Downtown Cary Park Awarded in 2020 Architect's Newspaper Best of Design

Feature
News

Published
February, 2021

Tags
Downtown Cary Park, Awards

As the construction document phase of the Downtown Cary Park project wraps up, the project has been recognized by 2020 Architect's Newspaper Best of Design, awarded an honorable mention in the Unbuilt Landscape category. Exciting new renderings of the Park have been released, showcasing a vibrant and seamless integration of Machado Silvetti-designed park pavilions with OJB-designed programmed landscape.

About the Award

Aerial Rendering

“Downtown Cary Park is going to be an extraordinary public place. Our office has been thrilled to collaborate with OJB and with so many folks in Cary. We are delighted that the project is already receiving recognition from the design industry, but even more so we are excited that the project is moving into construction and closer to the point where it can be enjoyed by the citizens and visitors of Cary.”

- Jeffry Burchard, Principal-in-Charge

The Academy Pavilion and Plaza features a market, events space, and outdoor water features.

Conceived of as roofs hovering over the landscape, the pavilions grant continuous, unobstructed views through the park. Subverting norms of conventional sidedness that differentiate front-of-house and back-of-house, the pavilions cleverly embed back-of-house functions on the interiors so that surrounding landscape is activated on all sides.

Programmed zones, such as children's play areas, are woven together through paths, bridges, and pavilions.

Machado Silvetti has designed five park pavilions set in diverse landscape zones, including memorable spaces for performance, indoor events, and dog play. Natural materials—warm woods, bricks, and metals—and curving forms help coalesce buildings with landscape.

Clockwise from top right: The Bark Bar Pavilion joins dog park with drink bar; The Academy Pavilion supports the Academy Plaza with market and events spaces; Great Lawn Pavilion offers a stage for large events at the heart of the park.

Related Content

  • This seven-acre park is the centerpiece of an investment by the citizens of the Town of Cary to enhance, expand and protect the accessible public vibrancy of their rapidly growing community. Located in the heart of downtown Cary, the park is a transformational synthesis of urban design, landscape, architecture and programming that benefits the Town Cary and the greater region. Learn more about the project here.

  • On Saturday, June 26th, a groundbreaking ceremony officially began construction on the Downtown Cary Park. The highly programmed ceremony was well attended with Town administrators, residents and local news all excited for what’s to come. Machado Silvetti Principal Jeffry Burchard and Associate Austin Ward were in attendance at the groundbreaking, participating in a public forum on the design of the park, along with OJB Landscape Architecture team leaders, Cody Klein and Simon Beer. Read more about the groundbreaking here.

  • Construction continues on Downtown Cary Park, as the Bark Bar, Great Lawn Pavilion and Academy Pavilion take shape. Machado Silvetti has designed five park pavilions set in diverse OJB-designed landscape zones, including spaces for performance, indoor events, and dog play. Natural materials-warm woods, bricks, and metals-and curving forms help coalesce buildings with landscape. Read about the project update here.

  • With construction underway, the town of Cary has released plans for the new Downtown Park. Read the full article here.

  • Project updates, upcoming events, construction features, & site visits — Continue exploring news articles and stories here.