Opening of the Lower Guadalupe River Trail, April 20, 2013

On a beautiful warm spring day with the Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport serving as a backdrop, San Jose celebrated the opening of yet another landmark trail system.  Members of the City, Guadalupe River Park Conservancy, County, and Santa Clara Valley Water District lent a hand in cutting the ceremonial ribbon to officially open the Lower Guadalupe River Trail to the public. The event was a culmination of almost a decade-long effort to enable the community to walk or bike from Downtown San Jose to the San Francisco Bay. While a gravel surface provided public access prior to the recent improvements, the access was dusty, uncomfortable to ride on, and unfriendly to families in strollers and tricycles.  Now, new and improved, the trail is able to welcome people of all abilities to explore the river and new neighborhoods.

More than just a ribbon of asphalt for recreational use, the trail provides a convenient north-south off-street route to major technology employers located in San Jose’s Golden Triangle area. With views of the river along most of its 6.7 mile length, the trail provides a peaceful and scenic alternative for commuters who live and work near Guadalupe River.  The new paved trail also connects to the airport and other trail networks, including the Bay Trail in Alviso.

Callander Associates provided design services for the trailhead entry plazas.  Located at major street intersections, the plazas incorporate decorative paving and signage to alert passersby to the trail opportunities that lie beyond. Seatwalls and interpretive signage provide an inviting place for trail users to pause and rest.  Compass roses and in-ground lettering provide directional information while visually unifying this stretch of trail with its Downtown Guadalupe River Park counterpart.

Callander also worked with a signage designer to develop interpretive signage.  Trail users can learn about aviation, river ecology, and archaeology through interpretive signage located along the trail.  The fossilized bones of ‘Lupe,’ a juvenile Columbian mammoth nicknamed after Guadalupe River, was discovered near the current Trimble Road trailhead plaza in 2005.  Users can read about and visualize the fossil discovery at the trailhead, and then continue south along the trail to the Children’s Discovery Museum to see the actual bones.  Along the way, another interpretive plaza located by the airport explains the science of flight in signage mounted in custom-designed airplane ‘wings’.  The aluminum and acrylic wings shine in translucent brilliance, mirroring the sleek airport design beyond and the innovative community through which the Trail winds.

Marie Mai, Associate

And the Awards go to….

We are excited to announce that Callander Associates focus to help guide and facilitate public outreach and developing site responsive design solutions, has ultimately delivered some award winning projects for these communities!  Two of our projects received the 2013 Best of the Best in Facility Design Awards from the California Parks and Recreation Society (CPRS).

Stojanovich Park, City of Campbell

The colorful “Seed to Table” story of Campbell’s agricultural past is retold through the new Stojanovich Family Park.

The Challenge:  Protect the cultural resources of the site as a symbol of Campbell’s agrarian history, create necessary public, open and recreation space serving youths, seniors and families in a neighborhood that is largely comprised of high density housing with multi-story apartments, condominiums, townhomes and a senior mobile home park, and provide a space that was maintainable within the City’s resources and could be built within the City’s available budget.

The formerly vacant site provides a large open space area in a high density residential neighborhood whose residents live with little or no open space.  The park provides neighbors a place to play, exercise and interact.  There is now space for the Community to socialize, that previously did not exist.  New plantings, trees, bioswales and other sustainable techniques (efficient use of water, recycling materials and drought tolerant landscaping) where incorporated into the site to bring nature and green practices into this urban area.  Theses sustainable techniques provide opportunities for education of both adults and children to learn about stormwater management, water conscientiousness and recycling.  Safety and security measures were seamlessly incorporated including unobstructed views into the park, security lighting, pedestrian crosswalk with refuge island, and pedestrian activated crossing signs.  The park planning efforts created a stronger collaboration between the City and neighborhood community, empowering the community to get involved and work together to make a difference.

Cooley Landing, City of East Palo Alto

Project  highlights include:  Landfill site reuse;  Wetland restoration;  Water-efficient plantings; Stormwater management and treatment; Recycled and reused materials; Energy-efficient outdoor lighting.

The East Palo Alto community now has access to 9 acres of new open space, trails, viewing piers and water access points, and large areas of publicly accessible meadows and grassland, providing many opportunities for passive recreation to promote health and wellness and provide recreational experiences.  This former burn dump is now a safe, beautiful park for the community and wildlife to enjoy.  Public access improvements ensure its establishment as a recreation and education jewel.  Local residents and service organizations have expressed a desire to use the site for a variety of functions, from family reunions to mentoring programs to exhibits of local historical artifacts, art and performances by local artists. Residents advocated for a space to celebrate diverse cultures and East Palo Alto’s history of struggle and triumph over adversity as an inspiration to youth to take leadership for social change to increase cultural unity and facilitate social connections.   This concept is prominent in the interpretive themes that have been developed for future phases of construction.

