Discovery Park of America founders turn to homegrown talent to fulfill dream

 By GLENDA H. CAUDLE Special Features Editor Homegrown. That’s been important to Robert and Jenny Kirkland from the beginning. When their dream of an educational and entertainment complex that would attract attention across the nation — and even beyond its borders — was formally announced almost two years ago as Discovery Park of America, they stressed their desire for local involvement in making their vision a reality. Their friends and neighbors took them seriously. More than 200 of them volunteered to stretch their imaginations and voice their own vision in “concept” groups that began to meet, share and plan immediately after the project’s architect was introduced. DPA began to grow from those creatively fertile Obion County roots, and in July 2008, ground was broken on the 50-acre plot located across Everett Boulevard from Union City Second Baptist Church. The Kirklands chose the site well, knowing that the parallel boundary for the complex would be marked in the future by the multiple traffic lanes of I-69, the superhighway that will connect Canada to Mexico, with Union City at its midpoint. Throughout the next few months after that momentous day, earth-moving equipment crawled over the terrain, scooping soil here and depositing it there. Then holes were bored and pilings were dropped and the grayish-white sludge-y stuff that signals serious construction business was pushed out of slowly revolving truck-mounted “barrels” and smoothed into a firm foundation for the Kirklands’ multi-million dollar dream. Volunteer committees continued their efforts — imagining the possibilities, researching ways and means, looking for items to build their exhibits and even, in some cases, purchasing and accepting donations of historical “jewels” that met their lofty expectations. When the project stalled earlier this year over contract disputes with the Canadian architect, some speculated that DPA would die a quiet death and the treasures of mind and imagination, the artifacts secured, the displays commissioned would never have the chance to be “discovered” by an eager public. They were wrong. Discovery Park of America has secured the services of Hnedak Bobo Group in Memphis — getting close to home — as the master planner for the grounds and all aspects of DPA, with the exception of the museum structure itself. Representatives of the firm were in Union City this week for two days of meetings with officers of the project and with representatives of the botanical gardens and Yesteryear Village committees. They will return in a week with three or four concepts for the committees to review. With direction from the locals to guide them, they will then have a couple of weeks to refine their ideas and present a formal plan. On-site activity should be in evidence soon thereafter. In the meantime, DPA’s board of directors will continue narrowing the list of museum architects it has been considering. Seventy-one firms have indicated their interest in the building. The list has been narrowed to 13 — with four Tennessee firms, including Hnedak Bobo Group, in that number — and will soon be pared to a half dozen. The selection of that new museum “building” architect will be made soon, according to Kirkland, who wants to see the project move ahead as rapidly as possible. New ‘Marshall’ in town Barry Marshall is not really new to Union City and Obion County — he’s just been away for a while. A little over 30 years, in fact. But he’s coming home in a big way. Marshall, the son of Perry and Catherine Marshall of Troy and a 1969 graduate of Obion County Central High School, is Hnedak Bobo Group’s project manager for Discovery Park of America. An architect with 30 years of experience with the Memphis firm, Marshall can claim credit for the company’s eye-catching work on Gaylord Palms Resort and Convention Center in Kissimmee, Fla. His expertise reflects the firm’s interest in architecture for the hospitality and entertainment industry. “The chance to come back home is extraordinarily exciting,” Marshall said Monday afternoon after the new design team had been introduced. Greg Hnedak, co-founding partner of Hnedak Bobo Group, added, “We do work all over the country, but for Barry to have the opportunity to be so involved with a project of this significance and importance to this whole area is something very few architects get to experience. For people in this area, it will be a unique chance to see the talent of someone born and raised here on display. And it’s a good example of exactly what Mr. Kirkland wants to do.” “What an advantage to have the stamp of someone who grew up knowing and loving this place on the overall design of Discovery Park of America. Barry Marshall’s talent and ability, coupled with the imagination and determination of the local citizens who have worked so diligently the last two years to provide the vision for this