*Story and pictures c/o Katy Hallgren and EDSA, Inc.
The Samaritan Women Property preserved by the Maryland Environmental Trust
EDSA’s Baltimore office has been providing ongoing master planning and detail design services for The Samaritan Women (TSW), a non-profit organization located in Baltimore, Maryland, since 2010. TSW provides transitional housing and life skills programming for women in recovery who have endured trauma, including veterans and victims of human trafficking.
Planting Plan for the Event Center
A majority of EDSA’s projects are international. Working with TSW has allowed us to use our skills to positively impact the community in which we live. In addition to providing design services the EDSA Baltimore office held a planting day at TSW which provided studio members an opportunity to collaborate outside the office for a good cause.
Planting Day for the Event Center
The TSW property is composed on 23.5 acres of land preserved by the Maryland Environmental Trust located approximately 6 miles from the Baltimore Inner Harbor. Adjacencies include the Baltimore Nation Cemetery, residential townhouse development, and the Regional Institute for Children and Adolescents, Baltimore.
Construction of another facet of the project, the Gateway Arbor, was taken on by a Boy Scout for his Eagle Scout Service Project
Two and a half acres of the site are dedicated to the TSW Gardens which consist of a farm, greenhouses, an orchard, and berry vineyard. Produce from the farm provides meals for the women in residence as well as being given to local families in need. The property is home to two buildings, the TSW Residence and the TSW Event Center. The Residence is an 8,000sf historic Victorian mansion built in 1893. The Event Center is a 4,000sf Italianate stucco building built in 1924. The remainder of the site is primarily wooded with open lawn and residential size gardens around the two buildings.
Detail of the Gateway Arbor
The initial goal of EDSA’s partnership with The Samaritan Women was to create a site master plan incorporating the various components envisioned by TSW. The site master plan serves not only as a reference for the physical development of the property but also as a marketing tool. Over time the scope of work has expanded to provide conceptual and schematic design solutions as the need arises. To date these efforts have included development of an Overall Use Diagram, Donation Brochure, Entry Drive Study, Events Patio Study, Farm Plan, Spiritual and Botanical Garden Concept, Event Center Garden Improvements, Gateway Arbor design and installation (collaborative effort as part of an Eagle Scout project), and Amphitheater Design.