UC Davis Dairy Recreation Field

When UC Davis Campus Recreation saw a need to increase their recreation field resources to accommodate growing sports club and intramural sports programming needs, they decided to convert their natural turf Dairy Recreation Field into an all-purpose, all-weather synthetic turf field. Callander Associates was brought in to work with a team of UC Davis Department representatives toward developing a master plan for a renovated Dairy Field. The new field design not only addresses sports programming needs, but also includes other facilities for student use, such as restrooms, storage, bike racks and bench seating.

Including environmentally sustainable elements was at the forefront of the project goals and was achieved through the implementation of energy-efficient field and pedestrian lighting, the construction of bioswales for stormwater quality/groundwater infiltration, and the use of recycled materials in components of the synthetic turf system.

As part of our services, Callander prepared a comprehensive synthetic turf system analysis which compared several manufacturers, turf styles and turf system component options based on over thirty characteristics. This analysis provided the project team with the information needed to select the most appropriate system for the project’s specific needs. The final turf chosen uses a system that includes a bent mono-filament fiber turf on top of a poured in place recycled rubber layer “E-Layer”, similar to a playground surfacing, that provides better and more consistent g-max testing over the life of the field and allows the field to be rolled up and replaced.

Following completion of the master plan process, Callander Associates and our team of subconsultants prepared construction documents and provided bidding and construction assistance for the Dairy Field master plan improvements. The completed 125,000 square foot field includes a full-sized women’s lacrosse field, a full-sized men’s lacrosse field, full-sized soccer field, and three intramural soccer fields.

Some great shots of the new field in use:

Flag Football Night-1

Flag Football Night-2

Soccer Day Time

Soccer Night Time

YouTube video of the renovation:

Click Here

Holiday Greetings

Prefab on Podium: Domain Apartments

We all grew up playing with LEGOs.

Now imagine yourself as one of those miniaturized Lego ‘people’, with the various block pieces being connected together all around you.

We had that feeling of smallness and awe when we visited the site of our latest podium apartment project in North San Jose, currently under construction. All around us were massive pre-fab modular building pieces, still covered in plastic, being stacked three stories high atop the post-tensioned podium garage by a giant crane like a super-sized LEGO kit.

The logistics required to accomplish this Erector set are impressive. The building blocks are driven to the site on long flat-bed trucks from an out-of-state factory, transported to the site, and then stored at an adjacent parcel until they’re ready to be placed on the podium. The interior units come ‘fully assembled’with finished cabinets, walls, and utilities – almost move-in ready! The factory-built units allow the construction to proceed at an unbelievably quick pace and are a unique aspect of this project. In fact, this is the first project in the state of this scale to utilize modular building units on top of a podium.

It will be a few months yet before the site amenities are constructed and bring to fruition our site planning efforts from many years prior (before the housing market took a dive). The scale of the buildings and limited outdoor space were some of the key site design challenges. Courtyards were developed that created outdoor ‘rooms’ complete with decorative lit ‘ceilings’ of festoon lighting. This helped create a pedestrian-scaled environment, and in conjunction with other site amenities such as lounge chairs, an outdoor fireplace, and barbeque islands, will provide a comfortable, cozy outdoor gathering place for future tenants.

This 400+-unit luxury apartment complex will also boast synthetic turf areas for passive use, private roof decks, a clubhouse with pool and spa, and an outdoor living room complete with TV and 16’ long linear fireplace. The project will be called Domain Apartments (formerly Vista Montana) and is scheduled for opening by fall of 2013 – come back for updates!

Associate, Marie Mai began her professional career at Callander Associates and never looked back. Now, as the manager of our San Jose studio, Marie is our resident expert in all things South Bay. Check out some of her projects including Educational Park Branch Library and Whisman Station.

Bridging the Gap – Virginia Corridor’s Newest Segment

We are excited to announce the opening of a new segment of the Virginia Corridor  - a “Rails to Trails” connection that follows the old Tidewater Southern Railway line. This phase adds approximately 1/2 mile of trail as well as a pedestrian/bicycle overcrossing at one of Modesto’s major vehicular thoroughfares.

Callander Associates collaborated with structural engineers, Biggs-Cardosa, to provide the crossing from the north side to the south side of the six-lane Briggsmore Avenue. Pulling from the Art Deco architectural style found throughout Modesto’s downtown, this pedestrian bridge is as much an artistic statement as it is functional connector.

