Pearl Harbor Memorial Museum & Visitor Center
National Park Service, US NavyHonolulu, HI
The Memorial, with its dramatic and moving history, has become the most popular visitor attraction in Honolulu, and the annual visitation of 1.5 million is double the carrying capacity of the existing shore-side visitor center. The entire campus has been redesigned to accommodate more visitors and to better tell this important American story. The new museum and visitor center will extend the areas for visitor gathering and memorial ceremonies, expand museum exhibits, renovate the theaters for the introductory film presentation, improve visitor amenities and provide new offices for park staff. Incorporating universal accessibility and sustainable design principles, the new museum and visitor center are LEED Gold certified.
Brookfield Children’s Zoo
Brookfield ZooChicago, IL
The Children’s Experience at Brookfield Zoo will provide a state-of-the-art update to a much loved children’s zoo. Prioritizing the idea of “experiencing animals up close,” the Portico team is working closely with the zoo to develop innovative and engaging ways for visitors to have rich and varied interactions with animals. The renovated Red Barn will provide the background to a unique contact yard. The entire quadrant will be dotted with opportunities for adventure play, surprise animal encounters, and “everyday” local animals presented in new and surprising ways.
Happy Hollow Park & Zoo - Sustainable Site Design
City of San JoseSan Jose, CA
The connection to Happy Hollow Park & Zoo’s main messages regarding stewardship and conservation was reinforced through the design, construction, and operation of the facility. Through swales, porous asphalt concrete paving, and an underground gravel drainage blanket, sustainable landscape design solutions at Happy Hollow focus on moderating the impact of stormwater discharge into nearby Coyote Creek. The planting palette is native or adapted to the San Jose climate, soil, and sun characteristics, and the walkways, play areas, rides, party circles, and buildings were specifically sited to minimize the damage to many of the existing trees that provide shade and a cooling micro-climate for the children.
Happy Hollow Park & Zoo - Sustainable Building Design
City of San JoseSan Jose, CA
Sustainable building design solutions at Happy Hollow center on a built form that optimizes daylight and provides for natural ventilation, while minimizing summer solar heat gain and glare. Green building design elements include two-pipe radiant flooring for heating and cooling; fiber cement board made from sand, recycled cement, and cellulosic fibers; low-slope green roofs; and hay-bale construction at the education building, to name a few. Happy Hollow is a LEED Gold certified campus.
Happy Hollow Park & Zoo
City of San JoseSan Jose, CA
In the heart of San Jose an existing forty acre multi-use park holds opportunities for drama and fun, and a heightened interpretive experience. Capitalizing on complex site topography, creating themed circulation, and planning for new buildings and exhibits, we developed an immersive experience focused on children ages two through 10 and their families. This project represents the first LEED Gold certified amusement park and zoo in the United States.
- Architecture
- Landscape Architecture
- Interpretive Planning
- Exhibit Design
- Graphic Design
- Master Planning
Ocean Wonders: Shark! at New York Aquarium
Wildlife Conservation SocietyNew York, NY
As part of its global shark conservation efforts, the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) maintains a research aquarium at Coney Island, in concert with the New York Aquarium. Portico’s challenge was to design a replacement facility, one with larger tanks offering more research opportunities that also functions as a popular visitor attraction and shark interpretation resource. Working closely with WCS, we designed a rich and colorful Coral Reef tank and an expansive Open Ocean tank, both alive with swimming sharks and supporting interpretive materials.
Descanso Gardens Master Plan
Descanso GardensLa Canada Flintridge, CA
Building on Descanso Gardens’ strategic plan, the master plan helped the Gardens achieve near self-sufficiency in water and energy use, and become self-contained in terms of waste disposal and recycling. For a garden as beautiful as Descanso, demonstrating sustainability is truly a worthy vision. The Portico team assessed the feasibility of all aspects of self-sufficiency by identifying potential methods and technologies, assessing their application to the specific site and operations, and identifying the true value and cost of accomplishing the Gardens’ vision.
