©
2004-Present Elmore Design Collaborative, Inc.
GREAT BROOK VALLEY GARDENS
Landscape Master Plan Worcester Housing Authority
Worcester, Massachusetts
Project Data-
Date: 1998
Size: 535 Living Units
Context: Suburban Worcester, Massachusetts
Project Description:
The goal of the master plan was to provide opportunities for revitalizing the landscape and create a sense of neighborhood while addressing systemic problems of circulation, parking and the general lack of connectivity by the residents to their community. The 535 living units, originally designed to house returning veterans from the Korean War in the late 1950’s, is located on the outskirts of Worcester, Massachusetts and reflects the suburban design typical of this era. The profile of the residents has changed. After a thorough site assessment of existing conditions, opportunities and constraints of the site were developed into two conceptual alternatives:
1) Courtyards and
2) Greenbelts.
The final master plan combines the best attributes of each alternative to create a sense of neighborhood for the residents within clusters of apartment buildings. Each cluster contains a green gathering space (courtyard) and many include tot lots. Shared pedestrian walkways, shaded by rows of trees (greenbelts), connect the clusters and provide linkages to both recreational sites and non- residential site services including facility offices, a child care and Headstart Center, a grocery market, retail space, economic development office space, a youth center and GED classrooms. The non-residential area was further developed into a centrally located “campus.” Living unit types were modified, parking was added and circulation was improved.
EDC Principal Thomas Elmore was a project landscape architect on this project while with another firm.
Landscape Master Plan Worcester Housing Authority
Worcester, Massachusetts
Project Data-
Date: 1998
Size: 535 Living Units
Context: Suburban Worcester, Massachusetts
Project Description:
The goal of the master plan was to provide opportunities for revitalizing the landscape and create a sense of neighborhood while addressing systemic problems of circulation, parking and the general lack of connectivity by the residents to their community. The 535 living units, originally designed to house returning veterans from the Korean War in the late 1950’s, is located on the outskirts of Worcester, Massachusetts and reflects the suburban design typical of this era. The profile of the residents has changed. After a thorough site assessment of existing conditions, opportunities and constraints of the site were developed into two conceptual alternatives:
1) Courtyards and
2) Greenbelts.
The final master plan combines the best attributes of each alternative to create a sense of neighborhood for the residents within clusters of apartment buildings. Each cluster contains a green gathering space (courtyard) and many include tot lots. Shared pedestrian walkways, shaded by rows of trees (greenbelts), connect the clusters and provide linkages to both recreational sites and non- residential site services including facility offices, a child care and Headstart Center, a grocery market, retail space, economic development office space, a youth center and GED classrooms. The non-residential area was further developed into a centrally located “campus.” Living unit types were modified, parking was added and circulation was improved.
EDC Principal Thomas Elmore was a project landscape architect on this project while with another firm.