Originally constructed in 1910 and expanded in 1937, the Altus City Reservoir served as the City’s drinking water supply. The reservoir was never dredged, so sediment accumulated and reduced the storage volume. City leaders now desire to improve the reservoir and develop an adjacent 63 acres into a mixed-use park for recreation.
The students in this Environmental Design Capstone course reviewed historic documents of the original construction, toured the site, met with local leaders, visited the Museum of the Western Prairie, and studied private sector proposals. Not only were the students’ recommendations based on regional materials and design vernacular, but they also drew ideas from similar city parks from throughout Oklahoma. The proposals were sensitive to the mountain view to the east of the reservoir as well as the 2-mile shoreline of hand-laid, vertically-stacked local Creta Stone. Currently, Altus leaders continue to move the project to the next step of implementation.
Project Collaborators: City of Altus: Johnny Barron, Barbara Burleson, Chris Griffith, Chris Riffle; OU College of Architecture, Environmental Design Program: Hope Mander, Ron Frantz; Students of the 2017 Spring Semester Class of Environmental Design Capstone; Environmental Design Students: Nolan Aparicio, Alex Autry, Ian Ruhnke; Planned Program Student: Julie Benyshek
Visit the Institute for Quality Communities website to learn more about the Altus project.
Gibbs College is pleased to present the exhibition 200 Digital Drawings by Professor Tiziana Proietti, currently on display in the Gould Hall Living Room.
Gibbs College of Architecture Professors Amber Brown and Amy Leveno led 29 students to Dallas, Texas, in September for a learning experience as part of their Design 7 Studio course.
Christopher C. Gibbs College of Architecture professor and Institute for Quality Communities Director Dr. Amber N. Wiley’s book, Model Schools in the Model City: Race, Planning, and Education in the Nation’s Capital, has received two major honors from the Urban History Association.
