LARE Stewardship and Design Principles Questions and Answers — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A landscape architect is designing an accessible ramp for a historic courthouse plaza. To comply with the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation, which design approach is most appropriate?
- Placing the ramp in the most functionally efficient location, even if it requires demolishing a portion of an original granite seating wall.
- Making the new ramp clearly distinguishable as a modern addition, using compatible materials that do not damage or obscure historic features. (Correct answer)
- Designing the ramp with materials and forms that exactly replicate the historic balustrades of the main stairs.
- Specifying a pre-fabricated aluminum ramp system to minimize cost and construction time, regardless of its visual compatibility.
Correct answer: Making the new ramp clearly distinguishable as a modern addition, using compatible materials that do not damage or obscure historic features.
The Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation state that new additions "shall be differentiated from the old and shall be compatible with the massing, size, scale, and architectural features to protect the historic integrity of the property." This means new work should be identifiable as contemporary but harmonious with the historic context, avoiding the creation of a "false sense of historical development." Demolishing historic fabric is to be avoided, and simply replicating historic details for a new feature is not the preferred approach.
Question 2: A landscape architect is developing a master plan for a large suburban development that bisects a significant woodland area. Which of the following design strategies best exemplifies the principle of stewardship by mitigating habitat fragmentation?
- Dispersing low-density housing evenly throughout the woodland to give each home a 'natural' setting.
- Concentrating development into dense pods and preserving the largest possible contiguous areas of woodland. (Correct answer)
- Creating a series of narrow, linear parks that follow the road network through the development.
- Clearing the woodland entirely but requiring each homeowner to plant five native trees on their lot.
Correct answer: Concentrating development into dense pods and preserving the largest possible contiguous areas of woodland.
Habitat fragmentation occurs when a large habitat is broken into smaller, isolated patches, which can reduce biodiversity and ecosystem function. The most effective strategy to mitigate this is to concentrate development, preserving large, connected, and unfragmented patches of the existing habitat. Dispersing development maximizes the edge effect and breaks up the habitat, while narrow corridors are often insufficient for many species and do not replace the value of a large contiguous block.
Question 3: A landscape architect is designing a public park trail intended to be an accessible route. According to ADA standards, what is the maximum running slope permitted for a path before it is classified as a ramp and requires more stringent features like handrails and level landings?
- 1:12 (8.33%)
- 1:16 (6.25%)
- 1:50 (2.0%)
- 1:20 (5.0%) (Correct answer)
Correct answer: 1:20 (5.0%)
According to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Standards for Accessible Design, any part of an accessible route with a running slope greater than 1:20 (5%) is considered a ramp. Ramps have stricter requirements, including a maximum slope of 1:12, handrails for rises over 6 inches, and level landings. A slope of 1:50 (2%) is the maximum allowable cross slope, not running slope.
Question 4: Which of the following design interventions in a public plaza most directly promotes the design principle of "prospect and refuge"?
- Ensuring all pathways meet ADA standards for width and slope.
- Installing a large, open water feature in the center of the plaza.
- Providing a variety of seating options, including benches placed under tree canopies and along the edges of planters. (Correct answer)
- Using permeable pavers throughout the plaza to manage stormwater on-site.
Correct answer: Providing a variety of seating options, including benches placed under tree canopies and along the edges of planters.
Prospect-refuge theory, proposed by Jay Appleton, suggests that humans are instinctively drawn to environments where they can see their surroundings (prospect) from a position of safety and enclosure (refuge). Providing seating with a protective back, such as against a planter or under a tree, allows a person to feel secure while observing the open activity of the plaza. The other options address accessibility, aesthetics, or environmental function, but not this specific psychological principle of comfort and safety.
Question 5: A project is seeking SITES v2 certification for a corporate campus built on a previously developed brownfield. Which design strategy would most effectively address the goals of the "Site Design—Water" section of the SITES scorecard?
- Specifying locally sourced paving materials with high recycled content.
- Designing a series of interconnected bioretention cells and rain gardens to capture and treat site runoff. (Correct answer)
- Creating a community garden with raised beds filled with imported, certified-organic soil.
- Installing a high-efficiency irrigation system that uses weather-based controllers.
Correct answer: Designing a series of interconnected bioretention cells and rain gardens to capture and treat site runoff.
The "Site Design—Water" section of the SITES v2 Rating System focuses on conserving water and managing precipitation to protect water quality, often by mimicking natural systems. Designing bioretention cells and rain gardens is a primary strategy for capturing, slowing, and treating stormwater runoff on-site, which directly aligns with the credits in this category. While high-efficiency irrigation is beneficial, managing stormwater is a more foundational goal of this section. Material selection falls under a different category, and a community garden addresses human health and well-being.
Question 6: In landscape design, the principle of 'massing' is primarily used to achieve which of the following effects?
- To create a sense of rhythm and repetition throughout a site.
- To define spatial volumes and create a sense of enclosure or openness. (Correct answer)
- To draw the eye to a single, dominant feature in the landscape.
- To establish a clear and hierarchical circulation path.
Correct answer: To define spatial volumes and create a sense of enclosure or openness.
Massing refers to the perceived three-dimensional form and visual weight of an object or group of objects, such as plants, landforms, or structures. In landscape design, massing is a key tool used to shape space, defining areas of enclosure (like a dense planting of trees) or openness (a large lawn), thereby controlling how a user experiences the volume of the landscape. While mass can contribute to rhythm or a focal point, its primary role is spatial definition.
LARE Stewardship and Design Principles Questions and Answers
A landscape architect is designing an accessible ramp for a historic courthouse plaza.
To comply with the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation, which design approach is most appropriate?