Honor Award

Isla Palenque
Golfo de Chiriqui, Republic of Panama

Design Workshop, Inc., Aspen, CO USA
Client: Amble Resorts

Isla Palenque, a 434-acre Panamanian island, serves as a model for geo-responsible design practices throughout Central America, drawing upon natural, human-made and cultural patterns. The project preserves 85 percent of the island into a nature sanctuary, examines bioclimatic strategies for site-planning decisions, explores methods of agrotourism to decrease imports, and develops water and energy management plans that reduce dependency on nonrenewable resources. The project challenges existing governmental regulations, redefining regional development and conservation standards.

Project Goals

Islands hold a special place in our collective unconscious—places of mystery, discovery, isolation, adventure and, occasionally, danger. The mainland is where ordinary life occurs, but islands are special. Perhaps it was these inherent qualities that spurred the client to take a big step toward a dream he first hatched in college. Isla Palenque serves as the client's first geotourism project, whose vision was to develop a model for sustainable island planning that expressed the place's true spirit, or genius loci. With loose development regulations throughout Central America, the vulnerability of many pristine sites has fallen to deforestation, out-of-scale development and traditional man-made recreational activities, all causing environmental repercussions. The landscape architect was instrumental in helping the client achieve his vision by synthesizing aspects of sustainability, ecotourism, conservation and education. The project goes beyond the aspects of ecotourism. The National Geographic Society defines geotourism as "tourism that sustains, or enhances, the geographical character of a place—its environment, culture, aesthetics, heritage, and the well-being of its residents." Like ecotourism, geotourism promotes a virtuous circle whereby tourism revenues provide a local incentive to protect what tourists are coming to see, but extends the principle beyond nature and ecology to incorporate all characteristics that contribute to sense of place, such as historic structures, living and traditional culture, landscapes, cuisine, arts and artisans, as well as local flora and fauna.

Context

Isla Palenque is an ecological "jewel" nestled amidst an archipelago of national marine parks. Adjacent to the Parque Nacional Marino Golfo de Chiriquí, the region has coaxed trailblazing nature lovers to the area for years. However, tourism-friendly laws and tax incentives have opened the floodgates for investment in Panama. Since 2004, tourism arrivals have more than doubled, while tourism-based revenue has more than tripled. Isla Palenque is home to a handful of distinct environmental systems, including endangered species of flora and fauna. Primary forests shelter once-active volcanic hills; mangroves and marshes reside in lowlands; and grasslands, deforested by historic livestock production, are scattered along the perimeter where exotic zebra-striped beaches lie.

Process

Developed in GIS, an ecozoning plan analyzes layers of environmental, social and economic conditions. However, it was multiple site visits with local environmental experts that provided the opportunity to investigate the island's spiritual quality. Each visit explored new parts of the island, offering the design team a fresh aspect. Interaction with the region's Ngobe-Bugle Indian tribe offered the team insight to cultural traditions, including patterns from their arts and crafts that influenced the project's architectural design. The design team drew upon these observations in order to develop a series of master plan conclusions related to coastal access, transportation, development, energy, open space and conservation. The coastal assessment identified two access points to the island. The deeper, north cove allows for a service marina, while the picturesque, east cove, welcomes guest arrival. Ridgelines are preserved and structures are nestled into the landscape to reduce visual impact. Development is concentrated on previously cleared areas along coastlines and facilitates passive ventilation. A centrally located service area, located on a flat area where the forest floor is relatively bare, is adequately screened. The island's fragile forests, lagoons and mangroves—
approximately 95 percent of the island—are preserved as a nature sanctuary for the public.

Isla Palenque also represents the first known project to gain approval for roadway-width reduction by Panama's Ministry of Housing. The island's intimate scale and varying topographic conditions supported the design team's vision for alternative transportation. In lieu of traditional vehicles—which would result in extensive grading—a fleet of smaller, electric cars would serve as the island's primary mode of transportation. Typical roadway widths are reduced by 50percent, decreasing site disturbance, emissions, construction cost and infrastructure needs.

