Weeks Four and Five: Translation

The past two weeks have been eventful in the UDBS. This past week we spent five days in Hot Springs conducting site analysis and inventory and developing conceptual proposals. We also held a public engagement meeting at Garvan Woodland Gardens and learned about the programmatic and mechanical needs from our stakeholder groups. In order to prepare for this meeting, we roleplayed in studio the day before leaving for the gardens. Each of us was given a role of either a community member, GWG advisory board member, or a member of the garden’s staff. This helped us understand the dynamics of the meeting before we even started, and helped us anticipate some of the comments.

My group will be developing a site just outside the gates of the gardens, on approximately five acres of forested land. Our site drains immediately into Lake Hamilton, and has given us major challenges in drainage and grading. Much of the site was covered in standing water while we were at the gardens, and the site functions as a terminus for all runoff water in the greater valley. Our site is also bisected by a perennial stream, which we hope to incorporate into our proposals. We are currently developing schemes that capitalize on the relative expansiveness of our site compared to most others (especially those on the garden grounds.)

While we are in the very early stages of concept development, we are excited about our proposals and will be sharing them here soon!