WORK, TEACH, LIVE, CONNECT
SEPTEMBER 2018
an–dro–POH–gone \ n: We know - it’s a mouthful. Andropogon is a scientific category for a group of common North American field grasses. Wherever land has been disturbed, Andropogon grasses are one of the first living things to emerge. They colonize the ground, build soil so other plants may join it, and provide self-sustaining cover for a gradual, successional return to forest. It’s more than just a name for us - it’s an idea. An ethos. An aspiration. It is the greatest of the many gifts given to us by our founders. And it continually inspires us.
FIRM PROFILE
Founded over forty years ago, Andropogon is an MBE-certified landscape architecture and ecological design firm committed to the principle of “designing with nature,” creating beautiful and evocative landscapes inspired by the careful observation of natural processes and informed by environmental research. We have applied our ecological design approach to a broad range of sustainable site design, planning, ecological restoration, and innovative stormwater management projects. Our body of national and international work includes early examples of innovative green strategies that have withstood the test of time. Andropogon’s ecological design approach has transformed many academic facilities. Our integrated systems design process is fundamentally collaborative, where we develop a suite of design strategies that address the multiple challenges of the site while leveraging the existing natural, cultural, and social assets of the site to create a memorable landscape experience. OUR LANDSCAPES WORK, providing multiple ecosystem services, such as stormwater management, habitat creation, and engagement with nature. OUR LANDSCAPES TEACH, maximizing the opportunities for outdoor spaces to serve as an extension of the classroom. OUR LANDSCAPES ARE FOR LIVING, they provide dynamic, healthy places to live and play, both for the community and native flora and fauna. OUR LANDSCAPES CONNECT, bringing people together in engaging spaces that provide fruitful ground for collaboration and celebration.
100+ COMPLETED ACADEMIC PROJECTS 15 AWARD WINNING ACADEMIC PROJECTS 9 LEED CERTIFIED ACADEMIC PROJECTS 5 AIA COTE TOP GREEN BUILDING ACADEMIC PROJECTS
2
LIVING BUILDING CHALLENGE ACADEMIC PROJECTS IN DESIGN
1
SITES CERTIFIED ACADEMIC PROJECT
LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE Site Analysis Site & Landscape Design Landscape Management Permit and Regulatory Preparation Construction Documentation and Observation Historic Preservation and Adaptive Reuse
REGIONAL PLANNING Environmental and Land Use Planning Environmental Assessment Feasibility Studies Natural Resource Management Open Space and Trail Systems Community Planning and Facilitation
MASTER PLANNING Program Analysis and Development Mixed-use & Residential Development Institutional Visioning and Development Stormwater Management Ecological Restoration Brownfield Redevelopment Funding Strategies
SERVICES SUSTAINABILITY STRATEGIES Site Selection Environmental Assessment Site Planning and Design Stormwater Management Brownfield Redevelopment SITES Documentation LEED Documentation Living Building Challenge Documentation
RESEARCH Post-Occupancy Evaluations and Case Studies Environmental Monitoring Soil Biology Analysis Social Monitoring Experimental Design Monitoring Protocols Adaptive Landscape Management Programs Public Outreach and Presentations Grant Writing and Technical Writing
2018 ASLA Landscape Architecture Firm Award from the American Society of Landscape Architects
Architects
2018 ASLA HONOR AWARD in Analysis and Planning for Shield Ranch Master Plan from the American Society of Landscape Architects
2016 SCUP MERIT AWARD for Excellence in Planning for an Existing Campus from the Society for College and University Planning for the Temple University Health Sciences Campus Framework Plan, with Payette
2018 SARA NY DESIGN AWARD from the Society of American Registered Architects - NY Council, for the Cohon Center at Carnegie Mellon University with Cannon Architects
2016 LAND ETHICS AWARD OF MERIT from Bowman’s Hill Wildflower Preserve for the green roof at the SUNY ESF Gateway Center, with Architerra, Inc.
2018 EXCELLENCE IN HISTORIC PRESERVATION from the Preservation League of New York State for the Richardson Olmsted Complex, with Flynn Battaglia and Deborah Berke Partners
2016 GSA PLANNING AWARD from the U.S. General Service Administration for the St. Elizabeth’s Campus, with Perkins + Will
2017 ROUSE AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE from the Urban Land Institute Philadelphia for Bartram’s Mile
2015 GROUNDBREAKER AWARD FINALIST from the Delaware Valley Green Building Council for Lower Venice Island Recreation Center, with Buell Kratzer Powell
2016 GSA DESIGN AWARD from the U.S. General Service Administration for the United States Coast Guard Headquarters, with Perkins + Will
2015 SCUP MERIT AWARD for Excellence in Architecture for Building Additions from the Society for College and University Planning for Kline Fitness and Squash Center at Dickinson College with Cannon Design
2016 ASLA HONOR AWARD in the Research Category for Shoemaker Green at the University of Pennsylvania
2015 PRESERVATION AWARD from the New Jersey Historic Preservation Office for Duke Farms, with VITETTA
2016 AIA COTE TOP TEN AWARD from AIA Committee on the Environment for the Center for Sustainable Landscapes at Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, with The Design Alliance
2014 HONOR AWARD from the AIA NY Committee on the Environment for the Kohler Environmental Center at Choate Rosemary Hall, with Robert A.M. Stern Architects
2016 AIA COTE TOP TEN AWARD from the AIA Committee on the Environment for the J. Craig Venter Institute, with ZGF
2014 HONOR AWARD from AIA Philadelphia for the Karabots Pavilion at the Franklin Institute, with SaylorGregg Architects, now a Studio of JacobsWyper
RECENT AWARDS
2014 ASLA HONOR AWARD in the General Design Category for Shoemaker Green at the University of Pennsylvania
of Architects for the SUNY ESF Gateway Center, with Architerra
2014 GROUNDBREAKER AWARD FINALIST from the Delaware Valley Green Building Council for Shoemaker Green at the University of Pennsylvania
2013 STORMWATER BMP AWARD from the Temple-Villanova Sustainable Stormwater Initiative for Stroud Water Research Center, Shoemaker Green, and the Kroc Corps Community Center
2014 AIA NYS AWARDS including a Design Award Citation and an Excelsior Award for Public Architecture for the SUNY ESF Gateway Center, with Architerra, Inc.
