2017 - Park Design Excellence Award Texas Recreation and

2017 - Park Design Excellence Award Texas Recreation and Park Society

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The purpose of this award is as follows: 1. To recognize each year one park development project which displays a high degree of

professional design quality and recreation usage; and 2. To encourage and expand the cooperation between design professionals and parks and

recreation professionals. Entries will be accepted for any park design within the State of Texas. To be eligible, at least the initial representative stage of the project must be completed. Two awards will be presented for the winning park or facility project. (One award to the designer and one to the jurisdiction). Specific format for candidacy in the Park Design Excellence Award category includes:

1. Completed nomination form for each project. 2. (10) digital photos on CD in JPEG or TIFF format. 3. A project narrative of 300-1000 words keyed to MS PowerPoint presentation. 4. Additional supportive material related to the project.

Entries will be judged by the following criteria: A. Project narrative and related images B. Supportive materials C. Design quality D. Recreational usage Nomination Summary Please describe your program, person or project you are nominating with approximately 8 to 10 descriptive sentences. Should your application win in this category, we will utilize some or all of the Nomination Summary as part of the script for the Awards Banquet and for the TRAPS Magazine honoring our winners. Inspired by the magnificent large oak trees isolated in the vast open space of the Katy Prairie, LANDology was able to celebrate these anomalies by embracing them as the park’s main feature. The current land owner (and community developer) recognized the inherent landscape value this unique site offered and the custom design sensitivity that would be required to successfully deliver a notable treehouse project that would further differentiate their community and provide recreation opportunities not found anywhere else. By providing a series of elevated boardwalks, decks and a treehouse, we were able to not only accentuate the grand size of these heritage oaks but also give the user many different options of interaction within this very unique environment. LANDology ensured that the project was packaged to allow for MUD reimbursement, all within a total budget of $1.1 million.


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OFFICIAL NOMINATION FORM The information below will be used for publicity and award certificates for winning submittals. PLEASE CHECK ACCURACY of spelling titles and addresses. Project Name: Treehouse Park

Designed By: LANDology

- Individual - Firm or Agency

Address: 29955 IH 45 North

City: Shenandoah State: TX Zip: 77381 -

Phone: (832) 585 - 5085

Jurisdiction: The Howard Hughes Corporation- Bridgeland

Address: 23720 House Hahl Road

City: Cypress State: TX Zip: 77433 - 0

Phone: (281) 213 - 1100 We have reviewed the background information related to the Park Design Excellence Program and understand that should this entry be chosen the winner, we are responsible to assist in the production of additional press-worthy graphics and written material if required. We understand that all submitted material will remain the property of the committee. Nominating Designer E-Mail: [email protected] Nominating Jurisdiction E-Mail: [email protected] Jonathan McMillian The Howard Hughes Corporation- Bridgeland Name of Nominating Designer Name of Nominating Jurisdiction


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Please complete this form, respond to all questions.

Your completed entry form, supporting documents, and photos can be submitted electronically to us on the web. Just go to www.traps.org and follow the instructions to upload your entry form, supporting documents, and photos to us. Or you can also mail your entry form, supporting documents, and photos to us on a CD – Send your CD to:

TRAPS State Awards - Attn. TRAPS AWARDS TRAPS PO BOX 5188 Jonestown, TX 78645 Questions: call or email Ana Romero at [email protected] 956.981.3315

Please send the following items:

• (1) Copy of the completed form in MS Word Document format • 300-1,000 word project narrative in MS Word document format • PowerPoint Presentation utilizing the narrative and photos • No more than (10) digital pictures (jpeg or tiff format) for this award • Any supportive materials

Deadline: Entries must be uploaded or postmarked by November 18, 2016.

http://www.traps.org/

TREEHOUSE PARK NARRATIVE Texas Recreation and Park Society

Park Design Excellence Award 2016

Among thousands of acres of former rice farms, Treehouse Park offers rare old growth live oak tree canopy and shaded understory environment. The now-majestic oaks were originally planted as part of a farm homestead complete with cabin (since burned down) alongside an earthen berm/ levee used to flood the surrounding rice fields.

The current land owner (and community developer) recognized the inherent landscape value this unique site offered and the custom design sensitivity that would be required to successfully deliver a notable treehouse project that would further differentiate their community and provide recreation opportunities not found anywhere else (Slide #2). The design team’s preferred tree for the treehouse (Slide #3) was growing on the side of a sloped embankment; a welcomed challenge ultimately leveraged to their design advantage as seen in the Landscape Architect’s earliest conceptual sketches. The Landscape Architect’s earliest ideas sought to identify as many different vantage points with varied degrees of enclosure as possible while creating undulating architectural opportunities left-to-right, front-to-back and low-to-high (Slide #4).

The treehouse’s perched location upon the levee magnifies the drama of ‘front yard’ views across the open lawn play space to the retreat above, while providing thrilling views of the wild ‘back yard’ below from a vantage of prospect and refuge. To further intensify a dramatic multi-story affect, the lower deck was intentionally elevated above the ‘front yard’ (with access from behind) and an architectural cupola was added to the top of the treehouse.

Although the project was always intended to be a recreation site, it didn’t take long to recognize the strength in featuring the unique play value of the treehouse and its natural site. The team resisted the urge to apply prescribed play elements in the park, such as traditional playground equipment, and opted instead to embrace the site’s natural environments for play. Existing embankments and less-prescribed play elements, such as scattered tree stumps, are already being creatively used as seating for impromptu photo-ops (Slide #5).

Just days into construction, a primary root was discovered precisely where a structural pier was planned. Rotating the treehouse 15 degrees to avoid this root resulted in a domino effect of design changes to layout and connections. To best ensure the success of the specimen tree, the ramping boardwalk and entire treehouse were designed to avoid physically attaching to the tree. A certified arborist participated from pre-construction through post-construction phases.

A curved bridge reaches from the treehouse base atop the levee across the ravine to a remote seating area and future neighborhood connection (Slide #6). Where visibly exposed, the structure beneath the bridge and boardwalk was designed like railroad trusses for added interest. Steel wood-to-pier connections were concealed to emphasize the wood members.

In an effort to imply amateur construction of available materials, the wood decking throughout the project was designed using multiple plank widths and boards extended in crenelated pattern (Slide #7). Though random in appearance, the decking was designed in a pre-arranged, repeating pattern using full board lengths to minimize cuts/ labor during construction.

Round lodge pole connections accentuate carpentry craftsmanship. Fasteners were counter-sunk to emphasize wood components. Netting was used at railings in lieu of pickets for increased transparency (Slide #8).

Elevated walkways and swooping live oak branches compound the desired effect of being ‘in the trees’ (Slide #9). Curving circulation results in slower experience. Peek-a-boo views draw the visitor through and encourage exploration.

Only one branch was removed to allow for project construction; all others were allowed to penetrate the building when in conflict. The building yields to the tree. Netting, railings, repurposed metal roof and even structural beams were modified to accommodate them (Slide #10). Red “windows” provide added safety containment upstairs and serve as a beautiful accent that contrasts the surrounding dark green foliage (Slide #11).

The project carpenter painstakingly achieved remarkably tight joinery around the metal support posts and at wood-to-wood connections (Slide #12). Corrugated plastic pipe ‘bumpers’ were used at floor openings for tree to reduce gaps while gently allowing for tree growth.

The resulting park immediately draws in both young and old. Treehouse Park etches new experiences not soon forgotten while trigging childhood memories from the past. Park rules limit usage to daytime only, but the treehouse serves as a beautiful work of public art at night to passersby (Slide #13).

Documents

2017 - Park Design Excellence Award Texas Recreation and