construction photos 01/15/10

Final Board Presentation

Written Narrative Outlining the Landscape Design Process

Landscape is about memory, our memory and the land’s memory. We remember a flower’s scent, the taste of berries from our grandmother’s yard, and the sound of grasses rustling in the wind. These memories stay with us, returning from the recesses of our minds, set off by sensory triggers.

There is also the memory of the earth, the soil, and the plants. Throughout the year and over the years, these elements remember to repeat the cycles of birth, life, death and birth again.

As Simon Schama writes in “Landscape and Memory,” “from the pyre rises the phoenix, that through a mantle of ash can emerge a shoot of restored life.”

Plants remember to send shoots up, flower and die back. As designers, we call this cycle the earth’s memory, and it predates and transcends man’s role on the earth. This landscape is earth’s memory of hope, love and beauty. While these words were invented by our species, we believe these qualities reflect what was already there.

“The heart, to be sure, always has something to say about what is to come, to him who heeds it. But what does the heart know? Only a little of what has already happened.”

-I promesi sposi chapter viii (Georgio Bassini, “The Garden of the Finzi-Continis”)

The metaphors of hope, love and beauty endure in this landscape through a subtle mood created by quiet shades of green grasses and grass like flowering bulbs. The unique, evocative features like the thin, fine blades of ornamental grasses, enhanced by wind and light, fashion a landscape that seems to float and sway above the building, tethered by the distinctive lines of parapet walls.

The colors of the plants, blue gray and sea green complement the white, Colton concrete and the translucent, light green glass of the building.

There are two views to this landscape, the macro and the micro. From far away one sees the plant vocabulary quietly transition from the manicured grass in the park to the looser, ornamental grasses on the roof. The similar textures of turf grass and ornamental grass naturally lead the eye from ground to sky. While the architecture creates a distinctive elegant form, the grasses tie the whole building back into the earth.

Upon entry, exit and strolling on the roof, the landscape experience is one of light, in contrast to the interior architectural spaces. Up close, the audience sees the details of fluffy, seed heads and the structure of grasses peaking out above the guardrails and the parapet walls. Spare accents of flowering bulbs generate dashes of color in the central roof areas. These three central areas are naming opportunities for “Gardens of the Righteous” as well as the ground level east of the monument, where trees could be added to the existing California Sycamore trees. Visitors move from light to dark to light.

The average soil depth on the roof will be twelve inches. To accommodate upturned structural beams, the soil level will undulate and flow, reiterating the curvilinear shape of the concrete walls.

The Design Team consulted with John Greenlee, the leading authority on grasses and author of “The Encyclopedia of Ornamental Grasses” to come up with three different varieties of ornamental grass: Blue Gramma Grass (Bouteloua gracilis), Esparto Grass (Lygeum sparticum), and Pine Muhly Grass (Muhlenbergia dubia). They range in height from one foot to thirty inches and will blend together to form a finely woven, furry carpet.

In addition to aesthetic considerations of color, texture (fine bladed grasses move more in the wind) and height, these grasses were chosen for their tough, drought tolerant nature, their tendency to hold their color throughout the summer (unlike native grasses in the hills), and their neat habit (to mitigate maintenance). In further response to the dramatic and spectacular slopes of the roof, we propose planting Red Stone Crop (Crassula radicans) to ensure slope stability in the early life of the green roof landscape. This succulent will rapidly form a blanket to keep the ground from sliding as well as slow down the presence of weeds while the grasses fill in.

We want to emphasize that a blend of plant material means biodiversity for the green roof. If one plant dies another one will be there to fill in. Biodiversity is key for the long-term health and success of the green roof landscape.

Finally as an extra bonus, these beautiful grasses will provide a seasonal quality to the roof landscape, changing color from verdant spring green, to blue and sea-green during the summer, and moving to a golden color in late fall and winter.

