The nexus of water research in the desert
Lake Havasu City
Lake Havasu City, Arizona
20,400 sq ft building, 10 acres project site of 280-acre master planned area
Visioning, Public, Cultural, Learning, Workplace, Resilience
Lake Havasu and the eponymous City, responsible for delivering water throughout the Lower Colorado River Basin, is a nexus for water issues in a region challenged by climate change and drought. City leadership understood their unique position to promote water resource awareness and stewardship when evaluating the desert city’s future growth in developing the City’s Vision 2020 Plan. Jones Studio collaborated with numerous stakeholders to craft a vision for the Environmental Learning Center—a cornerstone of the plan that stimulates revitalization and provides critical, resilient infrastructure. The ELC is envisioned as a regional model for sustainability, a community educational resource, and a celebration of water in the desert.
The learning center encourages community engagement with complex water issues through the building’s program. Educational spaces like classrooms and observable water quality laboratories—where researchers discover alongside visitors—reinforce the center’s aspiration as the premier water research institution in the Southwest. The resource center provides an environment for discovery through experiential learning in physical and digital forms, utilizing immersive technology to better communicate research. Flexible workplace and multi-purpose spaces of various scales support local partnership collaboration and community outreach, highlighted by the large, flexible event space overlooking the site. These spaces within the ELC are stitched together by galleries communicating the importance of water through different media, inspiring viewers to action.
Settling seamlessly into the site, the building is inspired by the geology and erosion of the desert. The fractures of the form frame views and carve paths across the site. Cresting roof planes, recalling the jagged fragments of the adjacent hills, bring daylight and natural ventilation deep into the building while gently guiding rainwater to the ground below. Walls of concrete carrying these roofs are cast with a face of loose stone quarried from the site and evoke a tactile recognition of the place. Composed at the peak of the hillside as a gateway from the city to the rugged topography, these elements lead visitors to desert vistas beyond.
Similar to the building, the site is also a laboratory for discovery. Upon approach, the welcome garden entices visitors to explore their environment with native flora unique to the desert biome. A trail network leads from the ELC through the surrounding 280-acre park and nature preserve that includes exterior public gathering spaces, an amphitheater for on-site classes and outdoor performances, and gardens for desert botanical research. Amenities like nature playgrounds and habitat towers, which shelter a diversity of displaced animals, invite learning through play and observation. Engaging visitors through these varied, adaptive uses meaningfully underscores the importance of water in their lives.
“Neal, Brian and their inspired team not only designed an amazing environmental learning center facility for our region, they wrapped it in a comprehensive feasibility analysis and meaningful master plan. We can’t wait for this legacy project to come out of the ground for generations to use and enjoy!”
Charlie Cassens, Lake Havasu City
Water research and technology are featured in the design beyond the programmatic spaces. Inside the ELC, the cafe serves local, sustainable food made from ingredients grown in the indoor hydroponic farm and the exterior gardens to exhibit the potential for sensible agriculture in the desert. Outside, innovative water management is demonstrated throughout the harvesting gardens on site, most prominently in the central Living Machine garden that illustrates how natural ecosystems can process blackwater for reuse. Pairing these kinds of informative interventions with the building’s sustainable design strategies and on-site photovoltaics, the ELC holds the promise to transform the future of water in the desert.
