SUSTAINABLE SLUG IS ALL ABOUT FUN AND FUNCTIONALITY

GRADUATION CELEBRATION FOR THE COLLEGE OF ARCHITECTURE, PLANNING AND LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE STUDENTS AT THE SUSTAINABLE LABORATORY URBAN GARDEN (SLUG). PHOTO CREDIT: LINDA SAMUELS.

It was a forgettable dark and narrow dead-end alley, all brick and old, hot, pitted asphalt. Now that dingy urban alcove, tucked between City High School’s two buildings in downtown Tucson, is beginning to gleam as an open-air space for unlimited play, exploration, and learning. A collaboration among Linda Samuels, project director of the Sustainable City Project at the University of Arizona; Chris Trumble, an assistant professor in the UA’s School of Architecture; their students; and students and faculty from City High School and Paolo Freire Freedom School, the Sustainable Laboratory Urban Garden—SLUG—combines functionality with sustainability. “These kinds of spaces are architects’ dreams,” Samuels said. “Because of the strict parameters, everything is really controlled. You have to be extremely creative and conscientious that each cubic foot is used to its maximum potential.” City High School Principal Carrie Brennan said she was excited to have UA partners downtown, especially from the Sustainable City Project. “The alley has always attracted attention from architects,” she said. “We’ve always felt it could be a little urban oasis.” The space includes strategic sun shading and a 17- percent permeable concrete surface that is slightly sloped for water harvesting. In addition, the team has been working with IE to install light and heat monitoring equipment and a weather station that measures the urban heat island effect inside and outside the garden as a learning tool for classes at City High. Plans for the 12- by 125-foot space on Pennington Avenue also include trellises, an aquaponics system for raising tilapia and growing lettuce and herbs, a performance area called the Blob, a steel armature framework system, and long wavy custom-made steel “ribbons” that serve as benches, slides, and tables. “We wanted to make the space as flexible as possible,” Samuels said. “Everything serves multiple functions.” The armature has space for hanging chalkboards and art displays, the Blob will double as seating for the cafeteria; even the drainage holes on the ribbons spell out a secret message in Braille. As part of an Urban Farming and Sustainability elective, City High School students met with UA students every Friday for a month to help formulate the design and also gathered comments from the larger school community. In the future, students taking the elective will play a leadership role in the alley. Brennan envisions an elite “green crew” that would go beyond the elective to participate in the maintenance and development of the space. “Everyone is learning at every level,” Brennan said. “Our middle school students and staff also had input. Because the students who will use the space range from 12 to18 years old, the project was designed to keep alive the spirit of play. It had us all thinking about what it means to play.” The project was funded by a UA Green Fund grant, City High School, and Paulo Friere Freedom School.