1050 K Street, NW
Washington, DC

Project Summary
This LEED® Gold project involves an innovative green-roof plaza storm-water design for an 11-story office building in the heart of downtown Washington, D.C. The developer assembled a comprehensive team of landscape architects, horticulturalists, civil engineers, irrigation specialists, architects and construction administration experts. Our landscape architects collaborated closely with the architecture team to cultivate the concept of a “living” building that would blur the lines between inside and out. The resulting design involves 2 levels of green roof, with 1 level doubling as an overlook and entertaining terrace. Roof water, chiller water and plaza run-off is collected in a cistern underneath the building. Cistern water is then filtered and pumped through a water feature bordering the entrance lobby, and into a series of three urban bioretention areas integrated into the plaza design. Drip irrigation has been designed for all planting areas to conserve and optimize use of water from the cistern. The irrigation control system utilizes state of the art ET referenced programming via satellite which downloads information from local NOAA weather stations.

Careful consideration was given to the selection of plants for the urban streetscape in a bioretention application. Choosing plants tolerant of the urban climate, which were also beautiful and functional, was a priority in achieving the desired aesthetic. The toughest varieties of green roof plants were selected and arranged to provide year-round interest on the roof gardens.

Woodlake Community Revitalization
Chesterfield County, VA

Project Summary
The Woodlake Community Landscape Revitalization plan has been an exciting opportunity to create a fresh look for an honored neighborhood in the Richmond Metropolitan area. An extensive inventory of the existing signage, landscape features, vegetation, irrigation systems, drainage patterns, traffic conditions and public spaces was conducted not only to highlight areas in need of improvement but also to showcase successes in the neighborhood that could be elaborated on. Gateways, transitions and focal points are key concepts for the project working in unison with the idea of sustainability and water quality to ensure the continued success of the neighborhood’s largest asset, the Swift Creek Reservoir. Currently in the conceptual phase, Timmons Group looks forward to a successful relationship with the Woodlake Community Association to bring the renewed vision to life.

Roseland
Chesterfield County, VA

Project Summary
Roseland is being designed as a true Virginia town using the principles of Traditional Neighborhood Development. It will have a mix of employment, service and residential uses within a series of walkable neighborhoods woven together by a continuous system of trails and parks. A greenway along Tomahawk Creek and other tributaries of Swift Creek will become part of the more than 350 acres of dedicated conservation area to preserve plant and wildlife habitats while creating a link to future county-wide greenways. Roseland will be a diverse, mixed-use community with a vibrant retail district and regional corproate office address to create employment opportunities within walking distance to a wide variety of housing options and services.
Timmons Group is leading the coordination efforts between client, master planner (Urban Design Associates) local governments, market analysts (Zimmerman, Volk & Associates and Economic Research Associates), as well as branding and advertising strategies. Currently in the early stages of the zoning process, Timmons Group is managing the process and supplying all the technical drawings for a 2007 approval. As conservation and sustainable design are cornerstones for the Roseland community, Timmons Group will have the opportunity to bring our expertise to new and innovative stormwater management applications, allowing them to integrate seamlessly into the community.

Lakewood Manor Memory Garden
Henrico County, VA

Project Summary
The premise of the Memory Garden was based on many of our earliest memories and how they are inevitably tied to the world outside. Perhaps the first time we watched a butterfly flutter or a humming bird dance in the air. Many of the experiences we have as children remain with us the rest of our lives. As we continue to grow, we learn to expound these interactions to other senses -- perhaps taking shelter under a shade tree, pausing briefly to listen to the grasses rustle or reaching down to touch the water of a nearby brook to test the temperature with a quick splash. The body and mind’s five senses can result in an attachment to moments in time when we laughed, smiled and found a way to put everything aside and relax in a peaceful environment, if even for a moment.

The Garden is comprised of many elements to help aid the users’ recollection of past experiences. From inside the door of the health services building visitors can walk out onto the “front porch” to view and hear Hazel’s fountain. The old fashion perennial gardens are comprised of plants which are non toxic and offer all spectrums of color and fragrance during all four seasons. From the colorful benches visitors to the Garden can observe perched birds and squirrels running along the top of the white picket fence. The fence serves the purpose of keeping patients within the garden in view of the staff but does not feel as if they are confined to the space. A garden pergola with raised planters offers visitors the ability to work with planting and place their hands into the cold black soil. Residents could grow herbs or spices as they have done so many times before at their homes. These sensory elements will reconnect a resident to one of their favorite memories and develop new ones.

