Project Title: Waterfront Pavilion

Firm: Knickerbocker Group

Submitted for Consideration in: Architecture

Client: Boothbay Region YMCA

Location: Boothbay, Maine

Project-At-a-Glance:
Sited on the Boothbay Region YMCA Camp Knickerbocker campus, the Waterfront Pavilion is an environmentally harmonious, partially subterranean structure whose design and execution were inspired by community needs, sustainability, and minimizing impact on the adjacent watershed.

Project Narrative:

With 65 acres of coastal Maine forest and wetlands and a location on Knickerbocker Lake, Camp Knickerbocker is an invaluable asset for the Boothbay Region YMCA and community alike. The camp seeks to forge friendships, encourage potential, celebrate achievements, and explore new adventures. Through activities like beach play and swimming, kayaking, canoeing, sports, arts and crafts, field trips, and an adventure course, Camp Knickerbocker strives to build leadership, self-esteem, and provides character-building opportunities through structured activities.

Our firm collaborated with the Boothbay Region YMCA to design and construct a new bathroom and changing facility to meet their growing program needs on the northern portion of their 21-acre campus, specifically water-related activities on the lake. The structure is sited within 150 feet of the Knickerbocker Lake shoreline, which supplies the community with water, so design coordination with the Boothbay Region Water District on storm water management and erosion control were imperative. An extensive green roof of sedum carpet is one of the ways in which storm water management is addressed.

The new facility consists of four handicap-accessible bathrooms, four changing rooms, sinks, drinking fountains, benches, and cubbies. The contemporary approach to the design incorporates playful angular interior partitioning, low-flow plumbing fixtures, and minimalist finishes. With the Waterfront Pavilion’s opening, an additional thirty children could attend camp, eliminating the existing waitlist and creating a lasting impact for future generations to come.