a landscape master plan for doull elementary school campus ... · doull elementary school part i:...

A Landscape Master Plan For Doull Elementary School Campus Improvements

Prepared by: Ryan Wallace

Learning Landscape Program

University of Colorado at Denver

May 2004

Doull Elementary School

Master Plan For Doull Elementary School

Prepared For: Denver Public Schools 900 Grant St. Denver, Colorado Reviewed , Principal, Doull Elementary date Reviewed , CSC Representative date Reviewed , P. M., DPS Facility Management date Reviewed , Grounds Supervisor, DPS date

Facility Management

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Cover Signatures Table of Contents Project Information 1 The Challenge 1 The Solution 2 The Intent of the Master Plan 2 Part I: Assessing the Present Situation 4 The Location 4 History 6 Demographics 7 The Constituents 8 Staff, Teachers, and Parents 11 Survey of Community Desires 12 Site Inventory and Safety Assessment 15 General Surface Areas 15 Playground Equipment 17 ECE 17 Intermediate 17 Playing Fields 17 Concrete Areas 18 Asphalt Areas 18 Vegetation 18 Pedestrian Access 20 Vehicular Access/ Parking 20 Handicap Accessibility 21 Drainage 21 Surrounding Uses 21 Part II: Future Aspirations 22 Vision 22 Goals 22 Program Elements 22 Spatial Diagram 24 Ordering System 25 Precedence Study 25 Systems 26 Composite 28 Fulfilling the Goals 29 Appendix A 30 Program Safety Site Assessment 30 Site Inventory 32 Appendix B 34 Student Photo Survey 34 Parent Photo Survey 35 Teacher Photo Survey 36 Appendix C 37 Cost Estimate 37

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Part I: Assessing the Present Situation

The Location

The Harvey Park and Harvey Park South neighborhoods are located west of Federal

Boulevard between the roads of Jewell Avenue on the north and US Highway 285 on the south.

The neighborhood itself was built primarily after 1940 with only one percent prior. The two

neighborhoods continue west approximately to Sheridan Boulevard with a small section that

crosses Sheridan at the Target Store. The area is defined by commercial zones located on both

Federal and Sheridan Boulevard as well as along Hampden Avenue on the South that features a

collection of popular chain stores and many small owned businesses. As is the case with other

commercial zones there are signs of building turnover and new development. The main

landmark that defines the Harvey Park neighborhood is the Teikyo Loretto Heights University1

located on Federal

Boulevard. The

Teikyo Loretto

Heights University

becomes the

defining landmark

because of its sheer

size as well as the

distances at which it

can be seen.

Having the

University as the

defining landmark

denotes where you

are, and with the commercial zones on the perimeter it defines the edge, but there is no real

transition or mixture of building uses into the Harvey Park area.

1. Teikyo Loretto Heights, Source: Ryan Wallace

Within the neighborhoods there is a variety of old and new, small and large homes

dispersed intermittingly within the area. Some homes have landscaping figurines that suggest

heritage and religious affiliations, which would explain the many churches in the neighborhood.

Other homes are run down and seem to employ make shift materials to cover up building

deterioration and property damage. Also, with some of the older homes you can see that they

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treat their back yards as storage, rather than using them as personal activity space. One could see

various beaten down home furnishings lying outside. Harvey Park features a collection of

apartments as well as new developments, suggesting economic diversity and neighborhood

expansion. This expansion further illustrated through the demographic profile that suggests both

parents, which are mainly first time home buyers, work because of the jump from annual

individual income to family income.

The streets within the site are wide and comfortable with a select few featuring a built up

median. Orientation in the neighborhood can be judged by location of several churches, schools,

and the large Harvey Park Lake, located in the northern region of the neighborhood. The

Harvey Park Lake itself seemed to be the only large green space for gathering in the

neighborhood, but unfortunately it seemed uninviting because of the barbwire fencing

surrounding the lake. Since the park is the main green space in the neighborhood it seems to

give the people in the community some opportunities for physical activity beyond their school

and personal yards. Territory in the Harvey Park and Harvey Park South neighborhoods seems

to be more clearly denoted in the older section. A new development in the Harvey Park South

had fairly average size yards with no fences where as the older homes, for the most part, had tall

wood fences and numerous vehicles marking their territory.

The Harvey

Park and Harvey Park

South neighborhoods

in all resemble so

many other

neighborhoods across

the country. They

offer green spaces for

outdoor activity and

with the location of

the homes to the

commercial areas it

does not need to be

auto dependent but is. On the other hand, what makes these neighborhoods so unique is that

they have a mixture of homes that are so relatively close together that it makes for a diverse

community.

