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Nestled in the heart of Civic Center Park, Croyden Creek Nature
Center offers area residents a variety of informative nature
programs. Established in 2002, the Center is owned and operated by
the City of Rockville. It is the result of a model partnership among
City officials, design professionals, and local residents who worked
in collaboration with state and federal agencies including the
Maryland Open Space Program and the National Recreational Trails
Program. The Center’s mission is “to promote and enhance knowledge,
understanding, appreciation, and protection of natural resources
through quality interpretive programming and exhibits.”
Croyden Creek Nature Center is a modern architectural landmark. The
use of natural materials enhances the rustic character of the
Craftsman-inspired Center, an architectural synthesis of local
history, regional geology, and native life forms. The building was
designed to utilize recycled timbers and wooden beams from a dairy
barn on Thomas Farm, site of the Fallsgrove development. The use of
stone on the building’s exterior alludes to the existence of a
quarry that once occupied the property. The name Croyden Creek
refers to a stream that runs through Civic Center Park.
A
habitat for indigenous plants and animals, the Center provides
access to 120 acres of preserved forest, open meadows, hiking
trails, and waterways, The sheltering portico leads into a lobby
area with an information desk and gift shop. A curved wall with a
multi-colored mixed media mosaic designed by Deidre Sanders
dominates the interior and leads visitors to the Exhibit Room,
outfitted with oak and hickory benches and telescopes for viewing an
open meadow planted by local volunteers.
 The
Discovery Room features books, puzzles, and activity centers for
research, art rubbings, and nature-inspired projects. Exhibit areas
provide living quarters for small animals and displays of animal
habitats.
Designed for families, school groups, and nature lovers of all ages,
the Nature Center includes a special room for birthday parties and
meetings. Other special activities include a “Track March” of
ceramic floor tiles embossed with foot prints of local animal
species. Visitors are also invited to locate and identify the 32
species of animal life represented in the Center’s colorful mosaic
mural. in addition to a variety of year-round nature programming and
exhibits, the Center participates in a national environmental
program to recycle “e-waste.” such as old cell phones, pagers, and
printer cartridges, and makes a donation to breast cancer research
for each recycled item.
Only
minutes from Rockville’s burgeoning Town Center, the Croyden Creek
Nature Center is a well-designed architectural refuge from suburban
congestion and an eloquent reminder of the balance that must be
maintained between human activity and the natural environment. For
information on Center hours, programs, and volunteer opportunities,
call 240-314-8770 or log onto
www.rockvillemd.gov/croydencreek. |
