Rader+Crews was the landscape architect on a master planning team that prepared a plan for George Washington’s Mount Vernon in Northern Virginia.  Our work included an extensive site analysis process that identified available sites for the consolidation of existing support facilities and the siting of a new study center. 

These diagrams show our regional analysis and historical analysis for the site.  The regional analysis diagram shows Mount Vernon’s proximity to various points and the major transportation routes of the area.  The historical analysis overlays Washington’s original farms on a modern map with the area topography highlighted.  This diagram revealed that the bluff upon which Mount Vernon sits was formed when an ancient oxbow in the Potomac River was bypassed.

Our site analysis included assessing the site topography, hydrology, slopes, current use patterns and the layers of historical development to determine buildable sites suitable for various facilities.  Options were then studied to test the suitability of each site for possible uses.  The analysis and option studies eventually led to our recommendation of a site for the study center, a new administration building, a consolidated maintenance complex and the relocation of existing support facilities to enable the restoration of critical areas of the original plantation landscape.