SLR wins Excellence Award from the Connecticut Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects

The Connecticut Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects (CTASLA) awarded SLR’s Millbrook Meadow & Mill Pond Restoration project its highest award, the Excellence Award for Municipal and Public Spaces, at this year’s 2022 annual meeting and awards ceremony.

Over a five-year period, SLR’s multi-disciplinary team completed a comprehensive masterplan and public outreach programme, and developed construction documents/specifications for the restoration of the historic Millbrook Meadow & Mill Pond in Rockport, MA. The historical site was first settled in 1690, and through the years featured a grist mill/dam, lumber mill, ice houses, isinglass factories, and an organ manufacturing company. After the Mill Pond Dam failure in 2006, and its subsequent reconstruction, the park had fallen into disrepair, and revitalisation of the Mill Brook Meadow had become a top priority of the Rockport community.
During this time, the town and the design team established several critical goals for the project, including assessing methods for reducing park flooding, ways of preserving the park’s historical context, developing sustainable ecological stream and pond restoration opportunities, invasive plant species management, improving surface water quality, revitalising park amenities, improving park accessibility, and enhancing usability.

An award juror commented, "Obviously, [the Excellence Award recognises] a very significant project for the community of Rockport. Great analysis, prioritisation, and implementation address key issues [and demonstrate] good stewardship of the land and sustainable for environment. This is an extraordinary project with a significant benefit to both the community and the environment. [SLR’s] outstanding design hits all the categories…restoration, sustainable, and respectful to context.”

“With the adoption of the masterplan, local funding, and a staggering amount of private donations, this was truly a community-supported project,” noted Jason Williams, PLA. “This project is a true representation that the profession of landscape architecture plays a critical role as lead designer for projects associated with climate resiliency, preservation, and redevelopment.

The CTALSA is a professional association of landscape architects with nearly 300 members. The organisation has represented and hosted the annual meeting for 74 years with the design awards inaugurated in 1995.