EskewDumezRipple's timber welcome center opens at Burden Museum in Louisiana

A 6,500-square-foot timber welcome center has been finished by EskewDumezRipple at the Burden Museum & Gardens in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. This facility acts as a civic entry point and orientation center for both the museum and the LSU AgCenter Botanic Gardens campus. Collaborating with Suzanne Turner Associates, landscape architecture firm CARBO contributed to the exterior design. The building features locally sourced cypress, polished concrete flooring, and dark corrugated siding, complemented by lighter wood in covered outdoor areas. Its design includes deep overhangs, shaded porches, and breezeways that echo the rural dogtrot structures of the nearby Rural Life Museum and Steele Burden Memorial Orangerie. The layout centers around a foyer, with a gift shop and versatile event space on either side. Landscape elements consist of rain gardens, visible stormwater management features, permeable gravel parking, and native plantings. A sculptural roof scupper on the east side directs rainwater into a teaching pool. Mark Hash, a principal at EskewDumezRipple, highlighted the project's ties to the land, its historical significance, sustainability, and durability.