Building In The Wild
Designing a rural destination to attract visitors
By Mark Johnson
Photos: Gabe Border
Oregon State Parks was handed a gift: an 8,000-acre private property, tucked in the deepest part of Cottonwood Canyon. The site offered golden, rolling hills, river access, and a historic farm—but little else. A mere dot on a map, 25 miles from any gas station and 50 miles from the nearest town over 400 people, this was a very rural landscape.
State parks set out to create a recreation experience in the remote valley that would turn the landscape into a destination. Portland-based landscape-architecture firm Walker Macy designed a bird’s eye overview, including four cabins and a shower and bath facility, leaving open the anchoring element: the Cottonwood Canyon Experience Center. Seattle-based Signal Architecture and Research then took the lead on filling in the specifics of the site design. A sustainable concept, the Experience Center is more than a space for learning, celebrating, and gathering: It’s become a bridge across Central Oregon’s urban/rural divide.
The Place And Its History
The statewide nonprofit, Oregon State Parks Foundation, helped raise the funds to build the Experience Center, which was completed in October 2018. Building in the middle of nowhere requires resources—and for both Oregon State Parks and Signal Architecture, sustainably framing those resources was about more than remaining on budget with a $700,000 scope. Designing and building a facility that is simultaneously utilitarian, sustainable, modern, respectful of history, and beautiful in an inspiring landscape takes collective vision from ownership, management, design, and construction to see to implementation. The rugged and fragile landscape, rich in both legacy and texture, required a structure that complemented its surroundings; after all, the park was established as a monument to the outdoor experience and as a gateway to the natural habitats and wildlife that can only be found in the underexplored area of Oregon.
It was clear the Experience Center should be built sustainably, while reflecting the resourcefulness and rough character of the central Oregon ranch landscape and privately owned Murtha Cow Camp that occupied the site for decades. A signature feature of the ranch, the Murtha barn’s timeless form, beautifully aged walls and framing, and simple assembly, served as inspiration for the design of the Experience Center. Honest materials, durability, and weather protection had to inform the placement and selection of materials for the building.
Design Echoing The Canyon
In line with the leave-no-trace vision of Oregon State Parks, Signal’s design strategy worked with everything surrounding nature had to offer, keeping an eye on both low-tech opportunities and current technology to minimize energy use and to stand the test of time. For Signal, “sustainability goals are part of good practice,” and that core value is reflected in the decisions made and solutions offered to the site:
• Opposing doors allow for cross ventilation, and translucent roofing reduces daytime lighting demands.
• LED-lighting and a rooftop solar array minimize power needs.
• A low-emission stove meets 2020 wood-burning emission criteria of under 2 grams/hr at 1.83 grams/hr.
• The steel surround is designed and built to provide storage of wood for use in the stove and outdoor fire pits.
• The siding is juniper, an invasive plant species in central Oregon. It is very hardy and has an oily wood, similar to cedar, and, as a result, is insect- and rot-resistant. Some of the siding is metal, similar to the corrugated barns in the valley, and will endure hot summers and cold winters.
• The floor is concrete, which is durable underfoot, and can be washed or swept for easy cleanup.
• The building’s mass shields outdoor gathering spaces from the canyon’s heavy winds and hot afternoon sun, enabling year-round outdoor education and recreation.
• The indoor spaces were configured to be as adaptable as possible.
• The footprint of the building was kept intentionally small, with the large doors allowing the building to easily double in size, expanding space to fit the needs of the wide range of events the center hosts.
• The metal roof moves down the wall facing prevailing weather.
At every step, the Experience Center was designed to fit the landscape: resilient, rugged, and as self-sufficient as possible.
Everyday Use
Now that the previously private lands have been opened up to public access, Cottonwood Canyon is receiving traffic from surrounding towns as well as from medium-sized cities in the region, like The Dalles and Bend. The cabins are filling up months in advance, receiving attention even during the shoulder seasons. It’s not difficult to understand why. In addition to the 21 primitive, riverside campsites and four cabins, the park boasts it is the only park in the state with unrestricted access to the John Day River. Though the Experience Center does not maintain regular opening hours, its large, welcoming garage doors are frequently lifted for a wedding, celebration, gathering, educational event, or a meeting by state park officials. The building includes classroom space, interpretive displays, activity and meeting areas, and a park-specific library. And even when the door is locked, the Experience Center serves as a resource, providing access to shade, drinking water, wind protection, and soft, lush grass—a rarity in the canyon. The Experience Center will serve as a capstone gathering place in the rich scenic landscape of Central Oregon, connecting stories of history with programming and learning experiences for future generations.
The Experience Center’s Foundation: Cooperation And Community
The 1,500-square-foot center solves the need for the destination and shelter the newly minted park cried for, but it does more than that; it is a place for campers, hikers, and rafters to access fresh water and shade, and to commune on enclosed, soft grass. At $75 a day, it is an affordable location for the community to gather, wed, learn, and celebrate. The center both frames and reframes the canyon, and in doing so, creates a special place where, before, there was only space. “Cottonwood Canyon Experience Center is a capstone in the new State Park. Signal worked with us to design a facility that is both familiar to locals and inspiring to visitors, and is at home in the rugged and beautiful landscape,” says Scott Nebeker, Oregon State Parks Development Manager.
Mark Johnson, AIA, LEEDap bd+c, is a principal architect and founder of Signal Architecture + Research in Seattle, Wash. Reach him at mjohnson@signalarch.com or visit www.signalarch.com.
Video: link to video on website: http://signalarch.com/2019/cottonwood-canyon-experience-center-new-video/
Link to vimeo: https://vimeo.com/344813532