VALDEBEBAS PARK

VALDEBEBAS PARk

Tom Leader Studio

Madrid, Spain

TOM LEADER STUDIO

The Park derives its basic form from a molded topography that will collect and store the largest amount of water available. The existing ridges and swales are re-shaped to collect water and deliver it to a central irrigation reservoir that is also a recreational and social center. The ridges are made taller and the valleys made deeper to create a more pronounced moisture gradient. As water is collected in the seasonal streams, shade-creating vegetation can emerge naturally. Terraces are created next to the streams for farming. Recycled water is introduced at the head of each valley and flows through them in the summer, irrigating the riparian vegetation and purifying the water as it passes. Water for farm irrigation can be diverted from the streams as it descends or it can be pumped from the reservoir. This collection plan also diverts runoff from the adjacent urban areas to the reservoir as well as the entire valley between the Arroyuelo Park and the Forest Park. Based on this enlarged watershed, hydrologic calculations show how this system and reservoir can work based only on rainfall and modest inputs from the recycled water supply. The Farmer’s Market is a collection of pavilions and terraces perched on a deck over the reservoir and generously shaded by a large fabric roof that collects rain water. It structures the market, restaurant / café, club, day care center, and farm / ecology education center, and beach.