2013 AWARD OF HONOR from the Connecticut Green Building Council for the Kohler Environmental Center at Choate Rosemary Hall, with Robert A.M. Stern Architects
2014 HONOR AWARD for Excellence in Architecture for a New Building from the Society for College and University Planning/ AIA-CAE for the SUNY ESF Gateway Center, with Architerra, Inc.
2013 HONOR AWARD in General Design and People’s Choice Award from the Pennsylvania-Delaware Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects for the Salvation Army Ray and Joan Kroc Corps Community Center, with MGA Partners
2014 AIA COTE Top Ten AWARD from AIA Committee on the Environment for the SUNY ESF Gateway Center, with Architerra, Inc. 2014 HONOR AWARD in General Design from the Tri-State ASLA for the Clemson University ICAR Technology Neighborhood 1 Plaza, with Seamon Whiteside 2014 SCUP MERIT AWARD for Excellence in Landscape Architecture-General Design from the Society for College and University Planning for Shoemaker Green at the University of Pennsylvania 2014 MERIT AWARD in General Design from ASLA NY for the SUNY ESF Gateway Center Green Roof, with Architerra 2013 SUSTAINABLE DESIGN AWARD from the Boston Society
2013 MERIT AWARD in Analysis & Planning from the Pennsylvania-Delaware Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects for the St. Elizabeth’s West Campus Landscape Integration Plan 2012 DESIGN EXCELLENCE AWARD from the Pennsylvania Chapter of the AIA for the Salvation Army Ray and Joan Kroc Corps Community Center, with MGA Partners 2012 COMMUNITY AWARD from the US Green Building Council New Jersey Chapter for Duke Farms LEED Improvements, Reuse and Renovation 2012 AMERICAN ARCHITECTURE AWARD from the European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies and The Chicago Athenaeum Museum of Architecture and Design for the Horticultural Center at the Morris Arboretum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with Overland Partners
ARCHITERRA
DREXEL UNIVERSITY
ARUP
DUKE FARMS FOUNDATION
ATKIN OLSHIN SCHADE ARCHITECTS
E.I. DU PONT DE NEMOURS & CO.
AYERS SAINT GROSS
ELLENZWEIG
BALLINGER
ENNEAD ARCHITECTS
BNIM
EWINGCOLE
BOHLIN CYWINSKI JACKSON
EYP ARCHITECTURE & ENGINEERING
BOWIE GRIDLEY ARCHITECTS
FAIRMOUNT PARK COMMISSION
BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA
FRANKLIN INSTITUTE IN PHILADELPHIA
BRYN MAWR COLLEGE
FREDERIC SCHWARTZ ARCHITECTS
CANNON DESIGN
FXFOWLE
CARNEGIE MELLON UNIVERSITY
GBBN
CENTER CITY DISTRICT, PHILADELPHIA
GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION
CENTRAL PARK CONSERVANCY, NYC
GENSLER
CHATHAM UNIVERSITY
GEORGIA TECH
CHESTNUT HILL COLLEGE
GOODY CLANCY
CITY OF ALEXANDRIA VA
GRASSO HOLDINGS
CITY OF ALLENTOWN PA
GRIMSHAW ARCHITECTS
CITY OF CLEVELAND OH
GUND PARTNERSHIP
CITY OF LEWES DE
H2L2
CITY OF PHILADELPHIA
HANBURY, EVANS, WRIGHT, VLATTAS & CO
CLEMSON UNIVERSITY
HAVERFORD COLLEGE
COOKFOX
HNTB
COOPER, ROBERTSON & PARTNERS
HOK
CORNELL UNIVERSITY
HOWARD HUGHES MEDICAL RESEARCH FOUNDATION
CROXTON COLLABORATIVE ARCHITECTS
IKM, INC.
DEBORAH BERKE PARTNERS
INCYTE
DICKINSON COLLEGE
JACOBS (FORMERLY KLINGSTUBBINS)
DIGSAU
KIERANTIMBERLAKE
SELECTED CLIENTS AND PARTNERS
KRUEK + SEXTON
SALVATION ARMY
LAKE/FLATO ARCHITECTS, INC.
