Just like relationships, landscape architectural designs usually take time to develop, from the first hello all the way to the altar. The keyword here is ‘usually’; and there is much about the Mastercraft outdoor event space that is uniquely unusual – from the design process through to the parts and pieces of the space.

The previously industrial Mastercraft building was converted from a furniture factory into leasable office space, after Bob Grinnell purchased the structure in 2005. He reserved a larger space in the building, coined The Livingroom, to transform into an event space. Grinnell assumed it would be mostly used for corporate events but wedding parties quickly fell in love with the urban, industrial vibe and Fridays and Saturdays quickly booked up. Many of the soon-to-marry inquired about an outdoor space to host their ceremony, even willing to stand out in a vacant parking lot with the Omaha skyline as the background. Bob knew he could provide better than that for their special day and reached out to Dropseed Studio for design help.

A construction materials storage yard becomes the blank canvas for the design team to work with.

With the Dropseed connection and the already very engaging location; a collaborative design process was the perfect match for this urban place of matrimony. Kinghorn Gardens and Dropseed Studio utilized a special internship-shadow day in August for two landscape architectural students, Andrew Bebee of UNL and Katherine Gould of Iowa State. These two LA hopefuls, along with our Dropseed team tackled the design in a one-day concept charrette.

Recycled stone pieces to be incorporated into the finished product.

Grinnell provided the team with several recycled stone pieces found around the Mastercraft site for inspiration and repurposing. After meeting with Grinnell for a quick programming overview, the remnant building artifacts got an inquisitive once over. From there the three designers headed over to Artisan Stone Company to evaluate their pre-cast concrete surplus for any additional pieces to incorporate into the design solution. An experience that engaged the team in a treasure hunt for obscure, unassuming objects to work into this urban-eclectic space.

Gould and Bedee hunting at the Artisan Stone Company.

After identifying several heavy pieces including a stone keyway, a curved half-wall and ten unused prison countertops, Bebee and Gould headed to the drawing board. Grinnell wanted the space to be unlike what a wedding party would typically encounter. It needed to work with the urban vibe, and turn a portion of this “asphalt jungle” into a compatible green space. A non-denominational church affiliation was a priority. Even though there is nothing traditional about programming an open field to become a wedding chapel, there still needed to be a sense of reverence towards the ceremony and appeal to a cross-section of family participants.

By 4 p.m. that same day, the team presented to Grinnell design concepts that meshed harmoniously with The Mastercraft’s flair. Dropseed Studio took the feedback from Grinnell and the creative enthusiasm of the students to further refine and detail a space that can easily cater to different types and sizes of events, with space for up to 250 guests. From a corporate party, to a CWS pre or post game outing, to a wedding couple ready to say “I do,” the design expanded the scope and possibilities of this former construction material storage yard.

Getting the structure in place and ready for spring time planting.

The space is currently 90% done with completion of the remaining plantings to take place this spring. Snow cover and lack of greenery hasn’t stopped the reservation activity for this heart of the city location. For the 2014 wedding season almost all Saturdays and half of the Fridays are taken. So… if the Dropseed Studio design team can make surplus and salvaged building materials fit into a romantic design outcome – there certainly aren’t too many other design challenges in the mix we can’t tackle.