Design by Passage team Kate Burgess, Tiffany Filatov, Gabe Onderdonk and Alec Stolz. Image design on front thumbnailÌýbyÌýArt Envisioned teamÌýRiley Chustz,ÌýCamden Hocker,ÌýMcKinley Parks,ÌýLogan Phelps andÌýMiles Shapleigh.
St. Stephen’s Plaza, located on Longmont'sÌýMain Street in the center of the city's developing creative district, is in a prime position to become a creative hubÌýfor Longmont, but it hasn't for a variety of reasons.
Some of the main obstacles: the plaza's current design lacksÌý"stay and gather" spacesÌýand the space feelsÌýcold and uninviting during the winter.
StudentsÌýin Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê'sÌýSpring 2020 Longmont Praxis Studio–all seniors and landscape architecture majors– said theÌýarea could be transformed to an artistic space where people gather and attend musical or other events and would benefit by planting plants native to Colorado that thrive in urban environments. During theÌýclass, teams of four to five students developed threeÌýdesign solutionsÌý(see below) for the plaza.
How the project started
The university-cityÌýpartnershipÌýwas organized through CEDaR's Community Design Workshop program, which creates opportunities for Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê students and faculty to take part in community projects. Community Design Workshops beginÌýwith a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the city and the university, and theÌýMoUs guide classes, studios and other student and faculty research that address a priority defined by the community,Ìýsaid Brian Muller, CEDaR's director.
Longmont's defined priority is the revitalization of the old downtown area, he said. TheÌýproject beganÌýin spring 2019 with a studio,Ìýlinked seminar and several internships where students generatedÌýdesign interventionsÌýfor enhancing Longmont's plazas, breezeways, alleyways and creative businesses in the downtown area, creatingÌýthe foundation for the spring 2020 studio for redesign of St. Stephens Plaza under the supervision of Jesse Van Horne, ENVD lecturer, and submission of a formal proposal currently under consideration by the Longmont Downtown Development Authority (LDDA).
"Many aspects of the students' design workÌýwereÌýappealing toÌýLDDA, but because of the pandemic the projectÌýhas been put on hold," Van Horne said.
Ìý
Proposed redesigns of St. Stephen's Plaza include:Ìý
Art EnvisionedÌýby Riley Chustz,ÌýCamden Hocker,ÌýMcKinley Parks,ÌýLogan Phelps andÌýMiles Shapleigh, incorporates art into the functional aspects of the site in a way that coincides with the creative district’s identity and facilitates larger gatherings and events.ÌýIt also offers creates an environment more suited to hosting events and large gatherings, as well as individuals and small groups. These additions, along with a careful selection of plants, will make the space more inviting and lively throughout the day and year, the student group said.
Rib Rock PlazaÌýby Stephen Cannon, Tori Civitello, Ayushi Patel and Ian Fuller,Ìýechos the variety of Colorado’s naturalistic and novel environments, as well as createsÌýan opportunity to provide a passive educational experience where users can see the geological layers beneath them and begin to understand the forces that created the area. A fountainÌýat the center of the plazaÌýfeatures water that cascades over the layers before collecting into a reflection pool. Under this design, usersÌýcan walk through the plaza, sit and enjoy the sound of flowing water that masksÌýsome of theÌýtraffic soundsÌýor warm up next toÌýfire pits along the edge of the fountain. Other users can climb up into the rock layers and dive into the planted landscape that grows from the fountain to follow the water to its source.
Passage byÌýKate Burgess, Tiffany Filatov, Gabe Onderdonk and Alec Stolz, opensÌýup the sight lines from Main Street to the back alley to allow a safe path from the pedestrian mall to the parking lot; addsÌýseating on the north side of the site to allow groups to gather and linger; and replaces the broken fountain with a circular fire pit to encourage families and groups to soak up the warmth on a cold day. The plan includes movable seating and two potential stage areas for different programming.
Ìý