SAYLORGREGG ARCHITECTS
LEHIGH VALLEY HOSPITAL
SIDWELL FRIENDS SCHOOL
LS3P ASSOCIATES, LTD.
SKIDMORE OWINGS & MERRILL
M2 ARCHITECTURE
SMITHGROUPJJR
MACLAY ARCHITECTS
SMP ARCHITECTS
MANAYUNK DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION
SOLOMON CORDWELL BUENZ
MAYA LIN STUDIO
STAPLETON REDEVELOPMENT FOUNDATION CO
MERCK SHARP & DOHME
THE DESIGN ALLIANCE ARCHITECTS
MGA PARTNERS
THE PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIVERSITY
MICHAEL GRAVES & ASSOCIATES
THE PEROT GROUP
MIDDLEBURY COLLEGE
THOMAS JEFFERSON UNIVERSITY
MILLBROOK SCHOOL
TISHMAN SPEYER PROPERTIES
MOORE RUBLE YUDELL
TSOI KOBUS & ASSOCIATES, INC.
MORRIS ARBORETUM OF THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA
U.S. COAST GUARD
NATIONAL DEFENSE UNIVERSITY
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA
NIKKO KIRIFURI RESORT, JAPAN
UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA
OLMSTED PARKS AND PARKWAYS
UNIVERSITY OF THE SCIENCES IN PHILADELPHIA
OVERLAND PARTNERS
UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA
PAYETTE
VILLANOVA UNIVERSITY
PELLI CLARKE PELLI
VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH UNIVERSITY
PERKINS & WILL
VIRGINIA TECH
PITTSBURGH URBAN REDEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY
VITETTA GROUP
PMC PROPERTY GROUP
VOITH & MACTAVISH ARCHITECTS
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY
VSBA
RAFAEL VIÑOLY ARCHITECTS
WILLIAM MCDONOUGH + PARTNERS
RE:VISION ARCHITECTURE
YALE UNIVERSITY
ROBERT A.M. STERN ARCHITECTS
ZEIDLER PARTNERSHIP
ROTHSCHILD DOYNO COLLABORATIVE
ZGF ARCHITECTS
UNIVERSITY CITY DISTRICT
PLACE FIRST Our goal is to understand and express the essential character of a place. We tell the story of a site by learning what it was, understanding what it is, and realizing what it can become.
HARMONIZE PEOPLE AND PLACE Our designs find opportunities for a dynamic and relevant future in the fundamentals of the place and the aspirations of the community.
HEAL ECOSYSTEMS Our core approach is to build dynamic, holistic systems and establish a healthy web of relationships.
DESIGN PRINCIPLES CREATING HIGHPERFORMANCE / MULTI-FUNCTIONING LANDSCAPES Creative problem-solving shapes our landscapes making them interactive. We are committed to synergistic designs where roles are inter-dependent and mutually supporting.
ECONOMY OF INTERVENTION We protect the integrity of ecological and social systems through non-invasive and carefully targeted solutions; maximum impact with minimal invasion.
BEAUTY IS MORE THAN SKIN DEEP Our landscapes are not only artistic and aesthetically beautiful; they create evocative experiences with lasting impressions while serving as essential organizing elements of a site.
LANDSCAPES THAT
5 5
LEGEND
1. RAIN LEGEND 2. SURFACE RUNOFF
3. CONVEYANCE TO CISTERN 1. RAIN 4. WATER TO IRRIGATION 2. SURFACE RUNOFF 5. IRRIGATION TO PLANTS 3. CONVEYANCE TO CISTERN 6. EVAPOTRANSPIRATION 4. WATER TO IRRIGATION 7. OVERFLOW TO SEWER 5. IRRIGATION TO PLANTS 8. POTABLE WATER TO IRRIGATION 6. EVAPOTRANSPIRATION 9. SOIL MOSTURE 7. OVERFLOW TO SEWER 10. HVAC CONDENSATE 8. POTABLE WATER TO IRRIGATION 9. SOIL MOSTURE 10. HVAC CONDENSATE
UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Shoemaker Green is a 2.75 acre site that connects the central campus to the athletic fields to the east. The site is surrounded by two of the University’s most iconic athletic facilities and serves as the “front doors” to these historic structures. Designed as a high-performance landscape in the garb of a classic college green, Shoemaker Green offers flexible space for various events and activities, from secluded areas to eat lunch all the way up to staging areas for the Penn Relays and graduation, while also providing multiple ecosystem services. Under the sloping lawn and mature, shade trees, Shoemaker Green is a heavy-duty piece of living machinery with the capacity to track its performance. Through a five-year monitoring plan, the site has become a living laboratory of green infrastructure that is informing sustainable design and maintenance policies for the entire University campus. The research project won an ASLA Research Honor Award in 2016. Shoemaker Green is built over a previously developed urban site with widely-varying infiltration rates. In order to meet both the City and University requirements for stormwater management, the site is designed like a large bathtub, where evapotranspiration and irrigation reuse is critical. A sand storage bed, rain garden, and 20,000 gallon cistern, along with tree trenches, planting beds, and various other conveyance systems, route nearly every drop of water on the site—including air-conditioning condensate—through a matrix of plants and soil and to the cistern for irrigation. A five-year monitoring plan was established with the University’s Earth and Environmental Science Department with the goals of testing the green infrastructure’s performance, while also providing feedback for facility managers to improve landscape performance across the campus. Data from the ongoing monitoring has provided essential information to ensure that the site maintains maximum performance as designed. Preliminary findings point to the often overlooked value of plants and soils in stormwater management. Transpiration measurements of the vegetation show that native floodplain species and uncompacted turf transpire anywhere from 3-10 gallons of water per day during the growing season. The data has also highlighted the need for special stormwater management measures during the winter, when the cistern is winterized due to the use of deicing salts and the vegetation is dormant. The monitoring at Shoemaker Green has proven that even relatively small urban landscapes are capable of exceeding environmental goals. There is still much more to learn through the ongoing collaboration between maintenance, monitoring, and site design.