Bioclimatic Design Strategies

Collaboration between the landscape architect and design team resulted in bioclimatic strategies that utilize the island's tropical climate to reduce energy needs. Strategies revolve around air movement, insulation, solar gain rejection and evaporative cooling. Building orientations are balanced perpendicular to the prevailing winds of dry and wet seasons. Landscape enhancements channel breezes into buildings elevated off the ground, allowing cross ventilation. In tropical environments, the east and west aspects receive the strongest sun at the lowest angle. Therefore, the design team orientated the short sides of buildings in these directions, positioning landscape to further shade. Exterior planted terraces replace paving to reduce ground temperatures. Bodies of water are placed immediately outside openings to pre-cool air entering the house. Rainwater harvesting techniques, including collection cisterns and towers, are celebrated and incorporated into the architecture and later reused in the landscape.

The architectural heritage of Panama is highlighted through the site planning of residential casitas, designed as a cluster of small buildings, imitating the form of nearby villages. Casitas, consisting of modular kit of parts, have the ability to be rearranged to preserve notable trees. The villagelike design enables the architecture to follow grade, with all rooms opening onto courtyards. Steep slopes and high canopy forests required the development of an alternative residential product design. Elevated canopy homes, connected by a series of raised boardwalks, preserve existing grade and vegetation. Ocean views project from the top floor, as the building approaches the canopy. Inverted roofs collect and divert water to cisterns.

Agrotourism and Education

The team recognized the constraint and expenses of importing food and building materials to the island and developed an agrotourism program that proposes three mitigating actions: an organic production orchard, an edible forest garden and the scattered plantings of fruit trees. The program was adapted to the local environment under the guidance of local farmers. Residents will grow much of their own produce in community gardens. Deforested lands are utilized for the growth of building materials, including palm leaves for thatch and bamboo for furnishings. Orchid and bromeliad specialty gardens offer public interest, planned in appropriate microclimates. Along the southern hammerhead where historic livestock activities once occurred, fruit trees will be planted and allowed to mature in order to screen future residential casitas. Until then, tree roots help stabilize the deforested land and provide produce for residents.

Socially conscious, the master plan fosters educational development to three user groups; local citizens, island guests and international academic institutions. First, education and quality of life will be improved for nearby Chiriquí citizens through professional development programs, housing and employment. Local artisan studios are integrated into the village. Interpretive trails and local guides help to educate visitors to the island's sustainable practices, flora and fauna, history, and local customs of the nearby Ngobe Bugle tribe. Finally, the island's agricultural focus presents opportunities for international exchange programs with university horticulture curricula. Students would be introduced to the practice of permaculture by restoring deforested areas, ultimately learning how agricultural systems relate to natural ecologies.

Environmental Sensitivity and Sustainability

Isla Palenque will serve as a model for ecoresponsible design and practices by taking a holistic approach to sustainability. Upon complete build out, less than 15 percent of the 434 acres will be built upon, including all buildings, roads and trails. Panamanian law requires 15 percent of all zoned land to be designated for park and open space purposes. The proposed plan exceeds this requirement by over 2300 percent, preserving 368 acres for the enjoyment of its visitors. A greenway circumnavigates the island, buffering views. Over six miles of nature trails extend into the island's interior, where bird-watching towers, interpretative trails and play areas created from natural materials found on the island replace any notion of traditional urban play structures. The synthesis of the island's environmental features creates an unparalleled recreational program.

95 percent of the planned development's energy needs is generated by on-site solar and wind power. Utilities, laid under roadways, further reduce the need to remove vegetation. Water collection systems reduce dependency for extracted water by collecting rainwater during the wet, summer season. Roadways consist of crushed volcanic rock, extracted from already deforested areas. Native plants will reduce dependency on irrigation during the wet season, while on-site wastewater treatment and cisterns provide irrigation during the dry season. Food waste is converted into compost, used later at the farm. Sustainability efforts are planned to culminate with the anticipation of third-party ecotourism programs and USGBC LEED® Platinum certifications for all public and residential buildings.

Future

The landscape architect facilitated a phased and flexible implementation over a 10-year period, looking holistically at development, circulation, energy, conservation and amenities. By introducing new prototypes to the market, the plan accommodates for market demand flexibility, ensuring an economically sustainable future. As the first ecotourism island destination in Panama's Chiriquí region, phase one of Isla Palenque is nearing the implementation stage, slated to open in 2012.

American Society of Landscape Architects