Landscape Architecture Design Prescriptions for the Craters of the Moon Visitor Center Picnic Area

Project ID: P17AC01225

Federal Agency: National Park Service

Partner Institution: University of Idaho

Fiscal Year: 2017

Initial Funding: $9,088

Total Funding: $9,088

Project Type: Technical Assistance

Project Disciplines: Interdisciplinary

National Park: Craters of the Moon National Monument

Principal Investigator: Scott, Elizabeth

Agreement Technical Representative: Gerttula, Blake

Abstract: The Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve (CRMO) visitor center picnic area was originally designed in 1957. It was one of several green spaces designed as part of the NPS Mission 66. As part of this effort, lawns were planted around the Visitor Center, parking area/s and all of the bunkhouses. Together, these lawns required a great deal of maintenance, time, money and water (up to 80% of the park’s water use). Later, park managers decided the water, labor, time, and money spent to maintain lawns was a poor use of resources. In addition, lawns were considered inconsistent with the surrounding lava / cinder and sagebrush landscape of CRMO. Starting in 1984 and continuing until 2005, the other lawns were removed and converted to native vegetation. The picnic area lawn is the only one that remains today. It has been estimated that 10% of the park’s water usage in the summer goes to watering this area. This area also still requires some maintenance, time, and money to maintain.

The CRMO picnic area was originally planted with shrubs, trees, and seeded with a mixture of non-native European grasses. Many of the original shrubs and trees soon died however and Douglas firs were planted, which now provide shade for the picnic area. Picnic tables were not added to the area until the early 1990s. None of the picnic tables are currently handicap accessible.

The project area is approximately 4,600 square feet of lawn adjacent to the CRMO Visitor Center. The area is located between the south parking area and the staff parking area / maintenance buildings. A wall separates and provides a visual barrier between the picnic area and the maintenance area.

The area is heavily used when snow free. Tables in the shade are most sought after by the public in the summer months but all the tables and the lawn receive use. Deer are known to frequent the lawn area, presumably drawn by the water and green forage.

The goal of this project is to produce products that can be used to reduce or eliminate the need for maintenance and watering of this area, make the area blend more naturally into the surrounding landscape, and provide handicap accessible picnic sites while retaining or enhancing its’ current use as a gathering place and picnicking area for the park’s visitors. Expected products from this project include two to three landscape architecture design prescriptions to address these site-specific goals.

B. Objectives

Investigators from the UI and NPS staff will collaborate to accomplish the following specific objectives:

1. Conduct a site and observational analysis of the existing conditions and use of the Visitor Center Picnic Area, including use of the existing lawn area by park visitors.
2. Prepare a synopsis of landscape characteristics of analogous desert-based Visitor Center facilities at other NPS properties (“Precedent Study”). This study will include other Mission 66 facilities, and will be representative of the current state of NPS facilities. The Precedent Study will help guide review and comment on proposed design alternatives, and will be included in the final project report.
3. Develop two to three initial landscape architecture design prescriptions for the CRMO Visitor Center Picnic Area to help preserve and enhance the visitor experience and existing functionality of the Picnic Area. The alternatives will consist of appropriately scaled plan and cross-sectional drawings, which will be accompanied by a narrative description of the design objectives. The designs will:
a. Reduce or eliminate the need for watering the Visitor Center lawn / picnic area;
b. Reduce or eliminate the need for maintenance of the Visitor Center lawn / picnic area; and
c. Provide handicap accessible picnic sites at the Visitor Center.
4. Collaborate in choosing a final preferred design alternative, drawn to scale in plan and cross-section, and develop a summary report describing all phases of the design work.
The public benefits from this project include improved service to the visiting public by providing picnic areas and handicap accessible picnic sites while conserving water, reducing maintenance, and replacing non-native grasses with native vegetation that more naturally fits the surrounding environment. This project also supports a UI graduate student, with the Landscape Architecture Program, who will receive real-world experience in landscape design and field work.