2. Harvey Park Neighborhood, Source: Ryan Wallace



Map 1: Doull Elementary Location Map, Source Mapquest

History

Frances R. Doull (1888-1954)

Frances R. Doull, whose memory this school is named, was born in Las Vegas, territory

of New Mexico on August 7, 1888. She served the Denver Public Schools from 1908 until her

retirement in 1953. Miss Doull graduated from West Denver High School at sixteen years of age.

In 1908, she graduated with honors from Colorado State College of Education in Greeley,

Colorado.

In the fall of the same year, she started her career as a Denver teacher in the seventh and

eighth grades at Cheltenham School. Several years later she was made supervisor of the

handwriting department of the Denver Public Schools. In this position she attained city, state,

and regional recognition for her outstanding work. Some of her achievements were:

Appointment as handwriting representative for Zaner-Bloser Company for all western states,

supervisor of teacher’s and children’s handwriting in Denver, author and co-author of several

handwriting and alphabet cards and scales, teacher of college and extension classes in

handwriting, and instructor of in-service meetings in handwriting for Denver teachers. Learning Landscapes – CU Denver 6


Miss Doull was acting principal of Smedley School from 1924 until 1926. She was

appointed principal of Twenty-Fourth Street School in 1926, and in 1930 became principal of

Ashland School. She served at the latter school until her retirement in 1953.

Because of her outstanding service to Denver in the field of education, it is a worthy and

fitting tribute that an elementary school bears her name.

Frances R. Doull passed away on September 9, 1954.

Zaner-Bloser handwriting sample. Source: www.zanerbloser.com

Demographics

Harvey Park has a population of 11,229 residences. This population is divided among

several ethnicities including; 0.9% African American; 0.8% Native American; 4.3% Asian; 42.8%

Latino; and 49.8% non-Latino White. These demographics are different from the schools; Doull

has a majority Latino population. (See Table 2)



Map 2: Harvey Park/South Location Map, Source: www.DenverGov.com

The Constituents

There are 532 (625 maximum) students at Doull Elementary School ranging from Early

Childhood Education program through fifth grade. 64.1% of the students at Doull Elementary

qualify for free or reduced-priced lunch during the 2003-2004 school year. There are also a

number of students who speak Spanish or another language as their primary language. These

factors did not seem to influence the CSAP scores (See Table 6) greatly. Their scores have varied

slightly since 1999, but appear to be consistent.



Table 1. Doull Elementary Demographics, Source Jayne Sbarboro, Principal Doull.

Number of Students 532

ECE (Early Childhood Education for four year olds in two sessions is

funded by the Colorado Child Placement (CPP) program, which caps ECE

class size at 15 students.

31

DLC (Developmental Learning Center(DLC) for students 5-7 years old

exhibiting developmental delays and an) 16

Special Education 9

Grade 1 77

Grade 2 74

Grade 3 71

Grade 4 84

Grade 5 89

Table 2. Doull Elementary Demographics, Source DPS Website.

Ethnicity

14.2%

75.9%

2.5%

1.0%

6.4%

American Indian

African American

Asian

Latino

non-Latino White



Table 3. Doull Elementary Demographics, Source DPS Website.

Student Attendance 2002-2003

Length of school year 175 days Average daily attendance 94.7%

Table 4. Doull Elementary Demographics, Source Jayne Sbarboro, Principal Doull.

Teachers 21 Paraprofessionals (Teaching Assistants) 16 Administrators (Principal, Vice Principal, etc...) 5 Other Professionals (Counselors, Speech Therapist, Psychologist, etc...) 7 School Support (Custodial, Security Guards, etc…) 9 Table 5. Percent of students who are English Language Learners 2002-2003, Source DPS Website.

Total 23.9%Native language is Spanish 20.4% Native language other than Spanish 3.5%

Table 6: Scores for the Colorado Student Assessment Program (CSAP) are outlined below, providing a standardized

assessment of student performance compared to previous years, other students in the DPS system, and other

students throughout Colorado. Source: Denver Public Schools Website.

