LAB was commissioned to design the streetscape and inner courtyard for the Shelton Apartments, an affordable housing community in Arlington, VA that uses modest materials in a creative way, meeting a stringent budget without sacrificing design quality. Collaborating closely with Bonstra/Haresign Architects, the firm developed a sequence of planted and paved spaces for a large courtyard over occupied space below. These spaces, all bordered by seat walls, offer residents a number of different experiences and opportunities to relax and socialize outdoors. The terrace alongside the community room lends itself to sunbathing and mingling, while the garden pavilion provides sheltered seating for reading and relaxing. Planted with shrubs, groundcovers, turf and trees, the planting beds with their organically shaped mounds and plantings offer a contrast to the angularity of the central pathway. The streetscapes around the building incorporate low-impact development principles. The trees are planted in soil vaults to provide sufficient soil volume for the trees to reach maturity. All pavements in the planted zone are pervious and site runoff is directed into this zone to provide irrigation for the trees.
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