Park District of Highland Park recently issued the following announcement.
Rosewood Beach received the American Institute of Architects (AIA) 2018 Small Projects Design Award. This is the fifth design award the District has received for Rosewood and the second national award. Rosewood designers Woodhouse Tinucci Architects received the award for the Rosewood design from the AIA which is headquartered in Washington D.C. Rosewood was one of eleven projects in the United States that received the Institute’s small project top honors.
The Small Project Awards recognize small project practitioners for their high-quality work and promote excellence in design. The program strives to raise public awareness of the value and design excellence that architects bring to projects regardless of size and scope. Recipients for the award are selected by a five-member jury.
According to Woodhouse Tinucci, their solution to reactivating Rosewood Beach rooted basic amenities and an education pavilion in an elemental lakeside experience—a leisurely boardwalk stroll that meanders 1500-ft, connecting access points at each end and giving visitors an ever-changing journey along Lake Michigan. To minimize bulk, only functions needing privacy or separation are enclosed. All else is outdoors on the boardwalk itself, which wraps up and over to form simple, low-profile pavilions and site furnishings. Pavilions are long, low, thin, and topped with boardwalk planking so that views down the beach and from the park above are preserved. At the north end, the boardwalk expands to become the education pavilion. Moving south, the boardwalk morphs into benches and bridges a stream to reach the lifeguards’ station. Beyond, it folds up to form the snack bar and restroom pavilions. Materials are natural, simple, “beachy”: ipe, cedar, polished concrete, rough field stone.
Since the grand re-opening of beach in 2015, Rosewood Beach has received national, state and local recognition. In 2016, it was named “Best Restored Beach” by the American Shore & Beach Preservation Association; “Outstanding Facility of the Year” by the Illinois Parks & Recreation Association; “Distinguished Building Award” by the American Institute of Architects – Chicago; and “Design Merit Award” by the Chicago Building Congress.
“The AIA Award is another reminder of how the vision and hard work of our District, our residents, and our partners is now a treasured reality for Highland Park,” said Liza McElroy, executive director for the Park District of Highland Park. “Woodhouse Tinucci delivered a truly exceptional design that continues to be recognized by the design community across the country.”
Founded in 1857, AIA consistently works to create more valuable, healthy, secure, and sustainable buildings, neighborhoods, and communities. Through more than 200 international, state and local chapters, AIA advocates for public policies that promote economic vitality and public wellbeing.
AIA provides members with tools and resources to assist them in their careers and business as well as engaging civic and government leaders and the public to find solutions to pressing issues facing our communities, institutions, nation, and world. Members adhere to a code of ethics and conduct to ensure the highest professional standards.
Original source can be found here.
Source: Park District of Highland Park
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