U.S. COAST GUARD HEADQUARTERS
Washington, DC
As a member of the master planning & site development team led by architects Perkins+Will, Andropogon served as the landscape architect and ecological planner for the new United States Coast Guard Headquarters Facility. The Headquarters Facility sits within the historic 182-acre St. Elizabeths campus, a National Historic Landmark located 2.5 miles from the U.S. Capital. This 1.2 million square foot building, with the second largest green roof in the United States, was designed to integrate within its 37-acre site. The landscape, informed by detailed site analysis, sustainable design principals, and stormwater Best Management Practices, creates a functional landscape with exceptional performance and beauty. The sustainable directives for the project included achievement of Silver LEED™ certification. The site’s high performance landscapes are designed to be integrated with the building systems; harvesting, treating, and reusing stormwater that is generated from both the site and buildings. In addition to green roofs, the storm water management system includes wet ponds, bio-swales, and step pools to handle storm water runoff from the entire campus to treat the 2-year, 15-year, 100-year storms, and beyond to accommodate future development. The overall landscape structure of the site is organized around a series of courtyards, edges and green roofs that create a “green veil” over the building and provide continuity in the landscape between the existing woodlands that surround the site and the historical campus to the east; preserving the “Green Bowl” – a series of bluffs and escarpments that surround Washington DC. . The courtyards, as with the building, negotiate a 120 feet grade change by stepping down topographically from east to west to one of the lowest areas of the campus. The progression of terraced courtyards provides a wonderful canvas for highlighting five different ecoregions, where the physiographic regions transition from the Blue Ridge and outcrop barrens of the piedmont (entrance courtyard) to the lowlands of the coastal plain (pond). The courtyards are united by the flow of water coursing through each one, culminating in a 320,000 cubic feet wet pond that maintains its water quality with a native, vegetated edge and aquatic shelf. On grade conditions of the courtyards allowed the designers to plant larger tree species which, over time, will fill-in and allow the building to recess back into the adjacent woodland.
ST. ELIZABETH’S WEST CAMPUS
Washington, DC
The proposed redevelopment of St. Elizabeths West Campus, under the guidance of the General Services Administration (GSA), involves the rehabilitation of the historic campus to house new offices for various federal agencies in southeast Washington, D.C. Providing redevelopment guidance of the campus, from master planning to construction administration phases, is the Landscape Integration Plan by Andropogon Associates which is part of a three volume set, the Landscape Preservation and Management Plan (LPMP) which was completed in partnership with Heritage Landscapes. As part of the campus development, new landscape interventions and features are intended to fulfill multiple roles, including historic rehabilitation and green infrastructure to support the upgraded campus. As part of the Landscape Integration Plan, a soil and stormwater management plan was prepared in collaboration with civil engineers, historic preservationists, soil scientists, geotechnical engineers and hydrogeologists. In the midst of the stringent local and federal stormwater regulatory context, the soil and stormwater management plan presents an appropriate range of soil and stormwater management strategies and desirable locations for individual Best Management Practices (BMP’s) within the historical campus. The process for drafting the plan included a unique combination of resources representing a wide array of technical expertise to create a visual and technical tool to manage soil and stormwater on the campus throughout the stages of development. The stormwater master plan includes: Extensive site analysis, including existing soil analysis for stormwater management, historical hydrology, watershed delineation, comparison of pre-development and postdevelopment hydrology alternatives, and groundwater modeling. Assessment of current and anticipated future stormwater management regulatory requirements and strategies to meet the current and future regulatory needs.
