The Baker Park Outdoor Learning Center hosts school groups for day trips and overnight stays. Three Rivers Park District asked Kodet to design a shower and restroom facility to serve visitors and guests better. Our team worked closely with camp staff and park employees to develop a building plan that was functional and respectful of the surrounding environment. We situated the building within the site to minimize the number of trees that needed to be cut down. This building orientation has the added benefit of natural daylighting via the clerestory windows and into the enclosed interior rooms below.
This new amenity consists of restrooms and showers and includes a nurse’s office, laundry facility, and a garage for utility vehicle storage. It is used year-round and can accommodate up to eight guests showering simultaneously. Due in part to its primary function, the building consumes much energy for its size. However, our office and the client weighed options throughout the design process to improve the efficiency and overall sustainability of the project, such as using low-flow fixtures to reduce water usage and constructing a building envelope with structurally insulated panels that have a higher R-value than is required by the building code. Thereby reducing energy consumption and saving the owner money on heating and cooling costs. Moreover, we worked with our structural engineer to ensure that the roof can support a future solar array the owner plans to install to offset energy use further.
