Posted on by

Town Branch Commons

Plans by SCAPE for Town Branch Commons: http://www.scapestudio.com/projects/reviving-town-branch/

LEXINGTON, KY
  • ECOLOGICAL DESIGN
  • PARK
  • PLAZA / STREETSCAPE
  • URBAN DESIGN

Town Branch Commons weaves a linear network of public space along the 2.5 mile path of the historic Town Branch creek in downtown Lexington, Kentucky. Once a waste canal, sewer, and water conduit for the city, the buried stream channel of Town Branch is an opportunity to reconnect the city with its Bluegrass identity and build a legacy public space network for the 21st century. Rather than introducing a single daylit stream channel into the city fabric, the design uses the local limestone (karst) geology as inspiration for a series of pools, pockets, water windows, and stream channels that brings water into the public realm. A hybrid park network, multi-modal trail system, and water filtration landscape, Town Branch Commons connects Lexington’s rural and urban communities and reinvigorates the downtown. SCAPE won the Town Branch Commons competition in 2013 and the project has grown to secure $23.1 million for design and construction for early phase design and construction.

Visualized water eature along trail

Visualized water feature along trail

ABOUT SCAPE

SCAPE is a design-driven landscape architecture and urban design studio based in New York. We believe landscape architecture can enable positive change in communities through the creation of regenerative living infrastructure and public landscapes. We work to integrate natural cycles and systems into environments across all scales, from the urban pocket-park to the regional ecological plan. We do this through diverse forms of landscape architecture – built landscapes, planning frameworks, research, books, and installations – with the ultimate goal of connecting people to their immediate environment and creating dynamic and adaptive landscapes of the future.

Our staff is experienced in landscape architecture, architecture, urban design, horticulture, and planning, and we integrate these skillsets to practice design as interpreters and synthetic thinkers. We lead and work with teams of engineers and architects on complex projects, from stormwater streetscapes to large scale coastal infrastructure, translating technical expertise into legible and engaging public space. We also believe in working with communities and stakeholders to translate complex visions into realizable actions.

We work with clients to ensure that design concept remains intact through the process of building landscapes. To achieve solid, high-performance public landscapes, we combine new technologies with tried and true construction techniques. We aim to create public landscapes of lasting significance, reconnecting neighborhoods and habitats for generations to come.

Our work and collaborations have led to several national awards, including the Buckminster Fuller Challenge Winner, two national American Society of Landscape Architects awards, and a several NY American Society of Landscape Architects Awards. SCAPE was established in 2007.