Sustainable Architecture in Texas State Parks
Designing Buildings to Reflect Place, Conserve Energy and Water
Jun 11, 2009
Before the widespread use of air conditioning, buildings in Texas had deep porches to provide shade, and were oriented to catch prevailing breezes and take advantage of natural shade, says Ted Flato, FAIA, of Lake+Flato Architects in San Antonio. People did this out of necessity, just as they used materials from the area for practical reasons.
Flato's firm uses those basic techniques today to create designs that are specific to their place and environmentally thoughtful.
“Our philosophy is to try to fit buildings to their place,” says David Lake, FAIA. Good architecture also ought to address overarching sustainable values and have the least possible impact on the environment, he adds. Sustainable architecture calls for construction methods and materials appropriate to the building’s environment whenever possible. This concept is less about expensive technology than thoughtful design, according to Flato. The more closely connected to the environment, he believes, the better the building. These principles especially make sense for buildings in state parks.
Sustainable Design for World Birding Center Headquarters
The patchwork of farms that historically covered the fertile Rio Grande Valley inspired Lake+Flato’s design of the World Birding Center headquarters. Located on a former onion field at the entrance to Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park, the headquarters feature design influenced by agricultural structures such as Quonset huts, masonry and vaulted buildings of neighboring Mexico, and traditional hacienda courtyards and gardens.
The long, low structures are positioned to capture prevailing breezes and daylight, and arched metal roofs create end porches and shade the offices and visitor facilities. The shaped steel roofs are also highly energy efficient and serve as conduits for collecting water in metal cisterns for use in the gardens. The cisterns can be filled with tap water, well water, or collected rain water as needed.
Butterfly gardens and bird feeders surround an exhibit hall, offices, gift shop, café, and restrooms made largely from local clay tile and salvaged cypress wood. Even the water fountains got in on the act; as visitors drink, overflow spills directly into gardens rather than going down the drain.
Joshua Rose, park natural resources specialist, says the buildings mesh so well with the landscape that people often drive right past. Careful design also reduced the amount of air-conditioned square footage by thirty-three percent, which lowered the initial cost, the amount of raw materials used, and long-term operation and maintenance expenses.
The park, a world renowned birding site, houses bird blinds, six miles of trails, and a hawk observation tower, an excellent spot from which to watch fall and spring hawk migrations. From the headquarters, visitors access the park by foot, bicycle, or shuttle.
Historic Use of Sustainable Concepts
While the words may be new, the concepts of sustainability and green architecture drove the work of the Civilian Conservation Corps in state parks, back in the 1930s. CCC projects made every effort to use native materials for construction, says Carter Smith, executive director of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.The CCC also paid attention to the position of buildings on the landscape, capitalizing on the predominant breezes, for example.
Benefits of Green Architecture
Sustainable architecture uses less energy and fewer materials to build, and it conserves water and energy over the long term. Sustainable design also offers a better environment for humans, providing more access to daylight, for example, and reducing the presence of toxic materials. People in these buildings feel better emotionally and physically, Lake says. New construction and replacement or remodeling of existing buildings will account for seventy-five percent of the built environment by the year 2030, he adds. Better architecture for that seventy-five percent can make a world of difference.
Lake+Flato also designed parks facilities at Government Canyon State Natural Area, near San Antonio, the Dallas Arboretum, and San Antonio’s Witte Museum.
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