The University of Aberdeen are developing a major new sports facility on the site of an existing athletics ground, set within an area of established residential, sports and educational uses. The project will provide international standards of facilities for a wide range of sports.
The landscape design approach adopts differing concepts and treatments related to the various areas of the site. The frontage of the building is defined by a distinctive set of steps, creating a civic presence, whilst new hedge planting around the new car park provides a foil for the parking area behind. Around the existing athletics track, areas of low bankings create a ‘mini amphitheatre’ for spectators through manipulation of the existing levels. To the east, simply graded grass bankings and platforms typify a pragmatic and functional design response to this section of the site. Areas outwith the playing surfaces are sown with a wild flower mix intended to replicate typical grassland species occurring on the nearby coastal dunelands.