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Page 28 - January 3-16, 2018
ASLA 2017 Awards
The primary purpose of the
Awards Program is to recognize
Colorado andWyoming
licensed landscape architecture
professionals who engage in
the careful stewardship, wise
planning, and artful design
of our cultural and natural
environment. In order to
encourage and recognize
excellence in landscape design
and to promote the variety,
scope, and value of landscape
architecture to the public, ASLA
Colorado invites designers
in Colorado andWyoming to
submit their projects to the
Professional Design Awards
Program. Entries are send
to an out of state ASLA jury
of landscape architects and
planners.
Award Categories
• Design
• Analysis & Planning
• Residential
• Landmark
Founded in 1973, the Ameriacan
Society of Landscape Architects
(ASLA) Colorado mission
is to advance landscape
architecture through advocacy,
communication, education,
and fellowship. Sustainability
has been part of the ASLA
Colorado’s mission since its
founding and is an overarching
value that informs all of the
programs and operations. ASLA
Colorado provides professional
education and programs and
generates overall awareness
for landscape architecture to
the public through our public
relations and government
affairs efforts.
Auraria Higher Education Center
Tivoli Quandrangle | WENK | Denver, Colorado
Mundus Bishop’s design for Joy Park and new campus for the
Children’s Museum of Denver at Marsico Campus re‐envisioned
this existing marginalized, degraded site. With the metaphor
of a river as design inspiration, the campus is now a cohesive, resilient
setting with an original, memorable ‘outdoor museum’ for children and
caregivers. Grounded in local ecology, this dynamic, physical environment
fulfills the Museum’s mission of bringing health, wellness, science,
technology, engineering, math and the arts to visitors in an exuberant,
experiential place. The ‘river’ is the lead character, syncing the Museum
with its South Platte River setting. Precast and cast‐in‐place concrete,
quarried sandstone, boulders, wood, and self‐weathering and galvanized
steel create outdoor rooms. Water play, a zip line zoom, puddle jumping,
cave climbing, and hillside lounging happen through beautifully wild,
weather‐worn, larger‐than‐life, natural materials that shape experiences
and establish relationships between ‘river’, landform, path, and nodes.
TheAuraria Campus represents a unique venture in higher education. The
vision of the 4‐acreTivoliQuadrangle is to be a shared campus community
space, designed to support special events, recreation, and education.
The multi‐component project consists of a tiered patio, a multi‐purpose
natural grass quad, peaceful areas with seating and trees, a large
amphitheater, supportive roadway/streetscape improvements creating
greater connectivity, a two‐way separated bike lane connecting the
north and south sides of campus, utility and stormwater infrastructure,
site and activity lighting, and site finishes/amenities. The Tivoli Quad
is a place where the campus institutions can showcase their students’
talents, partner with outside groups to sponsor events and concerts for
students and the Denver community, and host graduation and campus
festivals, as well as an expansive space for leisure where students can
hangout, recreate, and enjoy the spectacular view of downtown Denver.
In the late 1950s, civic leaders of a struggling downtown Grand Rapids sought
economic opportunity through a transformative 40‐acre central core plan, grounded
in the ideals of urban renewal. Set amidst a collection of Modernist buildings, Calder
Plaza emerged as the downtown’s signature public space. Anchored by Alexander
Calder’s iconic La Grande Vitesse—the first civic sculpture in American history to be
jointly financed by private and federal funds through the National Endowment for the
Arts—Calder Plaza has played host for celebration and crisis for nearly a half‐century.
While Calder’s stabile exemplifies how visual art can become a recognizable
landmark, the Plaza’s absence of human comfort, accessibility and programming
neglects the needs of its daily users. In 2016, a multidisciplinary planning
initiative sought to reveal its hidden potential. Emerging from a collaborative
participatory process, the master plan set forth strategies grounded in physical
connectivity, social activation and economic attraction. Significantly, the
approach earned the endorsement of the Calder Foundation, illustrating how
contemporary civic needs can sensitively balance the integrity of site-specific art.
Located in a challenging and dramatic mountain setting
in Colorado, Castle Creek Meadow is a family retreat that
celebrates the idea of seamless indoor‐outdoor living.
Careful consideration of the native landscape and varied
microclimates of the valley have informed a design that
shows a thoughtful reverence for the natural setting. To
ensure the continued ecosystem and wildlife diversity,
on a site with over 58 acres, this property defined a
construction envelope of just 2.3 acres. Context‐sensitive
strategies were employed to address water quality and
transform a stagnant pond into a resource for migrating
birds and wildlife, while establishing riparian habitat.
The landscape architect was challenged to design a
usable living landscape that does not compete with the
dramatic surroundings. A collaborative effort combining
the creative talents of the landscape architect and
architect resulted in a vision for how this property
can establish a livable landscape with a strong axial
relationship to the surrounding valley while framing views
and limiting intrusions into the surrounding ecosystems.
Sophisticated plantings and a regional palette of stone
define a philosophy of appropriate simplicity. This project
demonstrates how design and conservation can work
harmoniously to develop a comfortable mountain retreat
that restores and respects the surrounding ecosystems.
The Campus & Joy Park
| Mundus Bishop | Denver, Colorado
Calder Plaza Master Plan | DesignWorkshop | Grand Rapids, Michigan
Castle Creek Meadow | DesignWorkshop | Pitkin County, Colorado
ANALYSIS &
PLANNING
RESIDENTIAL
DESIGN
Existing raised planters along thenorthern and southern edges prohibited access.Reimagined, these spaces
includegathering areas andpedestrian pathways that form “health loops” and supportpublichealth initiatives for
the over 5,000 employeeswhoworkwithin a five-minutewalk.
03 | Throughpreservation of themajority of theproperty, the southcourtyard is transformed into a new
livable landscape that frames views toMt.Hayden and creates refuge toobservewildlife. The solepassage
into themeadow is an artfulplane of turf.
The design for Joy Park and the new campus for theChildren’sMuseum of Denver atMarsicoCampus re-envisionedan existingmarginalized,degraded site
intoa cohesive, resilient settingwithan original,memorable ‘outdoormuseum’ for childrenand caregivers.
Navigating the canyon and shallows provides an opportunity to dip toes in thewater,make a big splash, set boats afloat or build a dam.
Decksextendingover the rainwatergardenwillbe furnished tobecomea shadygatheringplace for studentsand faculty.Thedecks trace theoriginal
footprintsofhousesandbusinesses that stoodat that location in the19thcentury. 12