndary_Erase2 _Merg (3)

Erase (11)

DowntownBou ndary_Erase2

Add Field (5)

bldgbuffer (3)

Calculate Field (6)

bldgbuffer (2)

Merge (15)

bldgbuffer_Me rge

Feature to Raster (6)

Feature_bldg2

Reclassify (11)

BLDG_Dist_R eclass

Erase (12)

GreenRoofSuit PLGN_Sel3_D isso1

Calculate Field (5)

GreenRoofSuit PLGN_Sel3_D isso1 (3)

Merge (14)

GreenRoofSuit PLGN_Sel3_D isso2

Feature to Raster (7)

Feature_Gree 2

Reclassify (12)

GreenRoofPro x_Reclass

Add Field (4)

Output Feature Class (2)

Calculate Field (4)

Output Feature Class (3) Merge (12)

DowntownBou ndary_Erase2 _Merg

Feature to Raster (5)

Feature_Rast1

Reclassify (10)

FlowAcc_Recl ass

Reclassify (13)

Slope_Reclas sify

GreenRoofSuit PLGN_Sel3_D issolve_Buff

DowntownBou ndary (2)

parking.shp

Merge (4)

RaingardenPa ve

FlowDir_FILL1 (3)

Flow Accumulation (2)

FlowAcc_Flow 4

Select (10)

RasterT_Recla ss1_Select1 (3)

Select (11)

RasterT_Recla ss1_Select2 (3)

Select (9)

RasterT_Recla ss1_Select (3)

Weighted Sum (4)

BldgHeightRa ster Extract by Mask (3)

Extract_Flow1

Reclassify (9)

Reclass_Extr1

Raster to Polygon (4)

RasterT_Recla ss1 (2)

RasterT_Buildi n1_Select1

Merge (5)

RasterT_Recla ss1_Select_M erg (2)

RainGarden_S uit

Weighted Sum (5)

Select (6)

RasterT_Recla ss1_Select1

Erase (4)

FlowDir_Fill1

Flow Accumulation

FlowAcc_Flow 1

Reclassify (5)

Reclass_Flow 1

Raster to Polygon (2)

RasterT_Recla ss1

Select (7)

Select (5)

RasterT_Recla ss1_Select2

Merge (2)

RasterT_Recla ss1_Select_M erg

Dissolve

RasterT_Recla ss1_Select_M erg1

Buffer

RasterT_Recla ss1_Select_M erg2

Buffer (3)

Downspout_B uff10

Erase (3)

DownspoutSta rt

Multiple Ring Buffer

PedPave_Min usBLDGBuff1_ Erase

Dissolve (3)

PedPave_Min usBLDGBuff1_ Erase1

Add Field (2)

PedPave_Min usBLDGBuff1_ Erase1 (2)

Calculate Field (2)

PedPave_Min usBLDGBuff1_ Erase1 (4)

Erase (5)

DownspoutSta rt_MultipleRin gB1

DownspoutSta rt_MultipleRin gB

Merge (3)

RasterT_Recla ss1_Select

Downtown_DE M_ProjectRast er2

Slope (2)

Slope_Downto 2

DownspoutSta rt_MultipleRin gB2

Feature to Raster (4)

DistancefromD ownS_Rast

Reclassify (8)

DistFromDSpo ut_Reclass

Reclassify (7)

GroundSlope_ Reclass

Weighted Sum (3)

VegetatedSwa le_Suit Erase (8)

Project Raster (2)

Reclassify (17)

Reclass_Vege 1

Raster to Polygon (7)

RasterT_Recla ss3

Composite_Su it

WichitaBound ary_Erase2 Merge (9)

Downtown_DE M

Dissolve (2)

LASRaster_1

Project Raster

LASRaster_Pr oject1

Extract by Mask (2)

LAS_RoofMas k

Fill

Fill_LAS_Roo 1

Flow Direction (2)

BuildingFootpr int_Dissolve

Buffer (2)

BLDG_Buff4

Erase

PedPave_Min usBLDGBuff1

Add Field

PedPave_Min usBLDGBuff1 (2)

Calculate Field

PedPave_Min usBLDGBuff1 (3)

Erase (2)

PedPaveBuffN egative

Flow Direction

Output drop raster

Output drop raster (2) PedestrianPav e

DowntownBou ndary

Suitability ArcScene Model

Vegetated Swale

Porous Pavement

Green Roof

Rainwater Harvesting

Rain Garden

Composite Suitability

34 Graduate

Weighted Sum (6)

