Environmentally sensitive land use for golf course design : the Vulcan property, Anderson, Indiana

The game of golf has become a very popular recreational activity in this country and around the world. Because of this, golf courses are being built at an incredible pace. Awareness about the environment is also something that has become increasingly important in today's society. This has led golf courses, often questioned in terms of this land use, to come under much scrutiny as to their effect on the environment, due to their maintenance practices and general treatment of their site. The problem is that the recent trend in golf course development has been to destroy the natural character of the site to rebuild it with golf courses and housing, thus, not maximizing site potential. Some other criticisms of the game of golf are that it requires too much land and does not allow access to the site for anyone but golfers in addition to the environmental problems it causes. This was a problem that was important to address due to the amount of land that golf courses will consume in the coming years.The solution to this problem addressed all of these issues by creating a design which integrated the game of golf, environmental sensitivity and community interaction on one site. This design came together by creating a golf course that was constructed in response to nature and did not try to control it. Linkages were then provided to surrounding park systems and trail and open space areas were intermixed with the golf course to allow for community interaction and recreation. Finally, critical areas were preserved, wildlife was provided for and alternative maintenance practices were suggested to bring the design as close to nature as possible. The result was an integrated golf facility that responded well to it's surroundings and produced an outstanding test of golf.College of Architecture and PlanningThesis (B.L.A.