The City of Pompano Beach Centennial Park is home to the Sample-McDougal House Museum, a 100-year-old home built by the first settlers to the area and serves as an historic pioneer museum and event space. The three-acre site contains a hammock of trees and open fields that are used by the community for large events and weddings. Brooks + Scarpa has designed a new open-air pavilion for the site. The pavilion is strategically located within the existing hammock of trees and designed to look like a contemporary outbuilding to the main house. Intended to blend with the historic character of the home and feel like an accessory building, the new open-air pavilion provides an event space for up to 180 people.
The pavilion is oriented to east-west and frames a view of the historic home. Per the client, the main use of the open-air pavilion is to have outdoor “jelly-jar” weddings. The structure is carefully placed in such a way to be shaded during most of the day and its orientation enhances passive cooling. Deep long overhangs provide shade and drama. A continuous drip edge allows water to fall from the roof edge into a raingarden along the southern edge that leads down to a dry detention area. The open-air pavilion also includes a warming kitchen and restrooms for eventgoers. The materials are highly durable and cost-efficient. The structure is made of steel and the walls clad in cementitious wood paneling.