The Village School Courtyard Design
The Village School Master Plan establishes a strong central courtyard for school-wide and community gatherings, small classes, and outdoor seating at lunch. Unfortunately, the existing courtyard did not meet these multipurpose needs. A large expanse of pavement, sloping steeply from southwest to northeast, covered the courtyard and caused drainage and accessibility issues. The Village School knew there was an opportunity to transform this 10,600 sf, underutilized courtyard into a central gathering space for their tight-knit community.
In the new courtyard design, tiered, curvilinear retaining walls radiate from the stage area to form an outdoor amphitheater. The oval-shaped uppermost terrace offers outdoor seating for lunch and gatherings. Trees will eventually provide shade and other plantings will mature to break down the hard lines of the paved surfaces. The overall design balances hard and soft elements. Rowell Brokaw provided the schematic designs for the courtyard to the Village School.
In developing this design, architect and landscape architect Lorri Nelson paid close attention to grade connections and relationships between interior floor levels and walkways. She found ways to work with the existing grade rather than do extensive re-grading. She gently sloped walkways and seating to help direct water to drains and stormwater plantings. A covered ramp along the south
edge of the courtyard allows accessible circulation throughout the courtyard and gives access to the stage area, part of the tiered seating, the large uppermost terrace, and the cafeteria.
As part of their 25th Anniversary, The Village School is planning to create a mural in the style of Diego Rivera on the south wall of the courtyard. The mural will capture the “9-year arc” of this K-8 school, with special ceremonies, events, and activities captured. Artist Kari Johnson has been selected to paint the mural. For more on the planned mural and to support the project, visit the following link: https://polarengraving.com/eugenevillageschool.
Thanks to executive director Andy Peara for his design inspiration! And thanks to The Village School community!