Since 2001, our firm has been working with the City of Modesto to bring this multi-phased project to fruition. Our early work included development of the Specific Plan that still serves as the blueprint for this Class I connection. With numerous amenities such as picnic areas, shade structures, history plazas, and gardens, the Virginia Corridor Trailway has quickly become a favorite destination and a cornerstone of the City’s non-motorized transportation system. Now nearly half complete, the 4.2 mile multi-use trail is already connecting Modesto residents to schools, parks, churches, and business centers along the way.

We can’t help but be proud of this latest addition’s positive reception. Residents now eagerly await construction of the Corridor’s next phase for which Callander is currently preparing construction documents.

Cordelia Community Park Makes Life Better!

The California Park and Recreation Society has designated July as the official Parks Make Life Better! Month. What better way to celebrate it with the opening of one of our most successful park projects to date!

After over 15 years of planning by the community in Cordelia and the City of Fairfield, Cordelia Community Park is open to the public. Callander Associates joined a team that consisted of City of Fairfield’s Public Works, Community Development, Police, and Fire departments, and the Cordelia Steering Committee to work with the residents of Cordelia and realize their vision for the only park in their community.

Callander Associates performed detailed analysis of the 48 acre site which included large groves of over 320 Eucalyptus trees, cattle grazing land, and Little League baseball fields. Less than 20 acres of the site is usable for traditional recreation activities because of slope, slide and seismic constraints. Additionally, due to the park size and elevation changes, police-ability of the park was a major concern. Security cameras, teen loitering deterrents, and lighting were strategically placed throughout the park to deter illegal activity.

Yet, the site’s many challenges created unique opportunities. With input from the community, Callander Associates prepared a Master Site Plan, Construction Phasing Plan, Park Safety Plan, and Tree Analysis Plan that addressed the constraints of the site. Callander also met with various user groups on the design concepts for the skate node and dog parks.

Phase One includes median improvements, multi-use ball fields, toddler and school age playgrounds, and a restroom building. The parking lot in Phase one was constructed to accommodate both the existing little league fields and the new improvements.

Phase Two includes a roller hockey rink, skate node, restroom building, group picnic area, bocce ball courts, horseshoe pits, small and large dog parks, multiuse trails and a parking lot. The multi-use trail that was constructed along the upper edge of the park provided the much needed connection between the residential developments on both ends of the park.

Phase Three will include terraced tennis courts, multi-use field, plaza, parking lot, hiking trails, and a lookout point. The lookout point will provide fantastic views of the Suisun marshes and wetlands. Construction of Phase Three is planned to begin in Spring of 2017.

Sustainable Design Practices: The design concept and theming throughout the park takes inspiration from sustainable practices by elevating social awareness of our natural resources.

• A high efficiency irrigation system was installed to conserve water and reduce overspray from this windy site.
• Recycled materials were used throughout for signage, structures, and paving.
• Salvaged eucalyptus trees from the site were repurposed as edging and seating for the unique hillside dog park.
• Stormwater runoff is diverted from parking lots thru grassy swales to dissipate flow and filter contaminants prior to entering storm drains.
• Hillsides are planted with native oak trees to restore the oak woodland and provide a windbreak.
• Interpretive signage is installed to provide education of the park’s sustainable practices.
• Native and climate appropriate planting design was used throughout the park to conserve water.
• Turf fields were reduced to informal field sports only.
• Soil disturbance and grading activities were minimized and balanced on site by terracing the activities on the hillside slope.
• Playground, site furnishing, fencing and structure designs were inspired by the oak trees, leaves and acorns.
• Park pathway lighting included energy efficient LED lights.

With much anticipation (and a live band!), Phases 1 and 2 of the park opened this past June. We are sure that Cordelia residents agree that this special new park makes life better!

A New Look

It seems appropriate that our first “Latest News” item is about our new website. Planning for this site began over a year ago but it wasn’t until last summer that we pulled the trigger and hired SF design firm, Bucktrout Creative, to not only update the look and content but also to somehow convey our personality. After all, it is the people you will be working with and not the projects we have done in the past that elevates an ordinary project into a rewarding experience.

So, how does one capture personality in a web site? Well, it turns out that even with our experience leading public meetings and helping communities reach consensus, there is a lot we didn’t know about building a website from scratch. Thank goodness Simon and Jen Bucktrout have the design sensibilities, technical know-how, and easygoing patience that we needed to move forward. So here we are! We hope it offers a glimpse into our firm’s values and beliefs, our personalities, and conveys our mission to provide unparalleled service for our clients.

Check out Bucktrout’s portfolio here.