project, are going to create something beyond what we dared hope for in the beginning. Discovering what DPA can be is one of the most challenging and exciting things I’ve ever been involved with,” Kirkland said. While Hnedak cannot claim hometown roots, his work is familiar to many in this area because it has been on such dramatic display in other Tennessee venues, as well as across the nation. Much of his career has been devoted to working with specialty teams in planning and designing destination-based spaces that entertain and engage people. Within the Volunteer State, Hnedak’s vision helped pioneer projects such as the Main Street Trolley in downtown Memphis. There he created an alternative to diesel buses on the Main Street Mall by delivering an historic electric trolley system that would not only solve a transportation dilemma but would also create an entertaining attraction and tourism magnet for the city’s center. In partnership with Kirk Bobo, he is also the owner/developer of Westin Hotel in Memphis — another signature destination experience located in the heart of the Beale Street Entertainment District. The project represents the first new upscale four-star hotel facility to be built in Memphis in the past two decades. Gaylord Hotels tapped Hnedak’s talent when they expanded their vision beyond Opryland in Nashville and opened two brand expansions outside Music City. The highly successful Gaylord Palms in Orlando, Fla., and in Grapevine, Texas — where visitors experience the diverse regions of the state in a highly entertaining and interactive multi-acre atrium setting — boast the Hnedak signature with a flourish. “What excites me is the opportunity to create memorable guest experiences,” Hnedak says. “With Discovery Park of America, I will be able to focus that passion and the more than 30 years of experience I have enjoyed in the entertainment and hospitality industry on a project that has already captured such energy and commitment from the people who will soon be sharing their dream with the world.” Team effort In addition to Marshall, Hnedak also introduced a team of other experts in their fields to the botanical gardens and Yesteryear Village committee Monday afternoon. They include principal/partner Mark Weaver, who will be the project’s principal designer; senior associate Kelly DeVine, director of entertainment design and development, who comes to this area bolstered by experience with Walt Disney and Universal Studios and who will be helping to establish the vision and storyline for the project and bringing his expertise to integrating the entertainment components; and senior associate and director of marketing Tamara Goff, who will be in charge of communications coordination in the initial planning sessions and will be responsible for public relations for the team. All are associated with Hnedak Bobo Group in Memphis. Others on hand included Gary Smith, founder of W. Gary Smith Design of Austin, Texas, who, as a landscape architect, will be the lead designer for the botanical garden and Yesteryear Village components. Smith specializes in master planning and garden design for botanical gardens and arboreta. His work explores the intersection of ecological design and artistic abstraction. As the landscape designer of record, he will be joining forces with TBG Partners in Houston to create an immersive garden experience that weaves together local ecological and cultural themes. Principal Drew Mengwasser of TBG partners, which will take the reins when it comes time to move dirt on the project, will be providing innovative design solutions to develop the layout and plan for DPA. Jan Lorenc, principal of Lorenc & Yoo Design in Roswell, Ga., and senior designer Hartmut Jordan will be responsible for collaborating on outdoor exhibits. The company specializes in museum planning and design, visitor center design and trade show exhibits and has experience in a variety of environmental graphic programs. Mark Dvorchak, managing partner of Pro Forma Advisors LLC in Hermosa Beach, Calif., has worked with Hnedak Bobo Group in the past and was brought in for this week’s session to engage the market discussion. Jim Rippy, president of Discovery Park of America board of directors, was clearly energized after this week’s meetings. “We have changed course and we’re getting a brand new design and brand new concepts. It’s up to Hnedak Bobo Group to come up with something we’ve never seen before and they have certainly brought in an excellent staff to help them do just that. We’re going to see things move in such a positive direction now, and while those of us who have been shepherding this project through for two years now have learned to value creativity and expertise wherever we find it, we are especially proud and pleased to have homegrown ideas and homegrown talent working on our behalf.” Published in The Messenger 9.17.09

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