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Grade 3Reading

Grade 3Writing

Grade 4Reading

Grade 4Writing

Grade 5Reading

Grade 5Writing

Grade 5 Math

Colorado Student Assessment Program 2003 (CSAP)

DoullDPSColorado



Table 7. Colorado Student Assessment Program Source: Denver Public Schools Website

CSAP Trends At Doull Elementary

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

1999 2000 2001 2002 2003

Per

cen

t P

rofi

cen

t

Grade 3 Reading Grade 3 Writing Grade 4 Reading Grade 4 Writing

Grade 5 Reading Grade 5 Writing Grade 5 Math

Staff, Teachers, and Parents

Doull Elementary offers a wide variety of service to students. Staffing at the school

ranges from full time teachers and teaching assistants to psychologist and speech therapists that

come in on a limited basis. The principal at the school is Ms. Jayne Sbarboro who is starting her

second year as principal at Doull. She has over 20 years of involvement with schools and

children, 16 of which are as a teacher in various Denver Public Schools. She was also recognized

in 1998 with a Denver Outstanding Teacher Award. Doull Elementary is also very fortunate to

have a Parent-Teachers Association (PTA) that has worked to purchase new equipment for the

playground. The PTA has been a very positive group in the school yard.



3. Collage of Doull Elementary School, Inspired by Students, Teachers, and Community. Source: Ryan Wallace.

“Clearly, outdoor play can stimulate physical-motor development. In addition, however, playgrounds are a positive setting for enhancing social interaction.”

Kraft, 1989

Survey of Community Desires

Students, teachers, and community groups were questioned to determine their needs and

wants for the existing schoolyard. These came from meeting with the PTA president, Faculty

meeting, and interviews with students.

Students were questioned individually while playing on the playground and also by being

given the chance to artistically show their wants with art projects and a photo survey. Interaction

with the students on the playground revealed obvious wants, like basketball, seating, and shade.

The art projects; however, gave an assortment of ideas. The expansive playground gave the

students an opportunity to express their ideas on a seemingly blank canvas. Students had many

activities ranging from water slides to rocket ships, in their personal art projects.

At a morning faculty meeting teachers voiced their needs and wants. The teachers had a

variety of ideas, as had the students. Anything from a garden, more basketball courts, or just new



grass in the ECE playground were suggested for improvements to the playground. A meeting

with the president of the PTA gave similar results as the faculty. The overall consensus seemed

to be a need for scale. The sheer size of the playground blurs what could be clear divisible

spaces. A desire to phase in play equipment while waiting for bond money was also expressed at

these meetings.

The needs and wants that were obtained from these meetings have been compiled in

Table 8 & 9 below. Table 8: Vision Matrix, Source Ryan Wallace.



Table 9: Photo Survey Results, Source Ryan Wallace.

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

teth

erba

ll

shad

e/fo

rest

map

s

bask

etba

ll

scul

ptur

e

quie

t pla

ces

gate

way

gras

s fie

ld

art m

ural

boul

ders

wat

er p

lay

culti

vate

d ga

rden

quie

t pla

ces

clim

bing

wild

plac

es

gam

e ta

ble

play

grou

nd e

quip

men

t

swin

gs

outs

ide

clas

s

*SEE APPENDIX B FOR COMPLETE CHART

Photo Survey Results

# of Students # of Parents # of Teachers



Site Inventory and Safety Assessment ( see Appendix A for evaluation forms)

The role of a playground in a child’s development is to provide for self-discovery –

opportunities to dig and build. It is also a gathering place and fosters the building of social skills.

The existing equipment does little to promote such an environment.

Table 10: General Surface Areas (see Map 3), Source DPS.

Surface Area (square feet) Percentage of Site Asphalt 67,500 (includes half court and parking

lot) 19.8

Playground soft surface 23,000 6.7 Grass 189,575 55.6 Concrete 20,750 6.1 Building 40,285 11.8 Total 341,110 100

General Surface Areas

Doull Elementary has a big sized lot, 7 acres, with three sides that access a street or

parking lot. The school grounds have a recently added Rockies Field, donated by the McCormick

Foundation, which greatly improves the appearance of the school yard. Drainage, for the most

part appears to be limited, except for the ECE playground and a few cracks. The playgrounds

are divided into two areas with the ECE playground located inside the “L” of the building and

the intermediate playground on the east side of the school.

The ECE is comprised of some new plastic equipment, swings, a spring toy, and a

sandbox located next to a small “grass” field. The general appearance of the ECE playground

appears to be in fair condition. The pea gravel is not compacted, but the “grassed” area is mainly

dirt and mud. Out of the equipment, two pieces are new and the remaining pieces are still in

good condition. Some of the playground equipment was installed when the school was built in

1955, but on the whole it seems to be in good shape.

The intermediate playground appears to have more problems and older equipment than

the ECE. Also, the location and security is not well suited being that portions of the playground

is out of the sight line from the center of the school yard. Two new plastic playgrounds were

installed, but the remaining equipment is original. The swings have a fenced area around them

that are entirely too small for safety concern and two ring spinners are students favorites, but will

require some improvements or removal.



Map 3: Doull Elementary Site and General Surfaces, Source: Ryan Wallace.



