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The Karen Cragnolin Park landscape sits on what was once a EDACO Junkyard, pictured here. This car junkyard was in operation from 1952 until 2006, resulting in toxic soil that is still in the process of remediation and posing a design challenge. In response to this, the team created a phased implementation plan that allowed for safe access and restriction with interpretive elements that educate visitors on the layered histories and ecologies of the site.
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Karen Cragnolin Park
Asheville, NC
2022-2024
Once a riverside junkyard, the site is being steadily restored through years of phytoremediation. In the most recent phase, a native meadow now stretches along the river’s edge, an immersive sinuous path connects to an active river trail, and interpretive markers invite visitors into the site’s horticultural and cultural histories. These elements are part of a broader vision, grounded in ecological restoration, archival and field research, and community engagement, to transform a once-polluted edge of the French Broad into a vibrant public landscape of connection, learning, and renewal.
Collaborators
Client
NBW Design Leadership
John Ridenour, Katie Smithson, Tim Popa, Kimberley Midori Huggins, David Lepage