Aurora

A dedicated philanthropist and former history teacher with deep ties to the area departed from typical preservation practice in an effort to quickly reverse a loss of industry and vitality. Her first request to the design team: think like entrepreneurs. As a result, we developed a series of targeted, privately funded projects that aim to transform underutilized historic sites into vital parts of the community. The outcome: six projects that have seeded a wider physical and economic revival. While in each case the landscape component of the project accompanied a building rehabilitation, we were able to expand the impact of each site design and to develop an identifiable community fabric by building upon familiar and beloved features that define this village along Cayuga Lake in the Finger Lakes region of Upstate New York—shaded walks and streets, lawn terraces stepping down to the water, long-lived hardwoods on lawns, and broad meadows.