Playground Equipment

ECE Playground

The ECE playground is located in the “L” of the school next to a “grassed” (dirt) area.

The equipment includes a plastic playground and slide that are three years old. Also, on the lot

are swings (6), a climber, spring toy, and sandbox that are all original from 1955.

Intermediate Playground

The intermediate playground has two plastic playgrounds that are three years old. The

older, original equipment are a climber/Swing (9) combo, ring swings, and horizontal ladders and

bars. The swing area is fenced off, but the spacing between swings and fence is entirely too small

for safety concerns. The ring swings are also unsafe and need to be removed.

The surfaces of both areas are pea gravel with the ECE being in good shape while the

intermediate playground is very compacted. This is common as the intermediate playground sees

much more traffic than the ECE. Finally, both playgrounds only accommodate 32.5%, of the

students, creating tension between students currently enrolled. At maximum enrollment only

21.6% of the students would be occupied.

Playing Fields

The school has a

recently added Rockies

Field with three baseball

backstops/ diamonds and

an additional attached

field. These fields are in

excellent condition for all

activities. The ECE field

located next to the

building is not as lucky

and is a big mud puddle

during the wet season.

The irrigation on the site is in good condition due to these new fields.

4. Rockies Field, Source: Ryan Wallace



Concrete Areas

There is a limited

amount of concrete at the

school. Concrete is mainly

found in surrounding

sidewalks, retaining walls, and

stairs. The concrete is in

good shape but what falls on

it is the problem. Gravel

from the playground covers

the north sidewalk as does ice

in the winter. 5.Concrete Walks, Source: Ryan Wallace

Asphalt Areas The asphalt

area is located directly

attached to the

building and has

limited problems. The

asphalt itself is old,

but still in good

condition. Very few

puddles form during

rain or snow melt and

the playground has

good drainage. Cracks are visible along the drainage path on the south edge of the playground.

6. Tetherball/ Four Square, Source: Ryan Wallace

Vegetation

The grounds at Doull are in good condition, but still have some concerns. With the

addition of the Rockies Field, the grassed area south of the asphalt playground is in great

condition. Tall trees outline the west fence and in the ECE playground. Numerous other trees

fill the Northwest corner of the lot and on the north side of the school.



7. School Entrance, Source: Ryan Wallace

“I would melt without the tree in front of my office window.”

Jayne Sbarboro, Principal

The real concerns for vegetation on the site come with the ECE playground, the garden, and

shade coverage inside the fences. What is left of the ECE playground and garden is dirt and

needs a makeover. Also, the six trees in the middle of the field will someday provide some nice

cover, but currently are insufficient.

8. Rockies Field, Source: Ryan Wallace



Pedestrian Access

Main access to the school is on the west side. The playground; however, have six

different entrances through

the chain link fence: one on

the north, three on the east,

and two on the west. The

north entrance causes one of

the biggest concerns, in that it

is not seen from the

playground as well as it has

the only steps on the site that

can be dangerous with the

rocks and ice. The size of the

playground makes a

challenging task for any teacher to completely regulate who enters or leaves the yard.

9. Pedestrian/Vehicular acces gate, Source: Ryan Wallace

Vehicular Access/Parking

Vehicular access and

parking is adequate, but could use

improvements. The number of

required parking spaces (per DPS

standards) for the site is met in

the one parking lot.. 63 spaces is

adequate for the school. Traffic

issues are a bigger concern with

Utica St. getting an abundance of

vehicles. Bus and parent drop

offs are located on that side along

with residence parking. This causes congestion problems in the morning and afternoon. Stuart

Street, however, has very little traffic.

10. Parking Lot, Source: Ryan Wallace



Handicap Accessibility

Handicap parking is limited to one space on the street, off the front (main) entrance.

Access is limited to two doors: front and east. Also, a steep ramp from the street directly to the

playground is located on the southwest corner of the building. The handicap accessibility is very

limited to the site as well as the building.

11. Handicap Parking Space, Source: Ryan Wallace

12. Minor Drainage Problems, Source: Ryan Wallace

Drainage

The drainage on the site is limited to a few puddles in the playground and some ice that

develops on the north side. Also, the ECE playground forms a big mud puddle when wet.

Surrounding Uses

The surrounding area is composed of residential homes with intermittent fire stations,

churches, and schools. This site being centrally located has a very secure atmosphere. The south

side of the site requires a little concern, because students on occasion will jump a backyard fence.

The majority of users to this playground are neighbors who live close to this location. Many

visitors to the neighborhood will use schools closer to the main roads, Harvey Park, or the

recreation center.


