Smyrna, Delaware
Major new Delaware Welcome Center on Delaware Route 1 and U.S. 13 north of Smyrna
Highlights:- Complete Architectural Design
- Landscape Architecture
- Garden Setting
- ADA Compliance
The Chauncey O. Simpson Welcome Center provides visitors with travel and service information in Central Delaware along two major highways. Open 24 hours a day, the center currently serves an average of 6,000 people on a summer day. The new 11,000 s.f. welcome center, sited on 60 acres, completed in November 1991, now accommodates an estimated six million visitors per year, handling the existing Route 13 as well as the Route 1 relief route traffic.
Project planning provided for continuous public use of the site. Three million visitors passed through the existing Welcome Center during the two-phase construction period.
The Owner's principle focus was to improve Delaware's image to the visiting public. From the metal halide historical street lamps to Flemish bond brick masonry and metal roof, the facilities reflect the values of Delaware. It is accessible to all the public and was designed to exceed the "Americans with Disabilities Act."
Simple materials of quality were elegantly assembled in a fashion to last the facility's anticipated life providing the desired economic return. Project requirements included the master planning and design of a visitor's information center with conference facility, vending pavilions, restroom facilities, and a separate maintenance building to service 6,000 visitors a day during the summer months.
A pathway through the woods connects the petting zoo, picnic pavilion, play area, and vending pavilion to the truck and car parking areas. The play area is adjacent to the picnic pavilion, yet separated from the automobile parking lot for safety. Work also consisted of entrance roads from Route 13 and from the new Smyrna-Dover Bypass, car and truck parking, a camper sewage facility, and landscaping.
The building was situated to preserve the wetlands on site; the result is a view from inside the completed Visitor's Center conference room of a functioning freshwater wetland and woods beyond , as well as a glimpse of the courtyard garden. The signature of the project can be readily observed at night due to the skillful illumination engineering.
Rest areas produce a significant amount of waste each year. Electric hand dryers eliminate the paper volume. All plumbing fixtures have hands free operation. Infrared sensors, connected to 24 volt AC solenoid valves, reduce water demand to the minimum necessary. The project utilized every day technical engineering solutions for a complex project. Resource protection measures were made for water supply; wastewater systems; fresh water wetlands; forests; and solid waste.
A project is successful when the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. This is a welcome center in a garden setting with improved accessibility, security, increased program, and reduced consumption, which provides a positive image for Delaware.
Welcome Center | Troop 2 Headquaters| Youth Services | Sussex | Stevenson | Baylor | NH Juvenile Facility
