Niobrara River Valley Preserve Center | Johnstown, Nebraska | 2018

Architect: BVH Architecture
Design Team: Mark Bacon, Paul Jeffrey, and Zach Soflin
Client: Nature Conservancy
General Contractor: Green Gable Contracting
Photographers: AJ Brown

The project is designed to amplify the natural environment through sustainable methods and nuanced material choices. The use of charred wood siding on north/south walls (Shou-sugi-ban) and Cor-ten steel on east/west walls recall the weathering-nature of materials. Sourced on-site from overgrowth, cedar siding is charred using an ancient Japanese technique to provide durability and resistance to insects. Cor-ten steel will oxidize, providing an ever-changing dynamic facade.

The use of structurally insulated panels to enclose the building envelope provides a highly insulated, structurally-sound building with decades of durability. Creating a high-performing building envelope develops a human-centered interior experience—an empirically calibrated window system using modular steel louvers veils the southern facing expanses of glass.

The system allows views to the landscape, obstructs unwanted solar heat gain during the summer, and allows the sun to help heat the space during the winter months by the variable openness, similar to blinds.

The system is developed through computer analysis of pertinent data in real-time as the design is fine-tuned to provide an aesthetically pleasing, high-performance facade system. Where louvers were not desired, the planes of glass were regressed into the building with the roof providing the necessary shading. The result is a visitor center tailored to compliment the noble goals of The Nature Conservancy.