Doull Elementary

Part II: Future Aspirations The second part of the master plan incorporates five areas that will establish the

guidelines for the design process. These five areas area:

• Vision

• Goals

• Program Elements

• Spatial Diagram

• Ordering System

Vision

The vision for Doull Elementary is for the school to become a central focus in the

neighborhood of Harvey Park. The size of the playground allows for many activities to take

place at once and to act as a gathering place for students or visitors throughout the week. A

destination point within Harvey Park Doull Elementary will then be able to satisfy the numerous

activities needed for this number of people.

Goals

1. To develop a central destination point within the Harvey Park Neighborhood.

2. To allow an active environment that promotes learning while satisfying the need for more

child activities.

3. To allow improvements to be phased in during the Bond Process.

Program Elements

Soft Surfaces

New ECE playground equipment area and grass playing field w/ new equipment

New Primary playground equipment area w/ new equipment

New Intermediate playground equipment area

Quiet Landscape @ Northeast corner

Swings (12 @ intermediate, 8 @ ECE; Proper setbacks)

Asphalt

Four Square (8 Total)

Tetherball (10 Total)


Doull Elementary

Hopscotch (8 Total)

Basketball Court (6 Hoops)

Art Elements

Game tables with children artwork (3)

Educational Map or Lettering

Concrete

Revised walkway/plaza to new east side vehicular/parent drop-off/pickup

Handicap Access (@ parking lot, to site)

Landscaping

Outdoor classroom (Central Focus)

Bench near existing Cottonwood Tree

Interior trees (12)

Structures

Shade structure (1) @ Outdoor classroom

Gateway (1)

Soccer goals


Doull Elementary

Spatial Diagram

The recently constructed Rockies Field/ Master Plan establishes a great basis for future

planning. A need to phase in play equipment during the Bond Process will be a consideration

while defining the playground. The Diagram below shows improvements that incorporate

existing conditions, phasing considerations, and future wants. Spatially the site is very expansive

and the need to define smaller spaces is needed. Map 4. Spatial Diagram. Source: Ryan Wallace


Doull Elementary

Ordering System

A precedence study of two places was conducted to develop the ordering system for

Doull Elementary School. These two locations were Englewood Civic Center (for its central

layout) and The Wexner Center (for its juxtaposition of the campus grid versus street grid).

Englewood Civic Center has a central layout the flourish with activity and security,

something the school will use. The center also has a water feature and art that attracts many

people to the area.

The Wexner Center on the Campus of Ohio State is a great example of how two grid

systems can work together. The architecture as well as the landscaping can emphasize the other

creating magnificent spaces.

Source: Ryan Wallace


Doull Elementary

The ordering systems of Doull Elementary School will be developed based on these two

precedence:

1. A Central organization focused on the outdoor classroom (red).

A central element will be used as a starting point to define smaller scale spaces

throughout the site.


Doull Elementary

2. Two grids that explore the relationship of the Downtown Denver /Jeffersonian Grid

(yellow) and the slightly obscure campus grid (green).

The interaction of the two grids will allow for further exploration and education

of the systems that influence the students and school.


Doull Elementary

Ordering System Composite


Doull Elementary

Fulfilling the Goals

The Goals of the site will be fulfilled by:

#1 The site will become inviting to all community members by implementing a

neighborhood scale into the site. Breaking up the expansive scale of the playground into areas

that all individuals of the community can use will be accomplished in a couple of ways. The need

for specific areas (i.e. ECE, Primary, and Play fields) will be distinguished by locating a central

Outdoor classroom that acknowledges these areas. Next a vertical break is needed and will be

accomplished by adding a boulder field, seating walls and terraced primary and intermediate play

areas. Also, a neighborhood welcome mat will be the main purpose of gateway at the northeast

corner. Lastly, a vehicular drop-off that gives and inviting view of the site will be implemented

on the east side, inviting drivers to come back for other events.

#2 The improvements to the site will include an educational element of a map that in

conjunction with the ordering system, of the grids, will help to educate students about their

history. A relationship to local (the campus grid), state (the Jeffersonian grid), and Geographical

(also the Jeffersonian grid) will be educational as well as experimental. The addition of play

activities to these features will keep students active at the same time.

#3 The master plan has been established to allow the school (Doull and PTA) to develop

small pieces by raising money of their own, while waiting applying for Bond money. Keeping

existing equipment, like the new ECE and Primary playgrounds, located in the same position

more equipment can be added until future improvements are constructed (i.e. engineered wood

fiber). Also a need for ADA requirement will need to be vastly incorporated and can start with a

phase of the playground and work its way into the school


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