Founded in 1946, The Culinary Institute of America located in Hyde Park, NY, is a world renown, residential college devoted entirely to culinary education. It was out of this devotion, that the idea for the Colavita Center for Italian Food & Wine was created. The objective of this $6 million project was to create an authentic statement of Italian architecture, inside and out. This teaching facility was built to provide an environment where culinary students could learn and practice the art of preparing Italian cuisine. This beautiful structure would house the Caterina de Medici restaurant with a variety of dining areas that could be enjoyed by the general public.

Contacted to do the landscape design for this project was the LA Group PC out of Saratoga Springs, NY. The Project leader was Dan Sheehan, ASLA whose design team consisted of Susan Boyer and Lesley Pultz. The challenge they were met with was to meet the Institute’s stringent guidelines along with having this new facility and its landscape have a look and feel that was authentically Italian. To this end, the Institute brought in a design consultant from Italy by the name of Roberto Magris.

The landscaping called for a beautiful herb garden and plaza that would be an extension of the restaurant’s indoor space to be used for formal gatherings and receptions. Originally the client planned to use concrete paver bricks for the decorative hardscaping, however budget and time constraints made choosing hand-laid pavers impossible. Since they still wanted to incorporate an extensive amount of decorative paving throughout the grounds Dan Sheehan provided a solution to this challenge by introducing the client to StreetPrint ™ Pavement Texturing.

This paving system involves imprinting hot asphalt to create a 3 dimensional appearance, replicating a wide variety of brick, cobblestone and slate surfaces. The textured asphalt is then colored with a polymer cement surfacing system. The members of the decision team from the Culinary Institute were unfamiliar with the product and therefore hesitant to incorporate it into their plan. Yet, after further investigation and a visit to a StreetPrint project they agreed that StreetPrint was the very best alternative. Besides being cost effective the product brought with it the flexibility of design, speed of installation, low maintenance and superior performance under the extreme winter conditions of the Northeast.

Because StreetPrint provided a cost effective way to create the appearance of hand-laid pavers, it was incorporated not only at the Colavita Center for Italian Food & Wine, but also in key areas around the new facility. The border replicated 12" x 12" tiles that surrounded an Ashlar Slate field pattern. The colors chosen were Sierra for the tile border and Terra Cotta for the Ashlar Slate. Both colors were key components to the finished product since they complemented the buildings exterior.

The Authorized StreetPrint Contractor, who was awarded this project, was HMA Contracting, Inc. out of Mechanicville, NY. Robert Gauvreau, HMA’s Installation Team leader, found the StreetPrint portion of the project to be intense and challenging. Not only was it a challenge to install the intricate 17,000 square foot layout design but the entire landscaping project had to be completed within 6 weeks to meet the Grand Opening dedication ceremony deadline.

The design team settled on a border that replicated 12” x 12” tiles that surrounded an Ashlar Slate field pattern. The colors chosen were Sierra for the tile border and Terra Cotta for the Ashlar Slate. Both colors were key components to the finished product, since they needed to complement the building’s exterior and bring warmth to the outside plaza.

The layout, with the addition of circular patterns, was far more difficult than originally anticipated but StreetPrint can be installed substantially faster than most decorative hand-laid pavers so the HMA team had the extra time needed to make each imprint perfect. In any small intricate areas, the finishing touches were done by hand.

Since concrete pavers have sharp, defined and rigid edges, HMA’s crew used aluminum edging wherever the asphalt was adjacent to any softscape thus creating definition and eliminating the belief that asphalt edges can only be left rounded.

Under Robert’s decisive supervision the HMA Contracting crew maintained painstaking accuracy ensuring that the elaborate StreetPrint job met the stringent design guidelines and schedule.

The Colavita Center is distinctively different from the rest of the Culinary Institute of America's early 1900 architecture. An herb garden and sculptures, along with the tile roof, shutters, arched doorways and StreetPrint tiles make the center a complete picture, encompassing many designs.

Once the project was completed, everyone involved had no doubt that StreetPrint had been the best choice overall. “We get nothing but compliments," said Tom Hirst, Director of Facilities with the Culinary Institute of America. “We’re very pleased with the end result.” Since StreetPrint had provided the Culinary Institute a cost effective way to create the appearance of hand-laid pavers, it was incorporated not only at the Colavita Center for Italian Food & Wine but also in key areas around the new facility. A very distinctive look had to be created, so it was a benefit that StreetPrint had the flexibility of design and color to ensure the perfect visual impact to the surrounding areas.

“It was quite a challenge to incorporate an Ochre colored, European styled building alongside all the Georgian style structure,” said Sheehan. "However the StreetPrint pavement pattern helped to unify the project with the surrounding clash of styles.”

Hirst also liked the fact that the product addressed the concerns of durability and maintenance. The asphalt’s flexible base would be more likely to accept shifting due to the weather extremes found in the Northeast so it would resist cracking and if minor repairs to the surface were required, they could be done quickly, easily and seamlessly. Other maintenance benefits included the surface not being affected by de-icing salts and it would also resist weed growth.

The Colavita Center for Italian Food & Wine sits proudly, and distinctively different from the rest of the Culinary Institute of America’s early 1900 architecture. This project is a complete picture that resulted from many design details. The building with its tile roof, shutters and arched doorways makes it an authentic expression of Italian living. An expansive herb garden and sculptures only add more to this facility’s charm and pulling the whole image together is the StreetPrint “tile” that provides a warm and eye pleasing decorative hardscape.

Project Name: Colavita Center for Italian Food & Wine

Location: The Culinary Institute, Hyde Park, NY

Contact: Tom Hirst – Director of Facilities

StreetPrint Contractor: HMA Contracting, Inc.,

Mechanicville, NY

Contact: Don King

Landscape Architecture Firm: The LA Group PC

Saratoga Springs, NY

Landscape Architects: Don Sheehan, ASLA - Project leader

Susan Boyer

Lesley Pultz

Laura Williamson is the Marketing Coordinator for Integrated Paving Concepts. For information visit www.streetprint.com.