The Camp Callaway grounds constitute slightly more than seven acres of managed mature forest and nearly two thousand linear feet of lake edge along the western side of Lake Martin. Before starting the planning and design process, the treehosue team walked through the camp and investigated the land, the trees and the lake shore. The importance and significance of the the trees and water on the campground guided the design and plan-ning process.
The team commissioned a tree survey to better inventory the mature tree assets on the campground. To make this tool as affective as possible, the team evaluated the health and condition of the significant trees. Some of the trees are in decline and need to be addressed. Several of the pine trees are suffering from beetle damage and should be attended to rather quickly to ensure the health of the remaining trees. The preliminary site plan (shown at left) takes into account the removal of declining and / or dead trees.
One important benefit of designing the treehouse floorplans and developing the site plan simultaneously – the site plan can affectively use the tree inventory as a tool to inform the treehouse architecture. The result is a site plan that marries architecture to given land features. This integrated thinking of site, natural assets, architecture, and planning will represent the model for future development in Callaway Gardens.