OVERALL CONCEPT PLAN - 2050 EAST COMMONS
64,000 SF (1.47 ACRES)
NORTHWEST COMMONS/ DINING GREEN 155,000 SF (3.55 ACRES)
EAST GREEN / FOOD TRUCK AREA
63,700 SF (1.46 ACRES)
TRAIL CONNECTION
63,600 SF (1.45 ACRES)
SOUTHWEST COMMONS 186,000 SF (4.3 ACRES)
RESEARCH CORRIDOR 95,000 SF (2.2 ACRES)
MERCK WEST POINT CAMPUS
West Point, Pennsylvania
Merck has begun to implement a multi-phased demolition plan for its 397-acre West Point Campus, removing a series of buildings/structures throughout the campus. Andropogon collaborated with Merck to develop a phased campus greening master plan that would help them understand the opportunities that will be afforded as each structure is removed. The Site Greening Initiative at the West Point campus will integrate the vision, mission, and values of Merck. These tenets form the foundation for master plan decisions and extend into the physical site of the campus, improving the experience of its employees and visitors. The four tenets of the process at Merck include resourcefulness and sustainability, safety and clarity, health and fitness, and collaboration and innovation. The campus will be a reflection of the overarching ideals of Merck. Andropogon used a holistic approach to the landscape that allows the major goals of the master planning process to shine through and take shape in the concept designs. The study looks to solve a series of design issues that include: •
Enhancement of the pedestrian experience through and around the campus
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Provide flexible open space areas that can accommodate a variety of uses
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Improve the safety of pedestrians by limiting opportunities for pedestrian and vehicular conflicts
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Conceptual stormwater management strategies, including quantifying the campus landscape improvements to meet upcoming municipal MS4 Permitting and Pollutant Reduction Plan requirements
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Campus landscape planting strategies
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Sustainability opportunities/strategies including: 1. Water harvesting and reuse strategies (stormwater and HVAC condensate) 2. Performance based landscape strategies (functional) 3. Adaptive site management strategies through monitoring and research
LANDSCAPES THAT
GEORGIA TECH
Atlanta, Georgia
Georgia Tech is advancing sustainable design by transforming the heart of its campus through a fully regenerative design that gives back to the environment more than it takes. By promoting the stringent, netpositive standards of the Living Building Challenge, the University hopes that the project will become a catalyst for innovative sustainable design throughout the region. Georgia Tech aims to create a living laboratory where both the university and urban community can learn, through first-hand experience, how innovative water, energy, and food management solutions within the built environment can contribute to health and well-being. Andropogon is working with two teams at Georgia Tech, one led by Lord Aeck Sargent and the The Miller Hull Partnership for the Living Building Challenge project, and another by HGOR for the Eco Commons. These two projects seamlessly integrate the landscape with the architecture for optimal performance and design. The overall design of the Eco Commons provides a clear, yet layered landscape experience through moments of openness and enclosure, and diversity in plant height and texture when moving through the site. Changes in canopy density create many different spaces for site exploration, while providing opportunities for the meadow to flourish. A comprehensive rainwater management strategy is imperative to mitigating runoff across the site. The multifaceted approach emphasizes managing rainwater where it falls while maximizing the collection, storage, and reuse of that water. In addition to managing rainwater from the Eco Commons, the site has the ability to become part of a larger regional green infrastructure system by feeding the Eco-Stream from multiple sources. The Eco-Stream is designed to accommodate varying influx conditions by mimicking natural stream systems. The Living Building Challenge project is fully integrated with the adjacent landscape in order to meet the requirements to be net-positive for water, energy, and waste. The building and site work together to maximize performance of both: •
The building works with the site’s topography with its split building levels that accommodate the site’s slope, while allowing for ADA accessible entries at the building’s front, back, and along the Porch. This minimizes the need for cut and fill operations during construction while allowing equitable access to the building.
•
Water use and management for the building and site are intimately connected. Rainwater swales manage roof runoff and constructed wetlands treat graywater, while providing important didactic opportunities. A mostly drought-tolerant native plant palette will be used to avoid the need for permanent irrigation.
•
Building shading to increase energy efficiency is achieved through a combination of a large PV array, which shades the landscape within the Porch area, and trees at the edge of the Porch, which shade the building, helping the project to achieve net-positive
UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI
University, Mississippi
Recognized as an R-1 post-doctoral research university by the Carnegie Classification, the University of Mississippi is dedicated to increasing STEM literacy for all students on campus. Key to this effort is the new 200,000GSF STEM building and its landscape, which integrates the existing buildings and circulation system on campus to create a distinct Engineering, Science, and Technology precinct. The building and its site are designed to foster interdisciplinary programs and collaboration by providing environments for studentcentered learning through a series of labs, classrooms, and outdoor learning spaces where students and faculty can meet and engage with the built environment to learn about STEM fields in both formal and informal ways. Andropogon is serving as Landscape Architect of Record for the STEM building, working with Ellenzweig, Design Architect and Lab Planner, in collaboration with McCarty Architects as Architect of Record. Andropogon’s site design is critical to connecting the STEM building to the existing campus elements and creating a distinct character for the district. Plaza spaces reinforce primary building entrances and provide informal meeting areas. Interstitial spaces are transformed into teaching gardens. Walkways connect a network of outdoor rooms of varying scale to accommodate both intimate gatherings and large assemblies. Educational opportunities are maximized throughout the site by revealing geology, stormwater management systems, and native plant communities of the Northern Hilly Gulf Coastal Plan ecoregion, while managing water runoff and providing habitat. The new Gertrude C. Ford Way will act as an extension of the major pedestrian artery that serves as both daily circulation, as well as a celebratory promenade during football games, and must support time honored traditions such as the Walk of Champions.
