Minnewaska State Park Visitor Center | 2018-2020

Kerhonkson, New York, USA

Architects: BKSK Architects
Landscape Architects: SCAPE and The LA Group
Clients: Open Space Institute Land Trust, Inc. (OSILT) and The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (OPRHP)
Photographers: Amy Barkow

The Minnewaska State Park Preserve Visitor Center provides a well-needed space, immersed within its environment, supporting the needs of Park visitors, Park personnel, and public programs.

Located in Ulster County, NY, the 6,000 square foot Center acts as visitors’ first point of entry to the Park, houses administrative offices, exhibits related to the Park’s environment, and accommodates indoor and outdoor educational programs.

The design goals included sustainable strategies, integrating the building with the natural surroundings, and flexibility for evolving programs over time. The Visitor Center addresses the previous lack of amenities on the site, providing bathrooms, a space to regroup and get one’s bearings, and a meeting place for groups who gather regularly.

The design team held integrative workshops with the client group, leading to a shared vision for the project including the siting, programming, environmental goals, and materiality.

The design team heard the need to transform the visitor experience, inviting visitors to understand the significance of the landscape, and by doing so, inspiring them to become environmental stewards.

Indoor and outdoor educational spaces were created that link to the land and the views, allowing a flexible program format depending on weather and necessity, while connecting visitors to the extraordinary resources of the Park.

Solar orientation for passive heat, daylight, and natural ventilation were organizing design principles. The thermal experience of the building reflects the conditions outside while offering shelter from the elements.

A protected south-facing porch, a warming hearth, and a breeze-filled exhibition space support gathering and contemplation, while celebrating seasonal and daily change.

Attention was paid to “right-sizing the building,” allowing the Center to meet its goals with minimal site impact. Through its site disposition, massing, materiality, and relationship to the outdoors, the Visitor Center allows a visitor to intuitively experience the sense of place unique to Minnewaska.

The building might be understood as the first of the many paths—or perhaps a trailhead—that lead visitors into the park. It is here that the visitor will orient themselves to the array of possibilities, and head out for the day.