LASN is a photographically oriented, professional journal featuring topics of concern and state-of-the-art projects designed or influenced by registered Landscape Architects.
Issue link: https://landscapearchitect.epubxp.com/i/107181
National Center for Climate and Weather Prediction Architecture and Landscape Architecture by Hellmuth, Obata + Kassabaum: Washington, D.C. Above & Top, Right The circular drop-off area in front of the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration complex in College Park, Maryland has 4-inch 'gray granite cobbles' laid in a radial pattern. Based on durability, economics and flexibility of material, 4 x 8-inch grey and white concrete pavers in a herringbone pattern dominate the main pedestrian entrance plaza of the building. Where the two colors meet, a row of soldier course pavers creates a crisp transition from one color to the other. The plaza is bookended along the building and just behind the bollards at the drop off with 18 by 30-inch green slate pavers. Purple love grass and a sedum mix are growing on the berms. Base-level groundcovers are liriope and cotoneaster; the youthful trees are honeylocusts. In 2005, the General Services Administration (GSA) held a design competition for the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) complex. A team of HOK landscape architects, architects, and planners collaborated to develop the competition-winning entry, a plan in lockstep with the climatic and environmental mission of NOAA, while accommodating the functional needs of its new complex. Located on a 10-acre parcel adjacent to the University of Maryland in College Park, Md., the new facility is intended to foster synergy between university researchers and NOAA staff. The NOAA mission statement is "To understand and predict changes in earth's environment and conserve and manage coastal and marine resources to meet our nation's economic, social and environmental needs." The 64 Landscape Architect and Specifier News design of the new National Center for Climate and Weather Prediction (NCCWP) does much more than just attempt to reduce the center's impact on the environment, even though it is currently on target to achieve a LEED® 2.2 Gold rating. The design of the facility aspires to become a physical embodiment of man's relationship to climate and nature. Natural systems do not operate in straight lines and thus the proposed site plan and building are aligned in a series of curving forms, suggestive of rippling waves of water or a bird's bowed wings. Context Although the site is a secured, gated compound, the presence of two large woodland preserve areas lessens the sense of containment and provides pleasant outdoor spaces. The larger of the two wooded areas is a stand of mature, mixed