University of Miami Lakeside Village

Challenge

• Enhance campus connectivity through the delineation of natural paths of travel and removal of buildings as obstacles.
• Create synergy between landscape and architecture.
• Provide shaded comfortable outdoor areas to increase outdoor socialization, recreation, and relaxation.
• Create a biophilic experience enhancing mood and creativity in the university community.
• Reuse and repurpose existing site elements as landmarks.
• Improve plant and animal biodiversity on the ground level, elevated gardens, and green roofs.
• Reduce greywater pressure downstream by implementing best management practices (BMPs) such as green roofs, rain gardens, and impervious surfaces to handle runoff on site.

• Located on the shore of 156-acre Lake Osceola, the 540,000-sf Student Housing Complex includes 25 interconnected buildings and 273,764 sf of landscape that serves 1,115 student residents as well as other campus users who pass through the site or attend classes in the buildings.
• Each building is raised above ground level so that pedestrians pass under the buildings. This provides seamless movement to and from the surrounding campus, space for additional outdoor programming, and shade and protection from rain — an important feature in South Florida’s tropical climate.
• The site’s 25 extensive green roofs and one intensive green roof encompass 60,000 sf. The extensive roofs are planted with native bahia grass designed to stabilize the soil in the sloped roof design and capture rainwater. Roof slopes vary from 11% to 20% across the 25 green roofs, which were designed to withstand hurricane winds. The green roof maintenance program now allows for “desired colonization” of additional pollinator-friendly plants with larger woodier species being removed as needed. Green roofs are only accessible to the maintenance team, and the single intensive green roof is the only one visible from the building interior.
• The tropical native landscape plantings are in 3 layers, each with a different experience. The green roofs located atop each building are inaccessible to people but attract various pollinator insect and bird species. On the second and third floors, a second layer of private terraces provide a more intimate experience for the residents of the buildings. Native plants in large extensive green roof planters surround informal seating areas. The walls of these planters extend to provide additional seating. Trees are also found at mid-level, located in tree planters that are 30 in deep. Lastly, the ground level has an open, active feel with larger planting beds and large specimen trees, high traffic pathways elevated over rain gardens, and a large sand area that can be programmed for social and recreational activities.
• The site includes more than 70 plant species on 12.5 acres of land, providing plant diversity which attracts a wide array of insects and amphibians. 
• More than 100 trees were preserved in place or held for relocation in on-site nurseries during construction, resulting in over 74,000 sf of tree canopy that was originally on-site remaining on the site. Some key examples of species which were relocated include black olive tree (Bucida buceras), Spanish stopper (Eugenia foetida), and gumbo limbo (Bursera simaruba).
• 2 rain gardens covering approximately 4,000 sf capture runoff from the site. They are connected by a pipe as only one of them has a catch basin to collect the water that enters both areas. A pedestrian concrete bridge separates the rain gardens. Rain garden plantings include a diverse selection of native plant species such as bald cypress (Taxodium distichum) and fakahatchee grass (Tripsacum dactyloides).
• The 1,800-sf outdoor gym equipment includes fitness steps, ropes, an endurance wellness stone, an ab bar, a sliding push up bar. There is also a 16,000-sf volleyball court. These areas were designed as amenities that promote physical activity and enhance social interaction among student residents.
• Giant limestone rocks were harvested from foundations of former buildings during site excavation and repurposed as landscape features such as benches, planters, and landmarks.

Early in the design process, the landscape architect, the architect, and the general contractor met to decide whether and how to preserve the large canopy trees located on site. They decided to involve an arborist to determine if the trees on site could handle two relocations. These trees would be relocated to three new temporary tree nurseries created on site during the construction period. Depending on the tree’s original location, each was moved to the nearest nursery, and then relocated to their final location as the design specified. The nurseries were maintained by the UM maintenance crew and the health of the trees were monitored regularly by the landscape architect and arborist. Ultimately, all but three of the trees that the team planned to preserve were moved to nurseries; those three were kept in place due to age and size. While some trees were lost during hurricane Irma, the remaining relocated trees had a 100% success rate. The design team concluded that the on-site tree nursery was an effective method of preserving existing canopy.

The cost of keeping the existing trees on-site (preserving or relocating) was $145,150. Purchasing the same number and species of trees (but not the same size) would have resulted in an estimated cost of $58,050, not including installation costs. This would not have fulfilled the design intent, nor provided the amount of shade and carbon sequestration benefits that the existing trees provide. 

• The 25 extensive green roofs were planted with just one species, native bahia grass, because it is resilient to extreme weather conditions and stabilizes the soil on the sloped roof. The maintenance plan was later adapted to allow colonization of certain species to attract pollinators and increase biodiversity while removing problematic species which were invasive or could grow too large.
• The rain gardens were designed to capture excess rainwater from several of the site’s 25 green roofs. The green roofs performed beyond expectations in capturing rainwater, minimizing the amount of excess water received by the rain gardens below. This provides an opportunity for additional stormwater to be routed to the rain gardens in the future as they have extra capacity. 
• During schematic design many large canopy trees near the lake were planned for relocation. After initial tree surveys showed the trees were not suitable for relocation, the design team worked with the contractor to redesign the area and preserve the trees. The adjusted design included the berm which provides a place to rest and look out over the lake under large shade trees, a design element which added to the aesthetic value of the space. 

Chairs: LOLL Designs 
Tables: Landscape Forms 
Bench: Landscape Forms 
Umbrella: Landscape Forms 
Trash Cans: LOLL Designs 
Green Roof: Henry Green Roof System

Project Team

Owner: University of Miami
General Constructor: Moss Construction
Architect: Arquitectonica
Landscape Architect: ArquitectonicaGEO
Landscape Contractor: Geomantics
Structural Engineer: Thornton Tomasetti
MEP Engineer: HNGS Engineer
Civil Engineer: Edwards & Partners
Lighting: O’Brien Lighting Inc.
Sustainability: SEQUIL Systems, Inc.
Wind Engineering: RWDI

Role of the Landscape Architect

The landscape architect and design team led the design of the landscape, green roofs, and deck terraces from the project’s early stages. They also worked with the client, architect, and general contractor to maintain the same structural language across the project.