Enhancing the Social Space of Strawberry Creek

Enhancing the Social Space of Strawberry Creek

Project Leads: Janet Torres & Aysha Massell

Project Sponsor: Student Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) & Office of Environment, Health and Safety (EH&S)

TGIF Grant: $2,000

Project Theme: Habitat Restoration and Native Landscaping

Application Submission

Project Description: This project would take place in the area around the Carillon Road bridge directly west of Stephens Hall. It provides three main services to campus. The environmental service involves stabilizing the North slopes of the area and replacing invasive plants with natives that are more authentic to the Redwood understory setting. Since the slopes around the bridge are steep, dense plant cover needs to be maintained to provide slope stabilization and discourage visitors from trying to walk to the stream. The second service is enhancement of the social component of the creek by creating a more welcoming and visually stimulating area around existing structures for sitting. The third service is to provide an outdoor educational space for Berkeley students and those who visit the creek by installing a few signs. These signs would inform users of the history of Strawberry Creek and the plant species used in the rehabilitation. The process of implementing the plan would also give students in the Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning department real design-build experience while creating a greater sense of community and highlighting Strawberry Creek as an asset to student wellbeing on campus.

Project Goals: 

  1. Create a more welcoming and authentic space for students to enjoy Strawberry Creek
  2. Stabilize the North slopes by the bridge
  3. Use pollinator friendly plants that are native to California
  4. Incorporate native plants found in the understory of riparian redwoods
  5. Create a more visually inspiring and stimulating space for people to visit
  6. Increase the use of existing sitting areas
  7. Highlight Strawberry Creek as an asset to student wellbeing on campus
  8. Educate users of the space of the history of Strawberry creek
  9. Give real design-build experience to students in the Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning department
  10. Build a greater sense of community and ownership of campus among students
  11. Create a database of rehabilitation projects to track progress of plant growth