WELLESLEY COLLEGE
Wellesley, Massachusetts
Wellesley College chose Andropogon, in partnership with Kennedy & Violich Architecture, to design a new greenhouse for the College’s diverse and historic Global Flora Collection. The design intentionally blurs the line between indoor and outdoor spaces, becoming essentially “a landscape with a glass box over it.” The intimately integrated building and site is being designed to meet the requirements of the Living Building Challenge. The new greenhouse will serve as a bridge between the college community and the town of Wellesley, while also creating key connections between the main campus, the existing science buildings, and the botanic garden beyond. The sloping site creates an opportunity to introduce green infrastructure systems, picking up and cleaning water as it flows down the buildings and landscape at the top of the hill, through and around the greenhouse, and down to the meadows and lowlands below. The new greenhouse will act as an extension of the science center and provide an opportunity to study and compare plants native to different regions, while exhibiting sustainable design and living processes. The interior of the greenhouse is optimized to showcase the variety and unique adaptations of plants in response to a variety of environmental conditions. It will act as a high-tech garden with the capacity to monitor overall building-scale systems as well as the individual zones of a particular plant, its roots, soil, and water use. It will not just be a place to see plants, but a place to see people studying plants. This active research will be integral to the greenhouse experience. The interior will also adapt to accommodate a range of group sizes, allowing the greenhouse to serve as a social and educational hub during the long New England winters.
SUNY SCHOOL OF ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & FORESTRY
Syracuse, New York
As one of the nation’s leading environmental education and research institutions, The State University of New York’s (SUNY) School of Environmental Science and Forestry (ESF) has experienced substantial growth over the past decade. In response, ESF, in conjunction with the State University Construction Fund, commissioned the design and construction of a new LEED Platinum Gateway Center by Architerra architects with Andropogon. This facility establishes an architectural presence at the campus’s north entrance and echoes the school’s philosophical principles of sustainability. In an effort to exploit the limited site footprint and maximize available campus open space, the project team incorporated a fully-accessible, 9,400-square-foot, intensive green roof, which stretches along the entire western façade of the building. Andropogon’s project involvement focused on three main goals: improve the social and physical campus connections, incorporate didactic landscape elements which speak to the school’s educational ideals, and use green infrastructure to deal with conventional infrastructure issues, such as stormwater management. In an effort to strengthen connectivity across the campus and promote a dynamic multi-use pedestrian space, the design solutions introduced traffic calming measures to surrounding streets, widened adjacent pedestrian streetscape spaces, and created plazas at the north and south of the site to create cohesion between existing campus structures and the new Gateway Center. The planting design, including a fully accessible green roof which showcases plant communities possessing one of the highest concentrations of rare New York state-protected plants, was painstakingly developed with key faculty members to augment specific curriculum requirements. To lessen the burden on municipal stormwater management facilities, Andropogon established a network of rain gardens, green street channels, and 5,000 square feet of vegetated roof to collect, filter, and absorb onsite and offsite sources of stormwater. 2016 Land Ethics Award 2014 AIA COTE TOP TEN GREEN PROJECT 2014 MERIT AWARD from ASLA NY 2014 HONOR AWARD from SCUP/AIA 2014 HONOR AWARD from Boston Society of Architects
CHATHAM UNIVERSITY
Gibsonia, Pennsylvania
The donation of a 388-acre parcel of farmland posed an opportunity for Chatham University to create a new campus devoted to the study of sustainability. The vision for the Eden Hall Campus is founded on the lessons that emerge from the soil, the beauty of the place, the natural systems that sustain growth and renewal, and the rooted culture and timeless character that permeate its grounds. These elements—the “genius of the land”—make up the heart of this new living laboratory. Upon completion, Eden Hall Campus will exist as a self-reliant ecosystem. Andropogon worked in an intensely collaborative design process with Hanbury Evans Wright Vlattas + Company, BNIM Architects, Natural Systems International (now part of Biohabitats), and CEC Engineering to create a master plan with truly sustainable objectives. The master plan objectives were to: •
Create a Climate Positive Development
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The new campus is proposed to generate all energy on site and treat all wastewater on site. The goal for on-site carbon emissions will be net-zero.
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Protect Streams and Waterways:
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The development plan will maintain appropriate stream buffers to protect water resources.
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Regenerate Forest Lands:
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The plan will protect and restore nearly 200 acres of the forest for teaching, research and demonstration.
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Protect Arable Land:
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The development plan for the campus will preserve productive landscapes and scenic views.
LANDSCAPES FOR
new residence hall
kline fitness center
DICKINSON COLLEGE
Carlisle, Pennsylvania
Dickinson College and Andropogon are working together to transform the campus landscape to provide an inspiring living and learning environment and to create connections to the immediate neighborhood. As a first step, Andropogon, in collaboration with ZGF Architects, completed a master plan for the College. The College lacked any real identity due to its urban setting within the town of Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Andropogon’s master plan recommendations included enhancing campus edges, defining gateways, and developing the existing open spaces. Outdoor gathering spaces will be strategically placed at path intersections and adjacent to larger open spaces to encourage student interaction. Also, there will be new open spaces at the campus edge to enhance the relationship with the town. A more pedestrian-friendly campus will be fashioned through new walkways, improved crosswalks, shaded paths, and bike lanes.
