Playa Blanca State Wildlife Area Interpretive Center

The San Luis Valley in south-central Colorado is the world's largest high-elevation alpine valley. The semi-arid desert valley floor, perched at an elevation of 7,600 feet, averages less than 6 inches of rainfall annually and is completely ringed by the majestic San Juan and Sangre de Christo mountains. In a high mountain desert characterized by significant evaporation, consistent wind, cold winters, and abundant sunshine, water is essential. This resource is a defining issue of the San Luis Valley as it is critical for the region's agriculture, wildlife, and the community's quality of life.

The Playa Blanca State Wildlife Area provides wildlife viewing opportunities for both sophisticated and novice bird watchers. An existing Native Aquatic Species Restoration Hatchery on-site provides aquaculture operations. The new Interpretive Center will provide information and education about the valley's cultural history and water's role in the region. The site is flat and includes areas of wetlands, natural and artificial ponds, and agriculture.

The Center's austere materiality forms a sparse backdrop to the native colors, vegetation, and wildlife of the area. The structure bridges playa (the desert basin) and water with a ramada to the east, and a contemplative interior viewing blind to the west projected into the pond. A high-volume gallery ambitiously combines clerestory windows with evaporative cooling and exhaust louvers to visually and thermally condition interior spaces.

Playa and water translate architecturally with concrete and masonry on land transitioning to glass and aluminum on water. A stretch of photo-voltaic panels forms a cornice above the exhibit space projecting out into the pond – serving as an energy source and perch for wildlife. Intersecting planes extend beyond the interiors creating outdoor spaces, entry nodes, and screens shielding the late-day sun, prevailing winds, and disturbance of wildlife inhabiting the ponds.

This expansive and climatically eclectic landscape inspired this proposition that celebrates the reciprocal relationship of shelter and setting.