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Lions Gate Recognized for Outstanding Design and Planning

SMP’s Lions Gate at Penn State Abington has been honored with the 2018 Montgomery Award from the Montgomery County Planning Commission. This prestigious annual program promotes awareness of outstanding design and innovative planning by recognizing the best in planning, design, and advocacy in Montgomery County. The project transformed an abandoned car dealership parking lot into a lushly landscaped extension of the Penn State Abington campus. The jury described the project as “a transformative redevelopment project awarded for innovative design, community investment, and sustainable practices.” The 400 bed LEED Gold residence hall combines the social and academic opportunities of a traditional dormitory with shared apartment style living units.

September 1, 2021
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Visitor Center at Ohiopyle Honored

The Falls Area Visitor Center at Ohiopyle State Park was honored by the Green Building Alliance (GBA) at their Emerald Evening on Thursday September 20, 2018. On the occasion of its 25th Anniversary, the GBA, a nonprofit organization based in Pittsburgh, recognized the 25 most influential green buildings in western Pennsylvania constructed in the last 25 years. Awardees were selected for verified innovation in design and maintenance across a diversity of sectors, building types, and project scales, and their collective efforts have elevated sustainable building practices in Western Pennsylvania. SMP Principal Todd Woodward, Park Manager Ken Bisbee, and Deputy Secretary of DCNR Michael Walsh were on hand to accept the award.

August 1, 2021
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East Park Canoe House Ribbon Cutting

On March 9th, the Philadelphia Department of Parks and Recreation held a ribbon cutting ceremony for the newly renovated East Park Canoe House. This 1914 Spanish Mission Revival style building, designed by Walter T. Smedley, is located on the Schuylkill River along Kelly Drive in Fairmount Park and is a contributing feature to the National Register Historic District of Fairmount Park. After suffering serious deterioration and closing in 2008 due to structural failures, SMP led the design efforts to extensively rehabilitate the interior and exterior. Now restored to its original use as a boathouse, the space will be shared by the Temple University rowing and crew teams and the Philadelphia Police Marine Unit.

July 1, 2021
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Grand Opening for Frances Slocum Environmental Education Center

On August 26th, Frances Slocum State Park celebrated the grand opening of their recently expanded Patrick J. Solano Environmental Education Center. The new expansion provides an updated facility for environmental education, park programming, and interpretation while immersing park visitors in the natural environment. The Center includes interior and exterior educational spaces, staff offices, exhibit space, and public restrooms. At the opening ceremony, Secretary Cindy Adams Dunn of the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources said, "This building will really serve the youth of this area and open their eyes to the environment and to the outdoors.”

June 1, 2021
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GFS Science Center Published

The Wade Science Center at Germantown Friends School has been published as a case study in Energy Accounts, published by Routledge in 2016. With text written by SMP Principals David Ade and Todd Woodward, the building at GFS is cited as an example of environmentally responsible and regionally appropriate architecture. Subtitled "Architectural Representations of Energy, Climate, and the Future", Energy Accounts seeks to understand approaches to accounting for, representing, and designing around issues of energy use and performance.

May 1, 2021