Stormwater Story
Chesterfield County, VA

Project Summary
Stormwater Story, written by landscape architecture professionals, was developed with a passion for educational outreach and a desire to design schools that incorporate environmental education into the design of each site. It is intended to be a prototype, specifically for schools K-12 and higher education.

The concept of the book springs from this firm’s extensive expertise in school site design and our vision of the landscape as an educational tool. This book serves as a platform to engage students in their environment. It encourages the use of outdoor classrooms and the ability of teachers to transform any outdoor area into a laboratory. Stormwater Story specifically incorporates Virginia Standards of Learning for Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Environmental Science course work. By providing students at Cosby Road High School with an understanding of their natural resources and tangibly engaging them in the preservation of these resources, each student is encouraged to become a stakeholder in the future of the environment.

This publication was the first of its kind in our region and has been provided to the school by the landscape architects that performed the school’s site design. Stormwater Story is unique in that it focuses on elements of the design work for educational purposes.

Project Highlights
Stormwater Story contains specific in-depth site analysis for Cosby Road High School, reflecting hydrologic concepts, low impact development and side effects of traditional development.

Timmons Group developed Stormwater Story to serve as a guiding document enabling the faculty to utilize the site as a teaching environment.  We are currently working with faculty to develop lesson plans tied to SOLs.

Henrico High School
Henrico County, VA

Project Summary
Henrico County High School #1will be located on Staples Mill Road, south of I-295 and is scheduled to open in the fall of 2010. The 95 acre site has been designed to incorporate a future career and technical education center into this campus.

Timmons Group is providing site/civil engineering, survey, landscape architecture, environmental and construction administration services for the project. A transportation study was also performed for the 95 acre site and surrounding roadway system.

The high school building encompasses 255,942 square feet and will be two stories (the academic building portion) to accommodate approximately 1700 students. It was designed to obtain LEED® Silver status. The campus includes a bus loop; approximately 800 parking spaces; four competitive fields including a stadium with a synthetic tract; four practice fields; offsite utility and road improvements and an outdoor art classroom plaza area. Additional areas adjacent to the high school can also function as outdoor classroom areas. The hardscape and landscape of the site’s center courtyard area has been designed to utilize functional and low maintenance materials.

Project Highlights
Timmons Group provided survey and wetland delineation and permitting services for the site. From a design and permitting perspective, Timmons Group initiated design of the campus in 2007 and has prepared an Advanced Sitework Package that allows the contractor to begin work on the project prior to the August 2008 site package bid date in order to meet the County’s aggressive schedule for opening of the high school.

The site contains approximately 9.6 acres of wetlands. Design accomplished the preservation of significant wetlands, only impacting less than .5 acre for site access; erosion and sediment control features and six stormwater management ponds located throughout the site.

Utility improvements included a sewer connection at the rear of the property and extension of a waterline across the frontage of the property on Staples Mill Road.

The design was prepared to obtain LEED® accreditation points for the efficient irrigation system which includes a weather station and moisture sensors; reserved parking spaces to encourage alternative fuel use; cisterns to gather roof rainfall runoff for reuse.

Manchester Courthouse Expansion
Chesterfield County, VA

Project Summary
Our Landscape Architecture group is closely collaborating with our Public Safety group and Moseley Architects on the Manchester Courthouse Expansion project. In mid-October, the team submitted rendered site plans to the City of Richmond’s Urban Design Committee for final approval. These site plans include an option for a public plaza that would front on Hull Street. This plaza would reconnect the courthouse with its original frontage on Hull Street and also create a space for community gatherings with its stage-like setting. A shaded seating area adjacent to the plaza could be used by visitors as they wait for their cases to be called and by employees during their breaks. An open lawn steps down toward the plaza along Hull Street, incorporating partially sunken granite beams as additional seating opportunities. The central paving area of this plaza has been identified as a potential site for public artwork, which would be reviewed by the City’s Public Art Commission. Our landscape architects have suggested that this artwork take on the form of a map depicting Old Manchester. This map could be comprised of a mosaic of pavers and other surfacing materials to form a rich and interesting focal point for the space.