Revised Roofscsapes, Inc. Roof Plan

Roofscapes, Inc. Final Drawings

These are the final drawings minus the roof plan, which we are editing to match the drawing that shows the depth of material at the DG walkway.

Pathway Material Depths

Attached is a drawing describing the material depth of the 1:20 pedestrian roof pathway. The given spot dimensions are from the approx. top of slab to the top of decomposed granite surface.

Action Items:

meeting notes:

Reviewed all agenda items and went through detailed cost estimate

Action items:

1.Review plug spacing to determine labor rate,

2.Revisit with Epro off line to talk about coordination with Epro and drainage board

3.Get area 4 as it was poured...make sure drainage is correct and

4. Martin will look into blower truck for cost..

5. Karla will get a rendering done by end of the week

6. Charlie will provide revised details

meeting agenda

Meeting agenda:

1. Quick Review of green roof system/ components and recommendations

2. Review cost breakdown of components

3. Review plant pallet/ planting procedure and information regarding purchase of plugs

4. Discuss plant rendering/ look

4. Decide needed action items for Tuesday the 12th

Final Plant Pallet and Color Study

grass plugs

revised ground landscape plan with grasses

This includes grasses to screen the methane box and other unsightly utility boxes. I was unsure of their exact location because my base plan does not show them labeled as such. However we will have a line item in the bid and can place them as necessary.

Soil depth plan

scupper and drain chamber photos

updated scupper detail

Roofscapes Constructions Drawings

Written specifications will be emailed to all parties under separate cover.

Erosion blankets

These are photos of the erosion blankets that will be part of the installation and can be used to stablize growing media for planting at a later date.

Planting Plans: Roof and Ground Levels

sample detail

All,

Attached is a sample detail. We are preparing other details, using the same style and format. This detail shows the transition on the southern-most walkway. This detail illustrates three special cases:

1- Dual media planted profile (left)

2- Pavement including measure to collect and manage concentrated runoff flow against the wall

3- ‘planter’ with enhance drainage measures to handle concentrated flow

The conditions at the northern roof area will be subtly different.

Slope Stabilization notes

All,

I did a back-of the-envelope calculation for the geogrid slope stabilization system. Unfortunately, my conclusion is that we cannot support the 45 degree slope using this method. Given the geometry of the roof area, the maximum slope that can be supported, by my estimation, is 25 degrees, or 50% slope. Therefore, fixed anchors, of one sort or another will be necessary.

Refined calculations will result in lower estimates for the pull-out requirements for individual anchors. However, as a practical matter, it makes sense to choose one anchor design. Saving can be achieved by spacing the anchors more widely on mild slopes.

I think that it may be make sense to install the anchors so that the threaded pins project 8 inches. This will make attachment of the tendons for the cellular confinement web easier to do accomplish in the field.

Drainage Details and Design

See attached memo and annotated sections.

The drainage plan has 14 scuppers.

On a related topic, I think that it may be advantageous to have the anchor pins, protrude 8 inches up for from the slab.

Some more things to consider:

1- The minimum pavement profile on the south side of the project will be 5.5 inches. This will accommodate a ½” drain sheet, 3 inches of granular base drainage media, and 2 inches of decomposed concrete. Where needed a 2-inch high perforated drainage conduit can be accommodated in this profile thickness. This means that the minimum soil depth adjacent to the pavement in this area will be 5.5 inches and not 4 inches.

2- Note also, that the thickened and raised slab cuts across the path. The super-elevation of this linear feature above slab appears to be 11.5 inches. In order to carry the pavement over this, the pavement profile in these areas will have to be 13.5 inches. I assume that this assumption is already built into the path design.

3- Please confirm that the curb surrounding the southern walkway will be precast concrete. It will vary in height depending on the thickness of the adjacent pavement profile.

4- The curb at the northern walkway will be metal

5- A number of the area roof drains on the northern side conflicts with a walls or curbs. These should be moved so that they are squarely under the pavement or the planted areas. If in the walkway, I assume that you will want surface grates (correct?)