U N I V E R S I T YO F _ M A R Y L A N DU S G B C _ C H A P T E R _ 2 0 1 5

U N I V E R S I T YO F _ M A R Y L A N DU S G B C _ C H A P T E R _ 2 0 1 5

“EDUCATION IS THE MOST POWERFUL WEAPON WHICH YOU CAN USE TO CHANGE THE WORLD.” - NELSON MANDELA

The student organizations of The University of Maryland’s Undergraduate School of

Architecture believe in informing, themselves, educating others via outreach, and in taking

action to enact change.

During the 2014-2015 academic year the UMD chapters of the U.S. Green Building

Council (USGBC) and American Institution of Architecture Students (AIAS) came

together to fund, design, and construct a service project to aid in the revitalization of

the dis-invested neighborhoods of Southwest Baltimore. The students of these organizations

collaborated with numerous non-profit and for-profit organizations to design and build

two expressive benches and a rain garden containing native resilient plants. The project,

involving over 30 students, 10 professionals, and 5 professors, entailed fund raising, a Baltimore

site visit, and design and construction of 2 benches to be installed in a pocket park off

South Carey Street, Baltimore. Reclaimed lumber was donated by local reclaimed

materials warehouse, Second Chance (http://www.secondchanceinc.org/). In the Spring

semester the project expanded to include design and installation of a gallery displaying

the benches, procurement of architectural precedents of public interest design to be

displayed, and finally research, design, and installation of a rain garden in the South Carey

Street park. The incredible opportunity to design and construct on this site was made possible by community greening non-profits; Neighborhood

Design Center (www.ndc-md.org) and Lots of Art. Rain garden materials were donated by the Parks and People Foundation, a local Baltimore non-profit supporting education and recreation (http://www.parksandpeople.org/). Plants were generously donated by Ed’s Plant World (http://

www.edsplantworld.com/).

INTRODUCT ION

C O N T E N T S :

I N F O R M

O U T R E A C H

I M P A C T

P G . 0 6 - 2 3E D U C A T E _ S E L F

E D U C A T E _ O T H E R S

T A K E _ A C T I O N

P G . 2 0 - 2 9

P G . 3 0 - 4 3

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INFORM_Given the opportunity to enact change in Southwest Baltimore the integral first step was to educate ourselves of existing conditions. Following a site visit and tour, lead by The Neighborhood Design Center and Lots of Art, design of the bench commenced. The generous donation of 80 yards of 2”x4” reclaimed lumber by Second Chance made the construction of our design possible.

07

sept.

SITE VISIT

sept. o n d jsite visit

Sunflower Garden - Neighborhood Design Center

Baltimore MarylandSouth West Baltimore

BaltimoreInner Harbor

“A Place for Good People” - Lots of Art

Butterfly Garden - South Carey St. and Lemmon St.

jun.f m ma jun.

“A Place for Good People” - Lots of Art

Butterfly Garden - South Carey St. and Lemmon St.

sept.

SITE VISIT

sept. o n d jsite visit

South West Baltimore, MD

https://southwestexpress.wordpress.com

For more information visit: www.southwestpartnershipbaltimore.org

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BALTIMORE SITE VIST RECLAIMED MATERIALS DESIGN BUILD FUTURE INSTALLATION BALTIMORE SITE VIST RECLAIMED MATERIALS DESIGN BUILD FUTURE INSTALLATION BALTIMORE SITE VIST RECLAIMED MATERIALS DESIGN BUILD FUTURE INSTALLATIONsept.

DESIGN

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BALTIMORE SITE VIST RECLAIMED MATERIALS DESIGN BUILD FUTURE INSTALLATIONjun.f m ma jun.

sept.

CONSTRUCTION

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n d jdesignsite visit

Reclaimed wood donated by Second Chance.

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sept.

CONSTRUCTION

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sept.

CONSTRUCTION

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Once we had studied the neighborhood of Southwest Baltimore and constructed the two benches, we used both this newfound awareness and product of our labor to educate others. Teaming up with the University of Maryland’s Linear Gallery, photos of the project, the benches, and other examples of public interest design were displayed for three months.

REACH_

REACH_

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PHOTO OP

photo op

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PHOTO OP

photo op

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DESIGN

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DISPLAY

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display

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While the Linear Gallery raised support for the project, we began the second phase of the design, the rain garden. Visiting Sidwell Friends, a sustainable school that incorporates storm water management, as well as consultation from several professionals helped us design the garden. Finally on May 18th a team of 14 teen students and 6 community volunteers installed the rain garden in the pocket park in Baltimore. The design was made a reality in part by a plant donation from Ed’s Plant World, and soil, mulch, and sand donations from the Parks and People Foundation.

ACT_

ED’S_PLANT WORLD, INC

TOUR

odesign construction

n d jsept.designsite visit photo op

Sidwell Friends School_Washington DC_ http://www.asla.org/sustainablelandscapes/sidwell.html

Storm Water and Waste Water Management_ http://www.solaripedia.com/13/304/3456/sidwell_friends_wetlands_flow_diagram.html

design displayf m ma jun.

tour

Sidwell Friends School_Washington DC_ http://www.asla.org/sustainablelandscapes/sidwell.html

Storm Water and Waste Water Management_ http://www.solaripedia.com/13/304/3456/sidwell_friends_wetlands_flow_diagram.html

DESIGN

o n d jsept.design constructionsite visit designphoto op

design designf m ma jun.

tourdisplay

CONSTRUCT

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tourdisplay

CONSTRUCT

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designtourdisplay

CONSTRUCT

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tourdisplay

PRODUCT

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tourdisplay

“WHAT IS AND WHAT CAN BE”

- Steve Powers & BOPA

“WHAT IS AND WHAT CAN BE”

- Steve Powers & BOPA

Acknowledgments:Organizations:

American Institute of Architecture Students (UMD), Baltimore Community Tool Bank, Civic Works, Ed’s Plant World, Lots of Art, The Neighborhood Design Center, Parks and People, Second Chance, University of Maryland, U.S. Green Building Counsel (UMD).

Individuals:

Adan Ramos, Adriana Mendoza, Alvaro Ramos, Anna Shi, Ben Lerman, Bifford T, Brendan Weinstein, Brian Samuel, Catherine Dowling, Carla Ellern, Chris Reyes, Emily Broxmeyer, Emily Latham, Erin Barkman, Gabriel Martinez, Gabriel Maslen, Gaby Ochoa Martinez, Graham Knapp, Harry Webb, Professor Jana VanderGoot Jannah Madyun, Jenny Katz, Joe Largess, Jose Delcid, Josh Nelson, Kathy Bradly, Khanomei Naznazi, Laura Connelly, Lawrence Manongdo, Laura Wheaton, Leslie Infanger, Lubna Chaudhry, Maria Jose Ramos, Marissa Taddeo, Mike Lewis, Mike McGovern, Paris Sim, Pedro Camago, Peter Cunningham, Prof. Powell Draper, Prof. Ralph Bennett, Prof. Ronit Eisenbach, Ricardo Ramos, Sandy Wan, Sophie Habib, Sophia Hull, Valerie Sherry, Dr. Victoria Chanse, and Others.

Photo Credit:

Adan Ramos, Harry Webb, Jannah Madyun, Khanomei Naznazi, Sandy Wan

T H A N K _ Y O UT H A N K _ Y O U