master plan
As part of the implementation of the master plan, Andropogon worked with Rhoads Siegel Architects to design an addition to Kaufman Hall, an academic building that houses the departments of Earth Sciences and Environmental Studies, and the Center for Sustainability Education. The addition, a 2,000 gross square foot greenhouse, will provide important research space, a new entry for Kaufman Hall, and a vibrant destination for the west end of campus. The landscape design includes site amenities designed to extend the classroom, illustrating geologic and environmental concepts. Andropogon also worked with Cannon Design on a 30,000SF expansion to the existing Kline Fitness Center. The landscape design showcases native plant communities while accommodating an outdoor shaded patio for classes, a basketball court, a tai chi garden, and open areas for gathering. The site also alleviates localized flooding through bioswales and underground tanks, which have already greatly improved chronic flooding in this area of campus. Additional campus improvement projects are underway or have recently been completed at Dickinson College, including site design for a new, 40,000SF, 129-bed residence hall, designed in collaboration with Deborah Berke Partners. Currently under construction, the new residence hall is designed to achieve LEED Platinum. The landscape continues the palette of materials and plantings that have guided all of the campus improvements. The site incorporates and outdoor patio, as well as an upgraded stormwater management system with four rain gardens. The residential landscape was lushly planted with native plant communities, including 92 new trees and more than 16,000 other plants.
kaufman hall greenhouse
UNIVERSITY OF VERMONT
Burlington, Vermont
One of the University of Vermont’s goals is to become the leading environmental university in the country. A new residential learning complex designed by architects Hanbury Evans Wright Vlattas + Company in collaboration with Andropogon exemplifies the University’s commitment to environmentally responsible design and construction. The 800-bed, $60.6 million LEED-certified project integrates academic and residential life at UVM by centering the site program on student interests in environmental issues. The complex has been lauded for its green building practices, energy saving attributes, landscape ecology, and use of local and regional materials inside and out. Inspired by the natural resources of the campus and its larger landscapes, the team sited the new residence halls and outdoor spaces, such as the courtyard and amphitheater, to capture the dramatic, powerful views to the Green Mountains of Vermont. Additionally, the buildings, trees, landforms, site walls, and pavement were all sited or designed with consideration of their potential contribution to improving the microclimate during winter and summer. Green roofs extend the landscape onto the buildings, showing the symbiotic integration of architecture, ecology and landscape design. Within the building courtyards, exterior “sun courts” are designed to temper the chilly Vermont climate, by providing warm, sunny pockets that use light colored paving to reflect heat and plantings to shelter from the wind. Environmental demonstration projects include an innovative stormwater management system that captures runoff and channels the water into a 500 foot-long vegetated swale -- a “hydrological spine.” The water travels down slope toward a new amphitheater where it cascades through small waterfalls into a stone grotto before reaching a wetland at the lowest point. A cistern and pump system cycle the flow of water back to the top of the swale to keep the water healthy and improve the microclimate, and to maintain visual appeal. Wetland plants such as iris, junjcus, carex grass, rushes, and sweet ferns naturally filter a significant amount of the stormwater runoff from the new complex.
UNIVERSITY CITY SCIENCE CENTER
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
As part of its commitment to gather together the best and brightest minds in the world of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math), The University City Science Center embarked to create a new campus core. At the heart of the remodel is the Innovators Walk of Fame, a sculptural set of recognition pieces paying homage to the Center’s great figures and supporters throughout the years. The site on two blocks between Market Street and Chestnut Street in West Philadelphia, and as the former site of 37th Street, is a major thoroughfare connection Drexel, U Penn, and the rest of the University City community. Andropogon teamed with Exit to create a dynamic, mixed space that turns this throughway into a destination, enticing users to sit and relax, mixing casually the melting pot of University City. The space can accommodate a range of activities, from day to day lunches through large-scale science fairs and fundraising events. Overhead, catenary lights will reduce the vertical clutter of the space, allowing the sculptural elements to hold sway. A series of large, custom social benches will allow for a variety of uses, and loose tables and chairs will scatter throughout the site, encouraging flexibility and site ownership. Electricity and water will be integrated at specific sites around the space, allowing for a wide set of arrangements for food trucks and other events to be supplied and changed as needed.
LANDSCAPES THAT
DREXEL UNIVERSITY Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Andropogon designed a new “center of gravity” for Drexel University along the former 32nd Street between Chestnut and Market Streets. The new campus hub, known as The Raymond G. Perelman Plaza, has become a destination for the campus and neighboring communities, providing an outdoor social and event space that is surrounded by the LeBow College of Business and a new residential and retail center. Drexel University president John Fry called Perelman Plaza a “true town square… the most spectacular community space Drexel has ever had.” Following the completion of the award-winning Master Plan, Andropogon was selected to create a public space that inspires connection, collaboration, and community. The plaza provides a variety of spaces where thousands of people can meet, eat, study, and attend large outdoor gatherings. The design features an improved flow for pedestrian traffic, seamless integration with existing building entrances, well-planned seating, and increased shade and natural beauty. The landscape also manages stormwater runoff and collects and reuses rainwater. Andropogon also recently redesigned the main quadrangle at the heart of Drexel University’s urban campus. The quadrangle is a key open space, linked to major streets, public transportation, and university connections. The major diagonal pathway connecting Chestnut Street to JFK Boulevard has been transformed into a woodland walk with enhanced plantings and a canopy of shade trees. Gathering spaces, which support daily social interactions and allow for large scale events, are a core element of the site program. The design also provides places for new outdoor amenities, such as flexible seating and food trucks. Andropogon’s design reduced the impervious cover of the quadrangle by 96 percent through a combination of porous paving, planting areas, and a new central green space. The site will reduce the urban heat island effect and support birds and beneficial insects through the use of engineered horticultural and structural soils, native ground plantings, and a canopy of shade trees, providing important environmental benefits for the University City neighborhood.
