West 8’s work on Longwood’s Main Fountain Garden builds upon Longwood’s first-ever physical master plan, which was completed by West 8 in 2011.

“New Heights: The Fountain Revitalization Project,” replaced the 83-year-old fountains’ infrastructure with the latest technology, improved guest access to the Garden, and added innovative new elements that honor the visionary original design by Longwood Gardens founder Pierre S. du Pont.

West 8 was responsible for the design of the garden’s public spaces to harmonize with the original design, the enhancement of the Main Fountain Garden’s horticultural elements and the creation of new gardens that will provide new amenities for Longwood’s guests. The new public spaces have achieve a renaissance for the Garden while retaining its identity as recognizably “Longwood.”

Within the context of the master plan, which aims to transform Longwood Gardens into one of the Great Gardens of the World, the Main Fountain Garden has become the first and most dramatic encounter in the 1,077 acres of gardens at Longwood.

Creating a new model for how interdisciplinary projects such as these unfold, the revitalization by Beyer Blinder Belle + West 8 + Fluidity includes:
• the complete restoration of 4,000 pieces of carved Italian limestone by specialists throughout the five-acre Garden;
• the total replacement of the fountains’ electric and plumbing infrastructure with 21st-century systems that pump 300,000 gallons of water around 380 fountains, allowing the fountains to run more efficiently and for a significantly longer period of time during the year;
• new water choreography, which include jets that project water 175 feet in the air—45 feet higher than the former capabilities; the jets also allow for more precise control of the water movement to create unique undulating, flexing, spinning effects, and a state of the art flame feature;
• replacement of the fountain lighting system with energy-efficient LED lights, which also allows the water choreography to take on a new range of colors.