Mormon Temple Grounds, Preston

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Mormon Temple Grounds, Preston

The Mormon Temple at Preston is actually located on 15 acres just north of Chorley. This is the second temple in England (the other is in London). The temple and grounds were constructed between 1994 and 1996.

Photographs by Audrey Bates, reported by Ryan Brown who writes:
The landscape at the Mormon Temple Preston is one of the most amazing that I have had the opportunity to see in my short landscaping career. The attention to detail and wide variety of plants used in masses or as specimens, is remarkable. As if the landscape were not enough to catch our attention, the facilities at this temple were also quite impressive. . The temple sits in a 15-acre site that was transformed in 1994-96 from a wasteland into an intensively landscaped ground. There is the temple, a chapel with a gymnasium, conference rooms and a cafeteria located on the site. The entire project cost around £100 million to complete and £2 million went to the plants that are used in the landscape (the so-called 'soft material'). The site looks remarkable considering it was only put in within five years. Most of the trees and shrubs were specified at nearly mature size. The company Business Design Partnership oversaw the project. Before any design work was to begin, company representatives toured various mormon sites in the U.S. to gain a feel for the customer's desired landscape style. The customer required 2 major things: high quality and a landscape that was 'uplifting.'

The landscaping was done by Living Landscapes. While all the shrubs and herbaceous material was local, many of the large trees had to be shipped in from Germany. Among the largest and most expensive trees were Carpinus betulus 'Fastigiata' which were nearly 35 years old; eight to ten of these on the site cost approximately £15,000. The landscaping at this site was awarded the most prestigious landscape award for 1999, bestowed by the British Association of Landscape Industries.

There are four full-time staff members that take care of the site and there are many areas that require rather intensive management activities. An interesting fact about the development of the site is that the front of the site was landscaped first, before construction of the temple on the back. This was done to make sure the site projected a very polished look even during construction.

I can definitely say that the designers and landscapers have done the job of creating a landscape that make one feel "uplifted."

Some background on the Mormon church and details on the temple itself: There are about 60,000 mormons in England, Scotland and Wales and this temple and conference facility serves those in the North of England and Scotland. The reason this site was chosen for such a massive project is interesting. In 1837, when missionaries came to Liverpool via the Irish Sea they ventured into the town of Preston and decided to settle there after seeing that this would be a good place to do missionary work. Although we were not allowed to go inside of the temple it was still remarkable to see. The temple is 154 feet tall and on top of the steeple is a gold plated statue of the prophet Moroni, found in the book of Mormon. The temple is a 69,400 square foot building, made of Olympia White granite, imported from Northern Italy.

Mormon Temple Grounds, Preston

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Mormon Temple Grounds, Preston
The Mormon Temple at Preston is actually located on 15 acres just north of Chorley. This is the second temple in England (the other is in London). The temple and grounds were constructed between 1994 and 1996.

Photographs by Audrey Bates, reported by Ryan Brown who writes: The landscape at the Mormon Temple Preston is one of the most amazing that I have had the opportunity to see in my short landscaping career. The attention to detail and wide variety of plants used in masses or as specimens, is remarkable. As if the landscape were not enough to catch our attention, the facilities at this temple were also quite impressive. . The temple sits in a 15-acre site that was transformed in 1994-96 from a wasteland into an intensively landscaped ground. There is the temple, a chapel with a gymnasium, conference rooms and a cafeteria located on the site. The entire project cost around £100 million to complete and £2 million went to the plants that are used in the landscape (the so-called 'soft material'). The site looks remarkable considering it was only put in within five years. Most of the trees and shrubs were specified at nearly mature size. The company Business Design Partnership oversaw the project. Before any design work was to begin, company representatives toured various mormon sites in the U.S. to gain a feel for the customer's desired landscape style. The customer required 2 major things: high quality and a landscape that was 'uplifting.'
The landscaping was done by Living Landscapes. While all the shrubs and herbaceous material was local, many of the large trees had to be shipped in from Germany. Among the largest and most expensive trees were Carpinus betulus 'Fastigiata' which were nearly 35 years old; eight to ten of these on the site cost approximately £15,000. The landscaping at this site was awarded the most prestigious landscape award for 1999, bestowed by the British Association of Landscape Industries.
There are four full-time staff members that take care of the site and there are many areas that require rather intensive management activities. An interesting fact about the development of the site is that the front of the site was landscaped first, before construction of the temple on the back. This was done to make sure the site projected a very polished look even during construction.
	I can definitely say that the designers and landscapers have done the job of creating a landscape that make one feel "uplifted."
Some background on the Mormon church and details on the temple itself: There are about 60,000 mormons in England, Scotland and Wales and this temple and conference facility serves those in the North of England and Scotland. The reason this site was chosen for such a massive project is interesting. In 1837, when missionaries came to Liverpool via the Irish Sea they ventured into the town of Preston and decided to settle there after seeing that this would be a good place to do missionary work. Although we were not allowed to go inside of the temple it was still remarkable to see. The temple is 154 feet tall and on top of the steeple is a gold plated statue of the prophet Moroni, found in the book of Mormon. The temple is a 69,400 square foot building, made of Olympia White granite, imported from Northern Italy.

Mormon Temple Grounds, Preston
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