RICHARDSON OLMSTED CAMPUS
Buffalo, New York
Andropogon’s new design enhances and transforms the Richardson Olmsted Complex, a National Historic Landmark, to serve as an important public venue within the City of Buffalo. The historic Frederick Law Olmsted, Sr. landscape was originally designed as an integral part of the therapeutic treatment provided by the Psychiatric Hospital. Andropogon’s redesign has repurposed the Olmsted landscape as a new civic space that provides access to a hotel, conference center, and architecture center, to be located in the H.H. Richardson-designed building. Andropogon re-imagined the nine-acre site as a network of modern “sustainable infrastructures” to create a healthier urban environment and multi-functional civic space. Andropogon’s work leverages the existing assets of the site to preserve its natural systems while unifying the historical, cultural, and human resources of the institution into an exciting new vision. New trees create a series of open, canopied spaces for gathering and recreation while framing stunning views of the Richardson buildings. Over 5,000 square feet of rain gardens have the dual purpose of serving as attractive planted areas that also address stormwater drainage and improve water quality. An entry plaza of granite and flagstone in front of the Towers building serves as an elegant drop off for visitors. The design also includes a 1,700 linear foot pedestrian loop and improved roadways to evoke Olmsted’s attention to detail and materials.
UNIVERSITY OF BUFFALO
Buffalo, New York
Andropogon Associates teamed with Beyer Blinder Belle as the Master Plan consultant for the University at Buffalo Campus. The goal of the master plan was to create three strong, distinctive, seamlessly interconnected centers. The plan also supported the institution’s vision as a progressive center for regional economic development. The 1,346-acre University is divided into 3 separate campuses; North, South and Downtown. Though in close proximity, the campuses are contained within different watersheds and have vastly differing geological contexts. Andropogon conducted extensive environmental studies of the geology, hydrogeology, and soil conditions turning these attributes into sustainable design opportunities. Through analysis, each campus has unique landscape principles that allow the campus to develop according to its context. Following work on the recently completed University of Buffalo 2020 Master Plan, Andropogon was retained by the University to redesign the existing Harriman Quadrangle. The restoration of the central, 2.3-acre quadrangle defines several distinct spaces ancillary to Squire Hall, Harriman Hall, Foster Hall, and Abbott Library that serve both formal and informal uses. Connected to the campus perimeter by a series of walkways, the quad offers more private seating areas along the edges of the square, while the central plaza and entrance to Squire Hall act as elevated stages for civic events. Design features incorporate sustainable landscape principles while respecting the historic character of the campus context. The project scope included developing a vocabulary of furnishings and pathways for year-round sustainable maintenance, replacing and retrofitting underground utility lines, creating native plantings beds of varying heights and textures, and retaining several of the Quad’s mature trees.
MIDDLEBURY COLLEGE CAMPUS MASTER PLAN
Middlebury, Vermont
Middlebury College, a small liberal arts institution, has a long tradition of being on the forefront of environmental education. For several years, Andropogon has assisted Middlebury in developing and embracing sustainability during the college’s expansion – creating landscapes that support new academic, athletic, dining, and residential building projects. At Middlebury, the need to strike a balance between new development and the open character of the campus is a central issue. Past development efforts had located new buildings further away from the campus core in a sprawl-like pattern. While this strategy maintained the rural look of the campus, it dispersed land uses and reduced operational efficiency. Moreover, it was in conflict with the College’s desire to become pedestrian-friendly. In response, the College undertook a master planning process that created a framework for developing the campus over the next 50 years. Completed in association with architects Michael Dennis & Associates, the objective was to provide an integrated perspective of the natural, historical, cultural, and social values that support the mission of the College. To ensure an environmentally responsible approach, the plan guides future development along the natural patterns of the landscape, restoring and preserving natural drainage ways, addressing soil augmentation, forest structure, surface and ground water quality, and vegetation diversity. This foundation has allowed Middlebury College to assess the impacts of different land development strategies on the campus landscape, natural resources, and its watershed. This plan also assists the College in achieving its aggressive goal of carbon neutrality by 2020. Andropogon helped the College assess its landscape as a carbon sink, sequestering tons of carbon dioxide each year while minimizing output through maintenance. The result is a framework for developing an environmentally responsible campus that demonstrates better resource management that meets or exceeds regulatory compliance, and provides Middlebury with an opportunity to showcase progressive principles, serving as a model for the community at large.
weaving together the landscapes of humans and nature for the benefit of both
www.andropogon.com