Designer Christian Rushing is the winner of the open competition for the design and construction of the public pavilion in Jefferson Heights Park. Mr. Rushing’s design was chosen by a judging panel of neighborhood residents, a city engineer, representatives from the Parks and Recreation department and Chattanooga sustainability initiative, Green Spaces. In addition to Rushing, the project team also includes Collier Construction.

Mr. Rushing’s multi-use central plaza and pavilion design includes flexible stage configurations, restroom facilities and areas for public meetings and movie screenings.

“Christian’s design provides a central focus to the park, and integrates well with the City’s overall park design,” said Larry Zehnder, director of City Parks and Recreation. “The sustainable nature of the design also dovetails with the city’s commitment to green building and design.”

Green features include a rainwater harvesting system that will capture and store water for irrigation and composting toilets that reduce the use of potable water and eliminate the need for sewage treatment. The pavilion construction itself will extensively use salvaged and recycled materials, as well as 100% of the existing structure on the site.

According to Ethan Collier, president and CEO of Collier Construction, “One particularly innovative green element in the design is the reuse of an existing concrete slab.”

Green Spaces Director, Jeff Cannon said, “Christian’s design shows that innovative thinking, sustainable design and construction are not only about a structure itself, but also the people it serves. As an iconic, useful, beautiful and environmentally friendly centerpiece for the park, the pavilion will help to draw people in and bring people together, creating opportunities for interaction and overlap throughout the neighborhood.”

Mr. Rushing explained, “The inspiration for the function and form of the pavilion is derived from the prism. While a prism separates light into its visible spectrum- the pavilion will serve as a type of ‘reverse prism’ bringing the diverse residents of our neighborhoods to a common place for common recreation.”

Mr. Rushing declined to accept design fees, instead dedicating all of the awarded funds to the construction cost of the pavilion. “In these lean economic times, we really felt that 100% of the scarce funding available should be put into this community asset,” said Mr. Rushing. “The result will be a higher quality space for the neighborhood to enjoy.”

Construction of the pavilion, plaza and park is slated for completion this summer.