Summary: Opening this fall in Lynchburg, Va., the Rimland Center will be the first of its kind autism treatment, training, and networking facility. The group is sponsoring its own design competition to create memorial brick walkways, a wall, and a special sign that will honor the countless children and families who have faced autism, and memorialize Dr. Bernard Rimland, founder of the San Diego-based Autism Research Institute and Defeat Autism Now!. The center will take donations for individual, personalized bricks to fund the cost of the memorial elements. Entries are due October 15.

Area dimensions

Pond wall: The pond is roughly 23’ x 28’. The wall needs to be high enough to stop children from trying to jump in, but low enough so that visitors and patients can enjoy the serenity of the pond and its resident koi. The wall must incorporate a gate for maintenance.

Sign: The sign will sit on an area measuring roughly 25 feet wide. The brick sign frame needs to be tasteful and spatially appropriate, yet eye-catching. Zoning requires the sign be no larger than 50 square feet, and the brick frame be no more than 25 percent of that 50 square feet.

Walkways: Areas available for the memorial bricks are:

• Front door landing 8’ x 20’ (160 sq ft)
• Side door landing 5’ x 12’ (60 sq ft)
• Back door landings includes (3) Steps 4’ x 9’ (approx 32 sq ft)
• Pond area upper level (545 sq ft)
• Pond area lower level (660 sq ft)
• Total square footage for walkways (1,460 sq ft)
• Approximate number of bricks for walkway area = 6,600 (standard 4” x 8” brick, with option for larger tiles). (See www.bricksrus.com for brick options.)

The winning architect will receive special recognition within the center and will be included in a press release sent to major industry publications and to other media outlets. For questions, or if you need to schedule a visit to the Rimland Center, contact Catherine Mosley, 434-660-0646. Deadline for entries is October 15. Applications, further specifications, and sponsor information are on the center’s Web site. Entries should be sent to The Rimland Center, c/o Catherine Mosley, 2919 Confederate Avenue, Lynchburg, VA 24501.