ASLA 2012 Student AwardsGeneral Design CategoryDescriptive Data Summary

Project Narrative:

Located along the existing Canal Bois de Chêne in the capital of Port-au-Prince, Haiti this green pedestrian infrastructure combines traditional elements of a botanic garden, including education, preservation and conservation with essential elements of infrastructure including sanitation, pedestrian connectivity and public health essential to the redevelopment of Haiti. In this capital city of more than a million people, where only one in five have access to a sanitary toilet, implementation of a traditional botanic garden may be seen as superfluous. A unique, unconventional interpretation of what a National Botanic Garden could be is essential in order to create a relevant source of pride and cultural understanding for this developing nation. In a nation where approximately 90% of roadways are non-navigable and economic opportunity is scarce a majority of Haitians walk as their main mode of transport1. A functioning, efficient and unique pedestrian infrastructure provides immense opportunity for the community. In addition no city in Haiti, including the national capital, has a functioning sewage system. 2 Storm water, sewage and garbage is currently directed into waterways like Canal Bois de Chêne. This alone would be a significant contributing factor in the development of a city, however since the introduction of Cholera last year it poses a further, significant public health risk. During the rainy seasons the detritus of a million residents makes it’s way into waterways and on into the ocean. Once intrinsic aspect of the Canal Bois de Chêne: Garden Machine design is the bio-remediation wetland and park integrated into the pedestrian infrastructure system. This element of the non-traditional botanic garden is intended to address storm water contamination while connecting citizens to the educational aspects of this unconventional garden machine. The treatment wetland is a crucial element of the design program, intended to reconnect citizens with elements of natural systems. The garden machine form is influenced by the natural flow of water in the Canal Bois de Chêne. The formal element of the Haitian National Botanic Garden is comprised of the Social Garden; a formal botanic garden along the canal which serves both an educational and civic purpose for the capital city. This sculpted space is designed to provide a framework for exploration and education of Haitian ecosystems, from wetland marsh to mountain forest, and the history of Haitian flora and agriculture allows the public access and interaction with the garden. An interaction that might not be possible if the garden was located outside the urban center. A surplus of rubble is available for use as gabion walls throughout the garden machine, formal garden and pedestrian infrastructure. Incorporation of this element is a key design feature intended to act as a marker of remembrance and a functional method for debris removal from the devastated city. Local and regional flora is interspersed with agricultural and medicinal plant material in the three zones of the Canal Bois de Chêne: Garden Machine design. Integration of the Haitian National Botanic Garden into the fabric of Port au Prince through a pedestrian infrastructure, naturalized storm water treatment system and formal civic garden provides immense opportunity for positive change and development. Canal Bois de Chêne: Garden Machine acts as a catalyst for the creation of civic pride and economic prosperity in the developing nation of Haiti.

1 Haitispecialenvoy.com2 Haitispecialenvoy.com