WDSLA uses the word GATHER to describe projects that provide the backbone for community interaction and growth. Like our PLAY projects, designs in this category require a focus on delivering the best and highest uses for public funding, balancing capitol investment and long-term maintenance costs, while enhancing or creating a unique public infrastructure allowing communities to connect.

 

Key design fundamentals within this category include:

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• Government institutions exist to serve their constituents

• Landscapes should facilitate access to the institutions

• Landscapes should be timeless, not trendy; to reflect value in long-term investment

• Landscapes should be efficient in all aspects – from construction to maintenance - since the source of revenue to pay for both comes from public tax dollars

• Institutional design should reflect the specific institution. In certain cases, pride in the agency, facility, program, and/or purpose can be appropriately expressed in the landscape and site design