Hennebery Eddy Architects leads sustainable restoration of Neutra's Painted Desert Community at Petrified Forest Park

Key facts

• The Painted Desert Community Complex is a modernist gateway to Petrified Forest National Park in northeastern Arizona.
• Architects Richard Neutra and Robert Alexander designed the complex, completed in 1965 under the National Park Service's Mission 66 program.
• The complex is a National Historic Landmark, featuring low, elongated buildings with flat roofs, concrete masonry, stucco, glass, and aluminum.
• Original design flaws included foundation issues from unstable clay soils and degraded concrete masonry walls.
• Hennebery Eddy Architects leads the rehabilitation in collaboration with the National Park Service and several preservation entities.
• The restoration aims for net-zero energy use, integrating a 330 kW solar system and transitioning from propane to all-electric systems.
• Construction began in late 2025 and is expected to finish in 2027.
• The project removes prior modifications that obscured Neutra's original design, such as a roof hiding the 'spider-leg' structural elements.