The Paseo Vista Recreation Area is a unique project offering specialized recreational opportunities installed on top of the closed City of Chandler landfill. The project has transformed the landfill from what was considered a neighborhood detraction into an exciting and very popular source of community pride. This project is linked to other City of Chandler parks by the Paseo Trail system.

As the prime consultant EPG directed a comprehensive team of specialists to explore and develop solutions to address the many challenges of developing a public use facility on a closed but actively monitored landfill. EPG completed a conceptual master plan for the recreation area, whereby the desired site configuration and programmed elements were identified through a public outreach process. EPG provided master planning, conceptual design, construction documents, and construction administration services for the project.

Construction of the recreation area required strict compliance with the requirements of the active operating and monitoring systems and the engineered cap of the landfill. Site amenities include several facilities unique to the City, but ideal for the open-space area of a closed landfill.

The amenities include:

• Recreational level disc golf course arranged over undulating landforms created by the import of significant quantities of soil.

• 30 target archery lanes with a massive shade canopy. 

• Multi-cell dog park areas.

• Specialty play area with an interpretive art feature.

• Spiral trail leading to an overlook structure at the top of the second highest landform in Chandler.

• On-site loop trail and trail connections that link the park to the city-wide Paseo Trail system.

Functional design features include the use of terraced gabions and rock-lined meandering drainage swale to reduce the site’s erosion problems and an enclosed maintenance yard. Coordination with SRP was required to address maintenance access to the overhead transmission line that is located on the south edge of the park site. The team meet with the City and SRP to develop a vehicular access route and clear zone up the side of the landfill and around existing retention basins to ensure convenient service vehicle access to the base of each pole.