Healing the Damaged Edge Horseshoe Cove at Fort Baker

Ideas Competition for Restorative Design The Architectural Foundation The 2009 William Turnbull Prize

The water’s edge is a timeless, irresistible draw. We yearn to go there, to dip our feet and splash, to stare across the rippling surface, to contemplate. Horseshoe Cove, at the North foot of the Bridge and Bay, presents an opportunity to create a meaningful place to experience the water’s edge and explore the interface of urban, built environments with natural ecologies.

We have selected a small site that has been largely stripped of its natural characteristics, yet it holds tremendous appeal and potential. A growing volume of visitors comes to Fort Baker and GGNRA for year-round recreation and education. How can we best restore and improve this site to provide access to the edge of ? How can principals of sustainability and biomimetics be used to create a place that enriches the visitor’s experience? Can restorative ideas be implemented on such a small-scale site, and could these ideas have broad applications on other small infill sites?

The Competition In 1998, the Foundation initiated a new grant program, the “William Turnbull Jr., FAIA, Environmental Education Grant,” with the purpose of fostering public education and public awareness programs related to the built and natural environment. The grant is dedicated to the memory of William Turnbull Jr., FAIA, the noted northern California architect. The Board of Regents administer the grant program in accordance with the Foundation’s goals and community needs. Grant amounts will vary between $500 and $2,000.

Background In 1972, the Golden Gate National Recreation Area was created, encompassing much of the military land in and around the Golden Gate, including Fort Baker and the . The site has been transformed from military use to public recreation under the guidance of the . Today, Fort Baker is home to the Bay Discovery Museum and the Cavallo Point Resort and Conference Center. The site also continues as a thriving wildlife habitat and spawning ground for many species of bird, butterfly and marine life. Numerous infrastructure improvements have been completed to better accommodate visitors.

The Site In the midst of these improvements, a significant plot at the water’s edge along Horseshoe Cove remains vacant, damaged and undefined. The water’s edge is marked by a deteriorating sea wall that blocks access to the water. The site has stunning views of the , the bay and San Francisco.

This cove on the San Francisco Bay has seen many different uses come and go. Some of the past uses and users include: • Indigenous - Miwok native hunting & fishing ground, pre-1775 • Explorers – Spanish conquistador encampments, 1775 – 1840’s • Historic - US Army fort & battery , 1850’s – 2002 • Industrial – construction yard for the Golden Gate Bridge, 1930’s • Recreational – Yacht club, kayaking, fishing pier; present day

The Brief This waterfront site offers a design opportunity to enhance the visitor’s experience of the San Francisco Bay. From casual bikers and hikers, to attendees at the Cavallo Conference Center, to the school children and families visiting the Bay Area Discovery Museum, a wide cross-section of the public is drawn to this location. A sensitive infill project that provides improved access to the water will only increase the appeal of Horseshoe Cove.

At 6.3 acres, this is a small site that is bound on all sides by established functions. We seek ideas for public use structure(s) and spaces that achieve a balance between natural ecology and urbanity within very finite constraints.

This brief seeks to explore: • Built elements engaging the ecosystem at the water’s edge • Use of localized energy resources - solar, wind, wave, tides • Biomimetic design concepts • Restorative design for the disturbed site

Existing site constraints: • Water’s edge – (existing seawall may be retained or removed) • US Coast Guard station (West side of cove) • Travis Marina/ Yacht club (East side of cove) • Discovery Museum (parking lot) • Murray Circle (roadway)

Suggested program components: • Warming hut/shelter – minimum building program as follows: o Café – counter serving line with simple warming kitchen area; Indoor seating for 30 people 2- and 4-top + counter; views to the water are desirable. 2,200 net square feet (nsf) o Cove shop – NPS gift and bookshop supporting Fort Baker programs, coordinate with Cavallho Conference Center, Travis Marina and Discovery Museum; exterior presence and/or display windows desirable. 1,200 nsf o Rest Rooms – male & female to Title 24 ADA requirements. 600 nsf. • Water’s edge improvements • Demonstration area – garden, art/sculpture, sustainability, alternative energy

Web Resources: www.fortbaker.net www.nps.gov/goga/naturescience/fort-baker.htm www.cavallopoint.com www.baykidsmuseum.org

REQUIREMENTS

SUBMITTAL DEADLINE:

Submissions must be emailed to [email protected] no later than 5:00 p.m. on Thursday – July 30, 2009. Submissions received after this time will not be considered.

SUBMISSION FORMAT: To ensure fair evaluation of all boards and to eliminate printing and postage fees for entrants, all submissions will be in the form of digital files. The competition organizers will be responsible for printing all boards. All files will be printed as high-quality (200 dpi) prints.

File requirements: Each entrant must submit two boards (A and B), explaining their project. The specifications of these boards are as follows:

- 30x40” at 200 dpi PDF format are required (5MB maximum size for each file to be used as primary files for printing boards), - Two JPEG versions of the same files (72 dpi, 600x800 pixels each – 150K maximum size for each file to be used for online exhibition) - a single detail/thumbnail (100x100 pixels), and a Microsoft Word compatible document containing project description text.

Winning entries will also be asked to submit high resolution files for publication.

