Architects: Cannon Design

As part of the master planning team for The Park School, we were able to work with a design committee made up of faculty, board members, parents and students to define ways the school’s majestic grounds could be better used for academic programs, recreation, as well as arts and cultural experiences.

Suggested site changes included; removing cars from the interior of the campus, allowing pedestrians to move freely from building to building. The existing central loop would be squared off to become a more pedestrian scale walk area or “quad” while maintaining the function of a road way for emergency vehicles. The space inside this “quad” could then be developed as an outdoor classroom space, with dedicated teaching areas as well as “free” space like a campus quad.

A second master plan suggestion would be to develop an amphitheater on the slope above the pond, capturing the view corridor from campus to the pond but allowing a strong buffer for the pond, as it is an extremely important campus feature. A new walkway to the pond again respects the view corridor, as well as the delicate “wet” edge of this pond by approaching from campus and then meandering to the side for direct access to the best reachable shore line. The shore area can then accommodate larger classroom activities desired by the school, incorporating more of the pond into the daily life of the students.

A third and important element to the master plan is the introduction of a looping path throughout the most natural areas of the campus. This would act as a multi-purpose trail with a trail head at the pond location shore education area, providing access to the more remote areas of campus for students and faculty, as well as a designated path for those in the neighborhood who regularly use the campus for leisure and recreation activities. Further developing the path to accommodate the school’s Cross Country track team could also be considered.