Flight 93 Visitor and Learning Center

{"version":"0.3.0","atoms":[],"cards":[],"markups":[],"sections":[[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"In western Pennsylvania,\nFlight 93 National Memorial commemorates the 40 heroes that thwarted the\nhijackers of United flight 93 on September 11, 2001. The first new U.S.\nnational park constructed in the 21st century, it has transformed the site of a\nformer coal mine into a memorial landscape. This new visitor and learning\ncenter in the park enhances the visitor experience, providing educational and\ninterpretive content that tells the story of flight 93 and that fateful day."]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"The Partners of Flight 93,\na consortium of four organizations that include the families of the passengers\nand crew, the National Park Service, a private nonprofit, and an 80-member task\nforce, developed a collaborative planning process and mission statement that\nhas guided work at the site for more than 15 years. The memorial site was\ndefined through agreements with adjacent landowners to preserve their perimeter\nviewsheds and the character of the surrounding landscape. The trails that wind\nthrough the site are open to both visitors and the community, allowing the\nmemorial landscape to also serve as active open space. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"\u201cThis project is a great\nexample of poetic architecture in service of a central concept and experiential\nlearning,\u201d noted the jury. \u201cThe building is part of the landscape and context;\nwithout the building it would be simply a field. The site, layout, lines, flow,\nand circular motif are beautiful in their representation of the story they\ntell.\u201d"]]],[1,"blockquote",[[0,[],0," \u201cThe building is part of the landscape and context;\nwithout the building it would be simply a field. The site, layout, lines, flow,\nand circular motif are beautiful in their representation of the story they\ntell.\u201d- Jury comment"]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"The contours of the land\nshape the memorial\u2019s design, enhancing the site\u2019s features for expressive power\nand education. By focusing the design in this way, the team has pointed visitor\nattention to the crash site while affording many opportunities to experience\nthe space. A tree-lined walkway encircles the bowl-shaped field of honor,\nformerly a backfilled open-pit coal mine. Additional plantings create several\ngroves that respond to the bowl\u2019s circular form, a public embrace around the\nfinal resting place of the flight\u2019s heroes. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"Located between two concrete\nwalls where the flight path crosses the edge of the field, the visitor center\nemphasizes the importance of the memorial and offers views of the site. The\ntall walls obscure views of the field from the parking areas as visitors wend\ntheir way along an entrance walkway that is aligned with the flight path. The\nwalkway first leads to a comfort station and the learning center, where\nvisitors are oriented and prepared for the emotional experience awaiting them. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"On September 11, flight 93\ncrashed in front of a grove of hemlocks. Many of the trees were burned, but the\ngrove absorbed and survived the event, standing today as a backdrop to the\ncrash site and a focal point of the entire memorial experience. The trees\u2019 tall\ntrunks and alternating angled branches formed the design motif expressed in the\nmateriality throughout the memorial and visitor center. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"Through its presentation of\nstories around the events of September 11, 2001, and interpretations of the\nactions of flight 93\u2019s passengers and crew, the visitor and learning center is\nan integral part of the memorial site. It also sets the stage for the third\nmajor phase of work at the site, a 93-foot-tall chime tower to be located near\nthe park\u2019s entrance. "]]]]}