Walter
nature
experience
The Landscape Is the Exhibit
For more than sixty years, the Conservancy of Southwest Florida has protected the region's land, water, and wildlife. A transformative gift from the John & Carol A.
Walter Foundation provided the opportunity to reimagine its Naples campus—not simply as a collection of buildings and exhibits, but as an immersive landscape where visitors experience southwest Florida's ecosystems firsthand.
Rather than serving as a backdrop, the landscape becomes a primary educational medium, revealing the relationships between water, vegetation, wildlife, and people.
Water Shapes the Site.
Inspired by a Gateway to the Western Everglades, water became the organizing framework—connecting a new reflecting lake with existing ponds, wetlands, and filter marshes.
Every landscape component performs multiple roles: capturing and filtering water, supporting habitat, moderating microclimate, and shaping the visitor journey.
A Living Model of South Florida
Expansive canopies, wetland-edge communities, and native meadows make the campus a living demonstration of the resilient coastal ecosystems the Conservancy has protected for generations.
Working alongside PMSA, Quattrone & Associates, Main Street Design, Wright Harvey, and the Conservancy team, the landscape was integrated with architecture, interpretation, art, and engineering.
Project Scope:
- Inventory & Analysis
- Concept Design
- Hardscape Design
- Planting Design
- Design Visualization
- Construction Administration
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Total Design Hours
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CA Hours
4
Total Acres
gallery
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