Cincinnati Nature Center
The Rowe Woods at Cincinnati Nature Center is comprised of 1,025 acres of eastern deciduous forest, former agricultural fields, streams, and pond habitats. Rowe Woods provides more than 16 miles of hiking trails and 29 buildings of various sizes, conditions, and vintage, including the original 1970 Rowe Visitor Center and two historic lodges.
TKWA was hired to lead a multi-disciplinary team to develop a ten-year program and facility master plan to: 1) locate new site features, focused on a nature pre-school, a natural free play space, an all-persons interpretive trail, a wetlands and forest canopy walk, and parking expansion, and 2) inventory and assess current facilities and define facility improvements for the visitor center and educational venues.
LOCATION
Cincinnati, OH
SCALE
1,025 Acres
STATUS
Completed 2015
The Cincinnati Nature Center is a leader in the national “No Child Left Inside” campaign, which is designed to reconnect children with nature. The master planning process at CNC relied extensively on the conclusions reached by the author of Last Child in the Woods, Richard Louv, and others, in the development of site and facility design strategies.
In August 2011, CNC opened its new Nature Playscape, the first component identified for completion within the TKWA Master Plan. Designed by a Cincinnati-based landscape architect, the Nature Playscape was created to provide children with opportunities for unstructured play in a resilient version of local natural habitats.
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