NCAR Landscape Design in Boulder: Alternative 4

This landscape design alternative, labeled #4, is my personal favorite of all the concepts that I created for NCAR.

Landscape Design Alternative #4 for NCAR in Boulder, CO

In this design alternative, the area in the upper right is sunken, with steps leading to flagstone paving at the bottom. You can see water cascading down the center of the steps to the bottom. This area becomes the focal point relative to the three other areas which are raised up high. These three areas form a kind of ampitheatre seating which looks down into the sunken area. Those three higher areas feature sitting steps. So this could be a venue for an award ceremony or marriage or other focal activity.

I often show this series of four alternative designs to potential clients, so they can see how wide the range of potential design can be. If we can find so many diverse concepts in a space with such tight design parameters, the possibilities really are endless.

After I presented these four concepts to NCAR, their committee requested something simpler, so I gave them a fifth landscape design alternative which, with modifications, is represented in the photograph of what was finally built.