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The City of Lawrence Department of Parks, Recreation, and Culture expressed interest in extending the functionality of Prairie Park Nature Center with an outdoor shaded area capable of generating revenue by hosting summer camps, educational programming, community events, weddings, and more. Third-year architecture students took inspiration from patterns in the adjacent prairie landscape, and various prairie plants were collected and integrated into the early conceptual models that led to the development of the structure and roof tiles. The pavilion sits adjacent to a small, wooded area and further borrows structural principles from the branching of trees. The heavy timber columns diverge into beams and vault over the space, supporting a canopy filled with aluminum tiles.
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Prairie Park Nature Center is named for the native prairie landscape that surrounds the Center’s main facility and animal sanctuary. This remnant prairie is one of the last unaltered prairie landscapes in the region and is a unique example of a riparian and upland prairie ecosystem preserved alongside the educational programming at the park. As visitors enter the pavilion, sunlight filters through the canopy and creates organic shadow patterns that scatter across the seating and ground plane, suggesting a tree canopy or plant foliage. The dynamic roof canopy is grounded by large native Kansas limestone boulders that create seating and evoke a sense of permanence. The timber columns mimic and integrate the adjacent wooded area, while framing views of the prairie to the south and east.
Prairie Park Pavilion was built to support the Prairie Park Nature Center's mission to conserve the natural world through hands-on environmental education. Conservation and sustainability go hand in hand, and with this in mind, the shade pavilion was designed and constructed almost entirely of repurposed materials that included retired utility poles from the local power company, aluminum street signs from surrounding municipalities, and limestone seating from renovations at KU’s Memorial Stadium. The project was optimized for shading with parametric design, and grant funding supported prairie restoration in the landscape to the south with community partners. Managing the prairie landscape involves periodic burning – a process that promotes social cohesion through land stewardship.
The pavilion supports social sustainability as a gathering space. During the design and construction process, the client, sponsors, and community stakeholders were involved in multiple design review sessions with the students. The project factored in feedback on proposed uses, configuration, and the overall design concepts to enhance the programming at the Center with an interactive structure. For the architecture students involved in the project, the community engagement experience formed lasting impressions on the next generation of designers. In terms of economic sustainability, by leveraging resources across the university-community-industry partnership, an otherwise unviable project was realized. This innovative approach relied on a reputable design-build program and waste stream materials demonstrated alternative models for bringing amenities to the community. Furthermore, revenue generated by renting the pavilion will create sustainable income for the Nature Center. Lastly, the project has a strong environmental sustainability dimension. The pavilion provides a shaded refuge to the adjacent prairie and will support environmentally focused activities at the Nature Center. As a bioinspired form, the project materials and geometry are intended to pique the curiosity of users and inspire discovery in nature.
This project demonstrates a strong commitment to the community and the environment, proving that architecture can achieve more than just constructing buildings, as it can create inspiring spaces that educate and unite people. Through hard work and creativity, the Prairie Pavilion structure has made a lasting impact on the Prairie Park Nature Center and its visitors. -Dara Wilson, Supervisor, Prairie Park Nature Center
Prairie Park Pavilion was designed and built by third-year University of Kansas Architecture students. During the 4-month semester, students develop design ideas, construct mock-ups, make documentation for permitting and construction, and, ultimately, build the project. The studio primarily utilizes donated and repurposed materials to create new amenities in the community and is led by Professor Keith Van de Riet, an architect and builder. Since 2016, Van de Riet's studio has completed 16 projects in the community and follows a decades-long tradition of design-build projects at University of Kansas.
