LAND AND GARDEN PRESERVE
In 2019, the Mount Desert Land & Garden Preserve initiated a strategic expansion of its facilities on Mount Desert Island. Guided by a framework plan developed by Unknown Studio, Baird Architects was engaged to lead the first phase of implementation.
This phase encompasses three buildings across two distinct sites: Greenrock in Seal Harbor and Stanley Brook, an active workyard south of Jordan Pond. The work includes the careful renovation and expansion of the historic Greenrock office, the construction of a new workshop at Greenrock, and a new shop and storage facility at Stanley Brook. In total, the project comprises approximately 15,000 square feet of renovation and new construction.
Conceived to support the Preserve’s evolving operational needs while honoring its deep historical roots, the project centers on the Greenrock Office, a late nineteenth-century farmhouse that once housed the engineering offices responsible for the design of Acadia National Park’s carriage roads and bridges. The structure has been sensitively restored and expanded to accommodate administrative offices for the Preserve’s leadership and staff.
Two new buildings extend the campus with a contemporary architectural language grounded in clarity, durability, and environmental stewardship. One consolidates longstanding workshop functions; the other supports equipment maintenance within the park. Designed to exceed current accessibility and life-safety standards, all three buildings are net-zero, collectively producing more energy than they consume. The project is scheduled for completion in summer 2026.
About the Land and Garden Preserve:
The Land and Garden Preserve was founded by David Rockefeller Sr. and his family to protect three historic cultural gardens and more than 1,400 acres of extraordinary natural lands on Mount Desert Island.
https://www.gardenpreserve.org/