Chesterfield Community Development Center
Chesterfield County, VA

Project Summary
The landscape and hardscape plans for this site incorporate responsible stormwater management and low impact development technologies. A wide variety of native plants were selected to withstand drought and temporary inundation on this un-irrigated site, and the design was intended to maximize shade to reduce the urban heat island effect. An entrance plaza reflects the patterns of the lobby floor and extends the space outward to invite the public in. Bioretention swales and a stormwater pond are featured around the parking lots to announce the overall goal of sustainability for this site. Located in the county’s central government complex, this building and site will serve as an excellent example of the county’s dedication to smarter development strategies.

Belle Isle Trail Enhancements
Richmond, VA

Project Summary
Belle Isle is a small island in Richmond’s James River that is rich in history. Now a publicly owned City Park, it was once the site of an infamous Civil War prison camp, a hydro-powered iron mill, a granite stone quarry and a legendary riverside party with the Grateful Dead. The proposed enhancements to the trail system in place at the park are intended to highlight the many historic places on the island, and to pique visitors’ interest in the stories that accompany each unique place and time.

The island is accessible to pedestrian and bicycle traffic via a suspension footbridge that hangs from the 6 lanes of vehicular traffic known as Lee Bridge. The existing trail system around Belle Isle includes bike trails and pedestrian trails that lead to the many points of interest in the park. The proposed enhancements to the trails accomplish several specific goals for the park; the stabilization of 2 historic structures along the trail, the installation of 2 more permanent access routes to existing river overlook areas and the introduction of new interpretive signage.

The design of two permanent access ramps to the existing rock outcroppings on the River was influenced by the existing land forms and natural flow of the River. The ramps are oriented to coincide with the direction of water flow in times of flooding; therefore minimizing potential damage. The natural stone used to line the ramps will match the exposed bedrock and blend with the landscape.

Our sensitivity to the natural and historic context of the project was key to the approval of the project within a historic watershed.

State Fair of Virginia at the Meadow
Caroline County, VA

Project Summary
Birthplace of Secretariat and new home for the State Fair of Virginia, the Meadow is a 377 acre property perfectly tailored for transformation into a premier expo and equestrian center. Timmons Group and Bullock, Smith and Partners are teaming to develop project programming which showcases the history and significance of the site while proposing required elements including midway, equestrian facilities, safe vehicular and pedestrian circulation, multi-use event, education and entertainment venue. Opening dates have compressed all phases of the work, and construction will be managed on a tight schedule.

Timmons Group has been instrumental in rezoning the property for proposed uses, refining the master plan for approval, and will administer construction supervision of the project.

Yancey Property Master Plan
Prince George County, VA

Project Summary
Timmons Group collaborated with Prince George County to design a conceptual master plan for a 200+/- acre site. The master plan reflected the following: Wetland Delineation, Phase I Environmental Site Assessment, Land Use Plan, Stormwater Management Concept Plan, Landscape Concept Plan, Infrastructure Analysis, Transportation Plan and information gathered from Public Meetings.

Timmons Group cooperatively worked with Prince George County staff to evaluate the site while maximizing its potential to accommodate as many uses as possible, some of which include: recreation fields, passive park space, school sites, community center, community library and animal shelter. Timmons Group’s in-house experts led a one-day design charrette to establish overall site goals while respecting functional relationships and operational considerations for the community complex.

Lewistown Commerce Center Master Plan
Hanover County, VA

Project Summary
Timmons Group charetted with Holladay Properties to design a master plan for a 150 acre mixed-use development showcasing Bass Pro Shop along the southbound lane of Interstate 95 and the intersection with Lewistown Road.

This unique partnership between the developer and County was formed to come up with a plan to conserve the greenways along the stream and onsite wetlands in the project area as a county park. The plan called for the creation of a visitors center, a several mile-long trail system, connections to a nearby amphitheatre, terraced garden and restaurants.

Owens & Minor, Inc. Corporate Headquarters
Hanover County, VA

Project Summary
Owens & Minor Headquarters site was designed as an upscale office campus. Employees and visitors to this campus have the opportunity to enjoy several on-site amenities, such as the lush landscape, the ¾ mile jogging trail system, or the rear courtyard overlooking a feature stormwater pond and fountain. A grand central axis was used to highlight the building’s architectural entrance features and to promote clear and comfortable circulation around the site. The gentle curve at the end of the axis draws users into the heart of the campus as they pull further away from the street. Throughout the campus, a combination of stately shade trees, colorful ornamental specimen, and lush understory plantings create a vibrant and dynamic landscape that complements the scale and architectural detail of the building itself.

