design elements - San Jacinto Texas Historic District

Community Gateways take a variety of forms,
from the industrial corridor in the scenario on
the previous pages, to more open entryways on
the edges of a community, to gateways to Main
Street and central business districts. Thus, a
wide variety of applications of Design Elements
and Best Practices are possible depending on
the context and character of the surrounding
landscape. A few elements, however, will
Community Gateways Profi le
40 │ SCENARIOS
Monumental signage
is visible from both
directions
Large rain garden with native
vegetation detains and treats
runoff from corridor
commonly be found at Community Gateways
that serve to announce the arrival into a unique
community and destination distinct from
others in the District. These elements typically
include signage, formal landscaping, and street
and accent lighting that set the tone for the
character of that particular community.
Wooded buffer
12 foot wide multi-use trail
Wooded buffer visually
encloses corridor and
screens adjacent uses
The Community Gateway Profi le below presents
one design concept for the Port Road corridor
gateway, a challenging site due to the presence
of containers, trucks, and a high coverage of
concrete and asphalt, which have been softened by
landscaping and the inclusion of subtle landscape
grading. The character images at right illustrate
the application of various Design Elements and
Best Practices at Community Gateways.
The restoration of native
prairie is an ecological
and cultural amenity
Benches expand the usage of the trail
system to people with a wider range of
physical abilities
Interpretive signage provides
educational amenity and
destination for trail
Kiosk signage
doubles as
emergency shelter
for trail users