Composite_Su it (2)

5.2 Green Infrastructure Development On The Arkansas River. SketchUp, Kerkeythea, Photoshop.

5.3 Analysis Concept. Photoshop.

Graduate 35

5.4 Grey vs. Green Infrastructure Landuse. Photoshop.

5.5 Green Infrastructure Benefits. Photoshop.

Filtration 36 Graduate

Infiltration

5.6 Green Infrastructure Development On The Arkansas River. SketchUp, Kerkeythea, Photoshop.

Insulation

Sequestration Graduate 37

6.0 My work at the Wichita Downtown Development Corporation was key towards developing real world application of the skills learned in school. Most of the work done pertained to economic development. Wichita has been seeing rapid growth and the WDDC was founded to direct this growth. I acted as the lead landscape architect in charge of developing new ideas for urban design issues in the downtown; I was guided by the president Jeff Fluhr and vice president Jason Gregory, both with degrees in landscape architecture.

The first project I worked on was an attempt to create a vision for a condemned parking garage that would turn the garage into an asset downtown. I developed several faรงade concepts for the city, however little progress has been made as acquisition of the garage will take time.

The second project was to develop a simple site plan for the Commerce Plaza to help the Ruthvens, owners, sell their property. They showed me the original plans for the building and they seemed to be in love with their property.

38 Professional

I developed their site plan but in my spare time I generated a computer model using the original plans and faรงade. The Ruthvens are currently seeking a historic renovation rather than selling their property.

My final project was a review of a development happening along the Arkansas River. The site was key to creating a portal from the Downtown to the smaller business district of Delano. I developed a new site plan and building location that met their space requirements while acknowledging existing historical site features and public pedestrian access to the riverfront. The developers are currently in agreement with my revisions and their plans are in revision.

W I C H I T A D O W N T O W N D E V E L O P M E N T C O R P O R A T I O N

Professional 39

6.3 Site Plan. Pencil Sketch, Photoshop.

Day

6.1 Garage Faรงade Concept. Pen & Marker Sketch.

6.2 Garage Faรงade Concept. Sketchup & Podium.

Night

40 Professional

6.4 Commerce Plaza Historic Renovation Concept. SketchUp, Podium, & Photoshop.

6.5 Commerce Plaza Historic Renovation Concept. SketchUp, Podium, & Photoshop.

Professional 41

6.6 Commerce Plaza Historic Renovation Concept. SketchUp, Podium, & Photoshop.

42 Professional

6.7 West Bank Development Concept. Photoshop.& Illustrator

6.8 West Bank Development Concept. SktechUp & Photoshop.

Professional 43

7.0 R E S U M E

44 Resume

AARON JOHNSON EDUCATION

Kansas State University College of Architecture Planning & Design; Manhattan, KS Master of Landscape Architecture; May 2013

Centro Studi; Orvieto, Italy Spring study abroad 2012

PRFOFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

4833c Elm St. Skokie Il 60077 | aaronj@ksu.edu

(847) 347.9817

Wichita Downtown Development Corporation Landscape Architecture Intern 2012

FORMAL COMPUTER SKILLS

AutoCAD, Civil3D, Land F/X Plug-in for AutoCAD. Adobe Creative Suite 4, 6 (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Bridge).

SketchUp 7, 8 Pro (V-ray, Podium, Kerkythea and Land F/X Plug-in for SketchUp).

ArcGIS 9.3, 10, 10.1 (ArcCatalog, ArcMap, ArcScene, and all extensions).

Revit 2007, 2008.

Self Taught: Autodesk Inventor 2006, 2007; Rhinoceros, Kerkythea, and 3D Studio Viz.

ORGANIZATIONS

Student Chapter of American Society of Landscape Architects.

PGASLA and National

Sigma Chi Fraternity.

Sigma Chi Philanthropies (volunteered 105 hours over 3 years).

Project Purple

Aided in the founding and assisted throughout 2010-2011 alongside the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

LEADERSHIP EXPERIENCE

Teens 2 Teams with Peter Ferrito 2007.

Conference in which marching band team leaders learn and practice goal setting, speech, and leadership skills Balfour Leadership Training Workshop 2010.

Workshop in which the leadership from undergraduate chapters of Sigma Chi convene to learn and practice leadership skills Sigma Chi Executive Board 2010-2011.

Participated in chapter meetings. Mentored freshmen, providing education, profession meetings, and personal advice to new students.

Resume 45