The campus landscape at Johnson County Community College (JCCC) is similar to other community college landscapes in many ways, yet is also uniquely different. The gathering spaces between the academic buildings vary in scale, from large, more public courtyard spaces or amphitheater style spaces down to small, very intimate areas for personal study or reflection. All of these spaces, despite their scale, are enhanced by a lush, very diverse and comprehensive palette of plant material, unlike the majority of community college campuses.

The landscape at the Fine Arts + Design Studios building will be no different. It will learn from its contextual surroundings and microclimate and establish unique landscape typologies that vary in function and style. There will be a large, minimal lawn area for active play, a shaded hardscape area for passive gathering and maybe most importantly, a sculpture garden, where large-scale art pieces created by the students in the new academic building can be showcased, amid a dense ground plane of ornamental plantings. All of these plantings will be native, assisting in stormwater treatment and minimizing long-term maintenance needs