Phillip Morris Corporate Headquarters
Richmond, VA

Project Summary
Respectful of the 1958 Charles Gillette/Skidmore, Owings & Merrill approach as to how plants were placed in ways to provide screening, framing, formality, accenting and allowance for large specimens to mature in a park like setting. Gillette had a way of drawing attention to each plant selection at its prime without sacrifi cing function. Every plant has its time to dominate the landscape whether by blooms, fragrance, and autumn leaf color or winter interest grounds.

Irrigation Design
North Carolina and Virginia

The application of water to landscapes is vital to the short-term success of a new planting as well as the long-term appearance of manicured lawns. Understanding this importance, Timmons Group has integrated Irrigation design into Landscape Architecture and Construction Administration as a way to efficiently and effectively reduce costs from master planning, through installation and into future maintenance. Together, with our Civil Engineers, The application of water to landscapes is vital to the short-term success of a new planting as well as the long-term appearance of manicured lawns. Understanding this importance, Timmons Group has integrated Irrigation design into Landscape Architecture and Construction Administration as a way to efficiently and effectively reduce costs from master planning, through installation and into future maintenance. Together, with our Civil Engineers, we are able to merge infrastructure needs with the horticultural objectives of a planting while mindful of long term grounds maintenance. Combining expertise with our environmental focus, we build water resources and in turn, conserve its use by using the latest in technological advancements and central controlling systems.

Our consulting and design team can provide assessment of existing systems for renovation and upgrades in addition to new designs working with all manufacturers in both electrical and hydraulic operations. Proven designs accomplished range from sporting complexes to green roofs.

Our ability of master planning for long term savings and conservation of resources propels Timmons Group as a leader in irrigation design. Our expertise from broad master planning to installation utilizes improvement in technology to develop some of the most modernized systems. These systems consider innovative computer controlling where water conservation can drive both efficiency and responsibility. Additionally, two-way communications have propelled the industry into more user friendly operations. Considering all aspects of this mechanical industry, irrigation design at Timmons Group is a clear vision.

Stream Restoration
North Carolina and Virginia

Stream restoration is a practice that requires great skill and diligence at every step, from initial permitting and design to the completion of system monitoring. Timmons Group’s Environmental Services Practice has the experienced staff to undertake nearly every aspect of a restoration project, whether it involves a few feet or several miles of stream. The scopes of projects range from site development impact mitigation to stream improvements for stormwater load to creation of quality stream credits for mitigation banking. Natural Channel Design is paramount in our approach.

Our team will first obtain accurate mapping and field data of a site’s existing natural resources to help our project designers assess the quality of the stream and avoid possible impacts. We also use this information to educate our clients.

Applying the United Stream Methodology, our staff gains a detailed understanding of the type and quality of stream, how to utilize reference streams for design influence and how to offer the most suitable design characteristics to satisfy regulatory requirements. The restoration of a stream should create a system that accommodates the hydrologic needs of the watershed and the habitat needs of wildlife.

Timmons Group staff members have the experience necessary to carry a project through the processes of representation of current conditions, administration of project construction and long-term fulfillment of the applicable permit conditions and client goals.

Fields Farm High School Restoration
Loudoun County, VA

Project Summary
The Fields Farm High School site in Loudoun County is a 146 acre former agricultural site with a rich set of natural resources, encompassing open fields and forested and emergent wetlands, as well as tributaries to the neighboring South Fork Catoctin Creek. Timmons Group produced a design for reforestation of approximately 17.5 acres of the site, meeting the goals of several interested parties at once. Loudoun County policy illuminated the need to enhance the quality of the tributaries to South Fork Catoctin Creek, while State and Federal laws required the need to mitigate for site development impacts to wetlands and streams.

The design accomplishes reforestation that satisfies policy and regulatory needs and provides suitable habitat for both wildlife and learning opportunities for students and other members of the community. Careful attention was paid to the adaptive qualities of native tree species in the various forest communities as well as their susceptibility to damage from pests. A 150’ forested buffer flanks over 650 linear feet of stream once bisecting an agricultural field, serving to increase the quality of runoff and riparian habitat leading to Catoctin Creek. Wetland areas are enhanced with new plantings to increase the area of the adjacent forested wetland, while remaining reforestation planting serves to bolster existing native tree stands. The aesthetic quality of protection measures was also a great consideration for overall completeness of the project design.

Coordination with the client, regulatory agencies and County Forester helped to create a plan that will provide lasting environmental enhancement and a chance for students to learn the intricate details of forest growth and succession.