East Meets West at Corporate Campus

By Gregory Harris, assistant editor

The signature feature of the outdoor space at Hitachi Data Systems’ corporate headquarters is this Red Tori gate. The gate is designed to represent the company’s historical and cultural roots.

 

Santa Clara, Calif. is the site of the eighth of 21 California missions, Mission Santa Clara de Asis. The city was named after the mission and incorporated in 1852. The Mission style of architecture calls for massive walls with broad, unadorned surfaces, wide projecting eaves and clay tile roofs. The Mission style of architecture is very popular in the Western United States, but on a small swatch of land in Santa Clara, the East has met the West.

Hitachi Data Systems Corporation’s world headquarters is located in Santa Clara, and when entering its complex, the Mission style is not what you see. Instead, what is seen is a lush garden filled with foliage, water features and Asian influences.

Rocks, stone lanterns and water are typical features found in Japanese Gardens. The plants here include Canna ‘Red King Humbert’ [Red Canna] and Mentha requienii [Corsican Mint]

“These are leased buildings, and at the time, their offices were three feet below grade,” said Vince Lattanzio, president of the San Francisco, Calif.-based landscape architecture firm Carducci & Associates. “Moisture in the dirt affected the waterproofing of the building.”

The fill dirt had been intentionally trucked in by the building’s owner. Wanting a more functional and aesthetically pleasing area for its employees – and not wanting flooded office space – Hitachi officials worked with the building’s owners to have the site’s grade repaired by removing the excess dirt.

The bridge over the water leads to the outdoor dining area. The plants next to the bridge include Miscanthus sinensis ‘Morning Light’ [Japanese Silver Grass].

Hitachi then hired Carducci & Associates to redesign the 3.25 acre campus landscape to create a retreat for employees and extend the company’s innovative spirit outside of the office.

The extensive use of plants and grasses on this corporate campus includes No Mow Red Fescue.

“We proposed designing an area that featured a series of garden retreats, following the model of the Strolling Gardens of Japan” Lattanzio said.

Strolling Gardens require the observer to walk through the garden to fully appreciate it. A premeditated path takes observers through each unique area of a Japanese garden. Uneven surfaces are placed in specific spaces to prompt people to look down at particular points. When the observer looks up, they will see an eye-catching ornamentation which is intended to enlighten and revive the spirit of the observer. This type of design is known as the Japanese landscape principle of “hide and reveal.”

A splash of purple was added to the landscape by planting Limonium perezii [Sea Lavender].

Carducci’s plan was to create an escape from the hi-tech, fast-paced work day to the natural environment. This escape was created by implementing a series of garden rooms and welcoming gateway features of colorful, scented gardens of drought-tolerant natives; shady, cozy outdoor garden rooms; waving grasses; and surrounding terraces with bubbling water.

Lattanzio said Carducci’s plans for the outdoor area were well-received by Hitachi’s employees and leadership, with the company officials approving the plan one day after it was presented.

As part of the redesign, an existing water feature on the site was relocated to Hitachi’s dining area. Lattanzio said by moving the water feature, the water is more usable and more containable.

This covered walkway is a steel structure, with wood and a tongue and groove roof. The walkway was designed to resemble the traditional walkways of temples in Japan.

Lattanzio noted that several ducks that had previously called the water feature home have not been displaced due to the new garden. Relocating the water feature resulted in the creation of a reservoir, with the reservoir creating a habitat for the ducks. In addition to the water feature, two willow trees on site were incorporated into the new design, as was a cherry blossom.

One of the most striking features of the new garden is a red Tori gate at the entrance of the corporate campus. This gate signifies the company’s historical and cultural roots and presents a creative corporate culture. The Tori gate consists of a precast concrete beam and two steel columns.

This island pavilion is a new addition to the outdoor space at Hitachi Data Systems’ corporate headquarters. The space is designed to give employees an outdoor dining area. Water features in this area give the space a soothing atmosphere.

Water basins have been placed on top of each beam, with water pumped from below. As the basins fill up, the water overflows and slowly spills over the beams. Lattanzio said trial and error was used to determine the best method of allowing the water to cascade down the beams without splashing on passersby. The beams were sandblasted, and this finish keeps the water on the surface of the beams.

The new garden also features meditative spaces and meandering paths that connect to the separate campus buildings. Lush, seasonal planting, creek-like fountains, seating, themed corner gardens and playful landscape elements allow employees of the 2,800-person facility to experience nature, and re-focus outdoors on their projects alone or in small groups.

The Tori gate features two steel columns that also serve as a water feature. Water is pumped from the bottom of the column to the top where it collects in a basin. As the basin fills up, the water slowly flows back down the column.

“We like to use a larger plant list on our projects,” Lattanzio said. “Just because this is a corporate campus, it doesn’t need to be sterile.”

An island pavilion and large grass lawns create spaces for lunchtime seating and outdoor corporate events and also encourage work life to take place beyond the confines of cubicle walls and artificial lighting.

ilver quartzite flagstone has been used on this path to a smaller garden. The Hitachi campus garden has several small paths that begin off of the main concrete walkway. Each path is constructed of different materials relating to the feel of the garden that is accessed via the pathway. No Mow Fescue was used here and Sagina subulata [Irish Moss] was placed between stone.

All of the main pathways in the garden are concrete, with different materials – such as silver quartzite flagstone – used for the walkways that veer off the main path. These materials relate to the theme of the garden. “Walking is the key with this project,” Lattanzio said.

Carducci and Associates used an extensive plant palette on this project, believing that a “corporate campus does not have to be sterile.” Juncus patens [Common Rush], Miscanthus sinensis [Japanese Silver Grass], and Nassella Tenuissima [Mexican Feather Grass] are featured here.

Carducci and Associates believes this project reflects the growing typology of the corporate office park, extending traditional work functions into the creative expanses of nature.

“There has been a very positive response from Hitachi on this project,” Lattanzio said. “Hitachi has a high level of respect for their employees and wanted a project that was best for their employees.”