Southfield

City Council reviews nature center designs

By Jennie Miller
C & G Staff Writer

SOUTHFIELD — It’s back to the drawing board again for architects working on the plans for a nature center at the Carpenter Lake Nature Preserve in Southfield.

Members of the Southfield City Council said they wish to see elevations that accurately reflect what the proposed project will look like, as well as samples of the materials that would be used on the site. They did give the OK, however, to move forward on the plans.

During a presentation at the Aug. 23 council meeting, Harley Ellis Devereaux architect Art Smith, Southfield Assistant City Planner Jeff Spence and Parks and Recreation Director Bill Waterhouse once again went over the proposed designs for the 10,630-square-foot, environmentally friendly educational facility that would sit at the foot of the preserve, spanning the ravine. It would feature an aquarium, a bird-watching area and a wall of glass to bring nature in.

Council President Don Fracassi shared his concerns with the designs presented. Among them? It looks like an outhouse, Fracassi said, with all due respect.

“When I looked at this, when I saw the rendering, I was, to say the least, very upset,” the former longtime mayor said.

Smith assured Fracassi that the proposed design would not resemble a rest stop, and that while some tweaks had been made prior to the meeting, the elevations he presented did not reflect those. For example, the roof in the drawing is all tin, but the latest proposal includes a partial tin roof for run-off water collection and cedar shake for the rest. Additionally, the proposed stain of the red cedar — one that would match the bark of the surrounding trees — comes off as an orange in the drawing, rather than more brown, and appeared as though it may even be brick rather than wood.

“I think the thing some of us are struggling with is, we’re supposed to be making a decision on whether to go forward with this, (but) you say it’s not going to look like that,” said City Councilman Myron Frasier. “If we’re going to make a decision, I think we ought to see how it’s going to look. I’d like to see what it would actually look like. I can’t tell you how to do your job; I just know what I would need in order to make a decision. … I see this and just, to me, it doesn’t do anything for me. I’m sorry.”

Waterhouse agreed that when he first saw the renderings, he also saw similarities to “a rest area somewhere between Phoenix and Sedona.”

“But drawings are very difficult,” he pointed out. “With a two-dimensional drawing, you have a tough time with what exactly it is.”

“Part of the problem is it’s very subjective,” Smith said of the drawings. “Our intent was to have a building that became much more a part of the landscape than to raise its hand and say ‘hey, look at me.’ If we were to show the actual building as it would appear in the setting, you’d hardly be able to see it. … You don’t want something that sticks out like a sore thumb. You want something warm and friendly that feels comfortable, that doesn’t look like it belongs along I-75. The primary materials are wood and glass. The roof material we’re looking at is cedar shake. The roof concept is it’s a leaf that came floating along and dropped over the building. (It) emulates the colors of the bark of the surrounding trees. We understand your concerns that you want this thing to fit in. That’s our goal also. Our overall intent is that the building can disappear, such that when you come here you only focus on two things, one, your educational experiences … and two, your connection to the inside and out.”

City Council members Sidney Lantz, Janna Garrison and Joan Seymour supported the design.

“I think it’s nice,” Lantz said.

“The color is misleading,” Seymour pointed out. “That is not the color. It’s emphasized or exaggerated to make it stand out so you can see the features. I think it’s a very practical. It functions. It’s got all the things we way back when said we wanted in a building like that. I think it’s going to work. I think it’s going to provide the function we talked about. I’m very pleased with it; I think (the designers have) done a very good job.”

Garrison said it’s impossible to make everyone happy in a situation like this.

“As an educator, when I looked at the building, I thought it was very nice,” she said. “I don’t know if you could ever please everybody. We can come in here and nitpick a hundred times. I don’t know that we could come up with something we’d all be pleased with. (But) I was pleasantly pleased.”

Smith agreed to come back to council with elevations that more accurately reflect the design of the building, as well as samples of building materials.

“I’d like to see what it really looks like — when you’re presenting something to us for approval, we shouldn’t have to use our imagination,” Southfield Mayor Brenda Lawrence said. “I don’t want to try to visualize.”

Harley Ellis Devereaux designed the innovative 42,000-square-foot Alfred A. Taubman Student Services Center on the campus of Lawrence Technological University in Southfield, considered to be a “living laboratory” of sustainable design and engineering, utilizing the latest in energy-efficient and environmentally-friendly designs and technologies. The building qualified for a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design green building certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.

The city received a $50,000 grant from the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund to help construct the nature center. The project is expected to cost $2 million.

The Carpenter Lake Nature Preserve encompasses 42 acres of woodlands, forested wetlands, and meadows complete with a mile’s worth of nature trails overlooking the five-acre lake at 10 Mile and Inskter, on the west side of the city.

You can reach C & G Staff Writer Jennie Miller at jmiller@candgnews.com or at (586)279-1108.