Dragonfly Pavilion
City of Seattle Public Utilities and Office of Arts and Cultural AffairsWorking with artist Lorna Jordan, Portico developed a critical interpretive component of the Longfellow Creek Drainage and Habitat Improvement Project spanning several Seattle neighborhoods. The Dragonfly Pavilion is formed from a steel armature hovering 20 ft. above an elegant terrazzo plaza and seating area. Grounded in its West Seattle neighborhood, the pavilion is the site of education programs and demonstrations of habitat-friendly garden practices. The dragonfly, an “indicator species”, symbolizes the renewed health of the surrounding ecosystem.
Holden Arboretum Master Plan
The Holden ArboretumKirtland, OH
The Holden Arboretum aims to convey that ?Trees are for life; they are a long term investment necessary for our future health.? Portico worked with the Arboretum to further this message. The master plan is designed to increase and broaden visitation by creating a significant visitor destination with greater relevance to its audience. By grouping proposed facilities together such as science labs and conservation areas, the arboretum staff can easily demonstrate and explain its work to the public.
Kent Town Square Plaza
City of KentKent, WA
Drip, drop, plop, and splash - the town square plaza is an interactive sculpture of water and delight. This playful urban plaza is an active space promoting exuberant activities, with zones for play, rest, socializing, and reading. it links new residential buildings, retail development and the light rail transit station with the historic downtown core and regional library. Kent Town Square Plaza provides community space for a farmers market, community festivals, live music, plays, and seasonal activities. Bands of porous paving allow storm water to infiltrate the ground mimicking natural patterns of water flow.
Mary Lowell Center
National Park Service, US Forest ServiceSeward, AK
For the planning of a new joint agency headquarters and visitor center for Kenai Fjords National Park and Chugach National Forest, Portico led a site selection study to analyze downtown Seward and its waterfront. Goals for the study were to strengthen downtown, stimulate private investment and complement other existing public waterfront visitor destinations. The chosen site will be developed to provide NPS and partnering agencies with an energy-efficient, year-round facility serving residents and tourists alike.
Portland Japanese Garden
The Japanese Garden Society of OregonPortland, OR
Portico developed a master plan that shows how this internationally recognized garden can be updated to accommodate greater visitorship while maintaining an intimate sense of place. Opportunities for expansion of the garden and facilities were identified using topographically unique spaces that lend themselves to hide and reveal views. The plan also moves the garden toward a more sustainable facility by identifying “green” approaches to future projects, buildings and operations.
Washington Park Arboretum Master Plan
Seattle Department of Parks & RecreationSeattle, WA
Ecology, conservation and education are even more compelling today than in 1934 when the Arboretum was originally designed by the Olmsted Brothers. The value of a world-class arboretum to the Puget Sound region has greatly increased. Portico created a visionary new master plan and a detailed implementation plan, identifying long-range strategies to manage the collections of this living museum. The plan emphasizes an ecological approach to plant collections showcasing plant communities and associated habitat, and highlights those plants adapted to our Pacific Northwest maritime climate and geography.
Pacific Connections Garden
Seattle Department of Parks & RecreationSeattle, WA
The Pacific Connections Garden displays plants from five geographic regions around the Pacific Rim, each selected for its ecological appropriateness to the Puget Sound region. This is the first major undertaking to implement the Portico-designed Washington Park Arboretum Master Plan. The collections allow the visitor to compare and contrast plant communities of the Pacific Northwest with plants found in central Chile, eastern Asia, New Zealand and southeastern Australia. A stunning log shelter provides cover from inclement weather and a focus for interpretive materials, revealing the importance of these new collections to the gardener, horticulturist, and scientist.
Hands On! The Children’s Museum
Hands On! The Children's MuseumOlympia, WA
The capitol city of Olympia, Washington has a rich story, and water runs through it. Hands On Children’s Museum will tell that story in its new LEED Silver facility, with interactive exhibits geared toward engaging kids from birth to age ten. With nearly a half-acre of outdoor exhibits to compliment the 9,000 square feet indoors, Hands On will expand its visitor experience, while continuing its excellent tradition of intimate and engaging interior activities for children and families.
