NEW RECREATION CENTER
BLENDS INTO COMMUNITY
For Enders Park, the first of three recreation centers for Baldwin Park in
Orlando, FL, Geoffrey Mouen Architects designed an Arts and Crafts-inspired building that consists of two
symmetrical wings connected by an open entryway topped with a cupola. Bay windows flank the entrance and two
screened-in porches on the front of the building break up the horizontal massing. All photos: Geoffrey Mouen
Architects
The first of three recreation centers for the Baldwin Park development in Orlando, FL, Enders Park was designed
to fit into the residential character of the area it serves. The one-story building with its deep hipped roof
was influenced by the Arts and Crafts style as well as Florida vernacular. It consists of two symmetrical wings
joined by a central arcade topped with a cupola and clock.
Completed in May of 2003, the construction of the $1.5-million building took only three-and-a-half months. The
north wing of the building houses an exercise room, a play area for children, the lady’s locker room, an
entrance vestibule and storage rooms. The south wing contains the meeting hall, a kitchen, a locker room for
men, its own entrance vestibule and storage rooms. Each wing provides 1,795 sq.ft. of heated space plus a
336-sq.ft. screened porch, for a total of 4,624 sq.ft. under the roof (3,560 sq.ft. heated).
“The challenge was to design something that was not the typical Mediterranean style often associated with
Florida,” says Geoffrey Mouen, Principal, Geoffrey Mouen Architects, Celebration, FL. “Everyone thinks of
Florida as having all Mediterranean architecture, but actually there is a mix here. We took a drive around
Winter Park; saw buildings built in the teens; one was a simple white clapboard building with big overhangs.
That inspired us, so we designed an Arts and Crafts-style building for the community, incorporating very steep
roofs and the Adirondack camp colors.”
“The history behind the building is interesting” he adds. He points out that Baldwin Park is owned by The
Baldwin Park Development Co., which is owned by the Pritkzer family of Chicago, IL. The Baldwin Park management
team, headed up by Managing Director David Pace, came out of Celebration, FL, and many members have a
background in traditional architecture. Mouen himself was the town architect for Celebration. “Part of our
success goes to Pace and his team,” he says. “They inspired the high-quality traditional architecture of the
project.” He adds that there was also a team of consultants, including architect David Skyles who contributed
to the project. The general contractor was Wharton Smith Construction of Winter Garden, FL, and the landscape
consultant was GAI Consultants-Southeast of Orlando, FL.
A recently developed New Urbanist community, Baldwin Park is located in downtown Orlando, FL, in an area
formerly occupied by the Orlando Naval Training Center. The 2,000-acre site had been cut off from its neighbors
with fences. The developers had to tear down the fences and the buildings, clean up the area and build a
community that relates to the neighboring communities. Mouen points out that Baldwin Park has no gates and has
more than 30 connections to the neighboring communities. In addition, 3,300 residential units and three
community centers have been approved. “The community has alleys, a library, housing starting at under $200,000
and going up to $1 million and more than two million sq.ft. of retail building in the heart of the village.”
Two large 336-sq.ft. screened porches project from the front of the building to
break up the horizontal massing. Mouen points out that porches are a popular feature in Baldwin Park. “The
architecture program of Baldwin Park calls for each structure to give something back to the street and it’s
usually a porch.” Simple copper finials at the hips of the roof add a touch of elegance, and very importantly
for the area, provide lightning protection.
“Porches are a strong element in the community,” he adds, “so we followed that tradition with the screened-in
porches on the front of the building. The back of the building looks very much like the front with the cupola
and towering bay windows.”
An important element of the design is the entrance with an arch over double columns (supplied by Melton
Classics, Lawrenceville, GA) and the cupola, which was built on site. Bay windows flank the entrance on both
the front and back of the building. Built on site, the 14-ft. cupola brings the total height of the building to
37 ft. at that point. The overall length of the building is 140 ft.
The Enders Park Recreation Center is first of three planned for Baldwin Park and all will be designed by
Geoffrey Mouen Architects. Each one will serve approximately 1,000 of the 3,300 homes and each one will include
a pool. The second center, however, will also house the Home Owners Association and will look like a
traditional town hall with a front portico and four two-story columns and a pool building in the back. The
third will be a simpler pool building, more in character with the first. – Martha McDonald
Geoffrey Mouen, president of Geoffrey Mouen Architects of Celebration, FL, has more than 15 years of
professional design experience in architecture and town planning, including his role as Town Architect for
Celebration, FL. He was responsible for the architecture and for planning much of that community and also for
administering the Celebration Community Pattern Book. Mouen has also worked at the firm of Robert A.M. Stern
Architects, New York City, and has lectured on architecture, planning and sustainable communities at the
Savannah College of Art and Design, Plattsburgh State University and for community groups nationwide. Mouen has
also participated in many TND planning charrettes including Meriam Park, Celebration and Baldwin Park. He is
the architecture and urban design consultant to the town of Jupiter, FL, and is collaborating on the planning
of Baldwin Park, FL, where he has detailed the Baldwin Park Pattern Book, in addition to designing the
community centers.
See details about the winning entry in the May/June 2004 issue of Traditional Building Magazine.
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