An exhibiton provides a snapshot of the plant's inner workings. Photo © Sam Kittner

A trellis shades an elevated pathway placed next to the pump station. Photo © Sam Kittner

Potomac Yards replaces a sprawling shopping mall that was built over a brownfield railyard in 1997. Its developer, JGB Smith, approached Hickok Cole to design the sewage facility in 2019. “They were almost embarrassed to ask us to take on the project; their thinking was, who would want to design one of these?” explains Hickok Cole principal Robert Holzbach. “But we saw this as a chance to integrate an amenity, rather than a plain concrete box, into Potomac Yards.” OJB’s familiarity with the site and prior collaboration with Hickok Cole made the firm a natural addition to the design team.

The pump station, clad in economical and easy-to-maintain metal and interlocking zinc panels, is folded into the public realm through thoughtful positioning and subtle design gestures. Though perceptible to the public at 25 feet tall, most of the structure is out of sight, reaching down nearly 40 feet below grade, where the bulk of the machinery is located. Its west-facing elevation, oriented toward the park, is further minimized by an earthen berm topped by a walkway. There, visitors are shaded by an expansive steel-framed trellis that supports powder-coated aluminum battens. The inner workings of the pump station, and sustainable wastewater management as a whole, are made visible by a small-scale interpretive exhibit affixed to the building exterior.

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The landscape design incorporates over a hundred species of plantings (1). Play zones feature natural materials, like wood logs and blocks of stone (2). Photos © Sam Kittner

Despite the green space’s compact footprint, it incorporates a great density of features and landscaping. The berm concealing a portion of the station’s mass doubles as a play zone with stone climbing blocks, slides, and a hill that beckons to be rolled down. Two playgrounds at the park extension’s center are built of natural timbers, with engineered wood fiber chips used as matting (rather than typical synthetic surfacing). There are over 100 species of deciduous and evergreen shrubs and trees, most of which are native.

“The park creates opportunities for nature-inspired play, exploration, and learning,” notes OJB managing principal Simon Beer. “Children can move through planted areas, shaded spaces, open lawns, and tactile moments that connect them to the landscape around them.”

The Innovation District Pump Station, though a relatively minor component of the larger Potomac Yards redevelopment, demonstrates that, in the right hands, even the most serviceable aspects of a project can be transformed into an engaging—and fun—public amenity.

Pathways tie the park and pump station to Potomac Yards and its other green spaces. Photos © Sam Kittner