Rochambeau farm is a twenty-five acre private horse farm set amongst the Central Virginia pine forests. The owner’s desire was to create a family horse farm and country retreat that could house up to eight horses to live and train. Working with Field Sport affiliate Equestrian Services, we set out to create a master plan for the property that included:
- conditioned 8-stall barn with office and tack room
- covered ring
- arena
- equipment barn
- a caretakers cottage
- future homesite and gardens
- orchards and vegetable gardens
- ponds for irrigation
Careful siting of the amenities was imperative to the success of the project given the site’s small size. Investigating the topography, solar and wind orientation, surface hydrology, and other physical features we were able to create determinants that helped create a long-term, orderly, systematic plan for the property.
The client was particularly interested in the inclusion of sustainable design strategies that include rainwater harvesting for equestrian dust control and washing; wind powered irrigation system utilizing water from the ponds, pervious pavement, and the implementation of native plants.
Responsibilities included site analysis and the siting of the house, barn, round pen, arena, cottage, ponds, entry drive, orchard and gardens.