Architectural research planned for empty lot

WASILLA -- The 7.5 acres between the Wasilla post office and Wasilla Middle School is little more than a collection of gravel and grass right now, and it receives little attention from the population of Wasilla as a whole.

However, during the next week, it will be the focus of a detailed and exhaustive study, called a charrette, performed by a team of architects from across the nation. A team of experts will probe every nook and cranny of the lot with the eventual goal of developing it in the best way possible.

Valley Residential Services, local not for profit company specializing in special needs housing, currently owns the lot. When the study is completed, VRS will decide how to use the property based on the plans developed by the team. The company hopes to involve local residents in the project to the utmost extent. "It's very important to us to get the city in on the ground floor of this," said Jim Coan, chief executive officer of VRS. All of the members of the Wasilla City Council were invited to the charrette's public hearing stage, and the process will proceed with the cooperation of both Wasilla residents and local government.

A charrette by definition is an intensive interdisciplinary project undertaken by experts over a brief period of time. The term is derived from a French word meaning "little cart" and refers to the arduous efforts exerted by architecture students in order to meet a project deadline. The name thus refers to an intense burst of activity and effort, similar to an extended and productive brainstorming session, to accomplish a goal quickly.

The goal in question, in this case, is to determine what best to do with the empty lot, what functions it might perform, what sort of structures might occupy it, and how it can best benefit the community. In performing this study, the team will take into account all of the varied factors influencing the potential of the lot, including its geographical composition, its positioning within the traffic flow of the city, the economic development in the area, and the demand of Wasilla for an assortment of services that the lot could provide.

Some members of the team will be a landscape architect from Miami, a senior architect from Chicago, an assistant professor of architecture from Andrews University, and a civil engineer from Colorado. Heading the team will be Philip Bess, head of the Graduate School of Architecture at Notre Dame, and the son of Howard Bess, one of the minds behind the project.

"There's never been anything like this done in Alaska before," said the elder Bess, who is working with Thursday Associates, a Chicago-based planning company, to organize the upcoming event. Thursday Associates has given input on the city of Boston's plans to relocate Fenway Park in the past (their advice ultimately resulted in the decision to keep the park in its current location), and will be managing the team of eight architects' visit to Wasilla.

Although the specific fate of the property will not be known until the architects arrive and begin to work, Bess speculates that the area could be used for new housing complexes, special apartments for developmentally disabled or other special-needs residents, or possible commercial development.

In any case, the lot that today stands almost empty could, with the help of a team of expert hands and eyes, soon see developments that transform it into a valuable asset for the city of Wasilla.

The public is invited to a hearing session to be held at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, located across Bogard Road from the lot, at 7:00 Monday night.

Contact Daniel Spoth at daniel.spoth@frontiersman.com.