School Description
Amesse Elementary School is located in northeast Denver and serves the Montbello neighborhood. The area is predominately residential, comprised of tract homes built during the late 1960’s to present. The older homes are 1960’s and 1970’s two-story brick homes that are well kept. The newer homes have been built very recently, within the last couple of years, and are simple ranch-style or two-story homes. Major vehicular corridors such as Interstate 70, Havana St., Pena Blvd., and 56th Ave bound the neighborhood. It is a composition of an eclectic range of uses. Residential, commercial, and retail spaces are all present within the community. Although there are many older strip malls around the area, they have been maintained and are flanked by newer grocery stores.
Learning Landscapes Description
A celebration of children and community while teaching literacy and mathematics using concentric circles on an orthogonal grid with a central plaza.
John H. Amesse Elementary School
Construction Date
August 2009
Landscape Architect
Russell + Mills Studios
Play Equipment Vendor
Triple M Recreation
School Garden Sponsor
Kitchen Community Learning Garden
Master Plan
Vision
The Amesse Campus will be the communal bond that brings together the academic dedication of the elementary school with the social ability of the neighborhood to create a shared space that celebrates its children and its community.
Goals
- To design a landscape that facilitates learning through interactive and creative play.
- To create spaces that accommodates the diversity of the constituents that compose the community.
- To provide a gathering place for the Amesse / Montbello neighborhood.
- To create a space that is not exclusive, but inclusive for all to learn, grow, and share in the community.
- To create a campus that promotes and stimulates the educational emphasis of literacy and mathematics.
Design Development
Description
A celebration of children and community while teaching literacy and mathematics using concentric circles on an orthogonal grid with a central plaza.
Illustrative Drawing
Construction Documentation
Playground Rendering
Construction Drawings
Play Equipment
Shade Structure