SUBMISSION FORMAT REQUIREMENTS Please read all submission requirements carefully. Files that do not meet the requirements will be rejected. No resubmissions will be allowed after the deadline is passed. If you have any questions, you may email [email protected]

Anonymity: The submission shall have no name or mark that could serve as a means of identifying the project, other than the registration number, which entrants will receive by email after completing the registration process.

Text: A statement of no more than 250 words, explaining the project’s concept and intent should be included on board A as well as in a separate Microsoft Word compatible (.doc) file.

Format: All files must be in LANDSCAPE format (long side horizontal, short side vertical). All files must be named with the registration number you received when you submitted your registration, followed by an underscore and A, B, etc.

For example, the files for registrant 0000 would be called: - Board A: 0000_A.pdf (large file), 0000_A.jpg (small file for web) - Board B: 0000_B.pdf (large file), 0000_B.jpg (small file for web) - Other: 0000_thumb.jpg, 0000.doc

Each PDF file must include the entrant’s registration number in the upper right hand corner in either 36 point plain black text on a white background or 36 point plain white text on a black background. For PDF files, graphics should be set to 200 dpi/ppi. If printing to PDF from Illustrator, for example, choose Effect -> Document Raster Effects Settings -> Resolution -> Other: 200 ppi.

Layout: Two 30" x 40" landscape boards are required. Each board must include the entrant's registration number in the upper right hand corner in either 36 point plain black text on a white background or 36 point plain white text on a black background.

The first board must include the project description text (the same text will also be submitted separately as a Microsoft Word compatible .doc file), a small diagram, plan, or sketch to place the project in context, and a single large image that conveys the intent of the project. The suggested layout for this board is: large image on the right, text at the bottom of an 8" column on the left, and an overview, sketch, or diagram in the top of the 8" column on the left (above the text).

Rights Public Exhibition and Copyright: The California Architectural Foundation shall retain ownership of all prize-winning design submissions. The California Architectural Foundation plans to hold both an online and a gallery exhibition of work submitted in the competition following the jury. In entering the design competition, entrants grant the California Architectural Foundation unrestricted license to exercise the entrants' rights regarding their design submissions, including, but not limited to, reproduction, preparation of derivative works, distribution of copies of the design submission, and the right to authorize such use by others.

Announcement, Displays, and Publication of Results: When entering the competition, the registrant and all team members recognize the competition's program as the intellectual property of the California Architectural Foundation and agree to credit the organization by name in any subsequent exhibition or publication of the project. Entrants will be credited on all online and print material published by the California Architectural Foundation.

DISCLAIMER Neither the National Park Service, the Park Conservancy nor the Golden Gate Recreational Area offers any endorsement or implied intent to participants in this competition in any way. Review, judging or awards made by the California Architectural Foundation for any ideas submitted are solely the opinion of the jurors, in no way connected to NPS plans or intentions.

JUDGING CRITERIA:

The jury will review each submission on the basis of the creative impact the ideas offer for re-thinking how we treat small-scale infill projects in our communities. It is important to present the concepts in a way that quantifies the positive benefits to the eco-system without being simply anecdotal. While components and systems do not need to be wholly drawn from existing technologies it is expected that the concepts will be realizable within the near term. Inclusion of concepts that are drawn from ongoing research and the application of previously theoretical elements are encouraged. We want to stretch the imagination of all who are exposed to the concepts that emerge from this competition, with the goal of leading our profession toward restorative design and a carbon neutral future.

Eligibility: This competition is open to all residents of California. Funding for the program is from the California Architectural Foundation.

Only one (1) application per person. Employees of the California Architectural Foundation or the American Institute of Architects, California Council, the competition’s participating sponsors and their firms, employees of other Architectural Foundations, and members of the immediate family of any such persons are not eligible to participate and win. The term “immediate family” includes spouses, siblings, parents, children, grandparents, and grandchildren, whether as “in-laws,” or by current or past marriage(s), remarriage(s), adoption, co-habitation or other family extension, and any other persons residing at the same household and/or sharing information whether or not related.

Awards:

The top selected submissions will be exhibited at the 2009 Monterey Design Conference and award-winners will be announced and honored. Publication of the top submissions is planned for early 2010, to be widely distributed.

Awards will be considered in two categories: Student and Professional. For submission purposes, a Student is defined as an individual or team currently enrolled in a California College or University. The Professional category is open to anyone currently residing in California.

The most highly ranked submissions will receive cash prizes totaling $12,500. The award recipients will receive recognition as the “2009 William Turnbull Prize” winners at the 2009 Monterey Design Conference.

Awards will be distributed as follows:

Student Category: Honor Award - $2,500 Merit Award - $1,250

Professional Category Honor Award - $2,500 Merit Award - $1,250

One of the Honor Award projects will be recognized as the top award winner. An additional Environmental Prize of $5,000 will be distributed to one of the ten accredited schools of architecture in the State of California: Academy of Art University, California College of the Arts, Cal Poly Pomona, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, NewSchool of Art and Architecture, SCI-ARC, UCLA, UC Berkeley, USC, or Woodbury University, to be named by the winner, to further sustainable design research. This “2009 William Turnbull Prize” to the selected school will be given in the name of both the top award winner and the California Architectural Foundation. Award winning submissions will be published in the Fall of 2009 in arcCA.