Farm at the ARB – Solution Blue

MN LANDSCAPE ARBORETUM: FARM AT THE ARB – CHANHASSEN, MN

With the new renovated Bost Red barn overlooking the scene, Solution Blue led the Arboretums team from envisioning through construction a 13-acre “Farm at the Arb” exhibit. The over 445,000 annual growing annual visitors can now begin to better understand how plants, specifically crops like corn, are grown by farmers today. This project is a team effort of numerous federal, state, local agencies and more than 12 University departments and colleges and countless donors and corporate sponsors. The Farm at the Arb Project includes new Maintenance Shed, a Summer Kitchen, Educational platforms, Event Lawns, Utilities, Stormwater, Planting Areas & Parking Lot.

Visitors can enjoy the new food growing campus. Whether they take Farm’s Northern Grains Walk through plots of major Minnesota crops or explore its demonstration area of fruit and vegetables to try at home, interactive interpretive displays prime their curiosity and set the stage for intriguing conversations about food production, the people who grow our food, and the enduring value of the land.

Because fewer people now growing up on farms, exhibits like this are important for them to have actual, credible facts about where their food comes from is important.

Project Overview

Client: University of Minnesota – Landscape Arboretum
Location: Chanhassen, MN
Services: Site Analysis, Hydrology & Stormwater Modeling, Site Planning & Design, Civil Engineering, Bidding Assistance, Construction Administration

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Challenges

The site had a very dynamic topography and wall very hilly making ADA compliant pedestrian path very difficult.
The new Summer Kitchen required potable water for food process and sanitary system for disposal in a very remote location.

Solution and Results

Our team provided a complete package of services including the site analysis, planning, design/engineering, stormwater modeling, regulatory approvals, bidding assistance and construction administration services to successfully complete this 10-acre crop and garden areas. We collaborated closely with the University and Arboretum staff to ensure that the trail to the demonstration plots, research areas and other spaces are now accessible to staff and visitors.

We careful design pedestrian paths to follow naturally level topographic contours and only minor excavation and filling was required to site ADA compliant paths.
We worked with the neighboring municipality to extend potable water to the site and sized it for the anticipated expansion of the Future Eastern Educational Campus, we also modified an adjacent septic system to suitability receive and treat the sanitary export from the Summer Kitchen.

MN LANDSCAPE ARBORETUM: FARM AT THE ARB – CHANHASSEN, MN

Project Overview

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