Chino Creek Wetlands Park

Winning the bid for the Inland Empire Utilities Agency, I worked with public artist, Richard Turner, to design architectural elements and signage for a 22-acre park. Water quality, flood control, environmental restoration, urban development, recreation and water conservation were some of the park’s locational themes.

The comprehensive signage program comprised of (75) 30″ x 60″ individual signs printed on aluminum plates. The art/architecture program for the park was an expression of the agency’s desire to employ recycled materials in an educational, engaging and imaginative campaign.

The project received recognition, awards and publication, including Graphic Design USA Design Annual (2008) and Visual Language for Designers: Principles for Creating Graphics that People Understand by Ina Connie Malamed (2009).

A second piece of recycled equipment (which resembles a water tower) is used as an elevated observation platform from which visitors can see the entire park.

A “pipe garden” featuring signage supports made from recycled valves, elbows and straight sections of pipe is a focal point for water conservation information.

Along the park pathways, visitors walk through 12-feet diameter sections of concrete pipe containing signage about the local habitat.

Content included a timeline focused on water use in the local area, statistics dating from prehistoric times to the present, water conservation information, habitat identification (local plants and animals), explanations of the workings of each of the different demonstration wetlands in the park and directional signage. Park visitors will first encounter a larger-than-life human figure made from pipe sections similar to those used in the adjacent water treatment facility. The main information kiosk, which houses the local timeline is a 20′ x 40′ stainless steel structure made from a section of a water purification tank shaped like the hull of a boat.

The project received recognition, awards and publication, including Graphic Design USA Design Annual (2008) and Visual Language for Designers: Principles for Creating Graphics that People Understand by Ina Connie Malamed (2009).