Hardscaped Newsroom Creates Perfect Setting for All-Season News Segments

When a television station in west-central Wisconsin wanted to expand its newsroom options, they looked outside despite the long winters in the state.

NBC affiliate WEAU-TV is located on busy Hastings Way, a main thoroughfare in Eau Claire. An L-shape created by the building and parking lot would create a perfect spot for an outdoor newsroom. Staff consulted with the Natural Touch Landscaping from nearby Elk Mound to design the space.

With input from WEAU staff, the landscape firm suggested that the space should include a large fireplace to extend the seasonal use of the newsroom and a grill island kit for outdoor cooking segments plus the anchor "desk."

Lloyd Stunkel, owner of the Natural Touch in Elk Mound, suggested a Willow Creek Ledgestone Fireplace Kit to complement the Willow Creek Ledgestone Two-Tier Bar Kit for an anchor desk and the Ledgestone Bar and Grill Island Kit for the grilling station.

"Willow Creek kits are easy to assemble and easy to customize too," said Stunkel. "We installed natural stone in the top of the fireplace kit, the face of the anchor desk and the grill station as a contrasting design element. Plus we put a gas insert in the fireplace to make use and maintenance of the fireplace easier than wood."

The 26' x 36' outdoor newsroom serves as a set for WEAU-TV's morning news show, "Hello Wisconsin," plus gardening and lifestyle segments, weather forecasts and other newscasts.

The space also used Willow Creek Cobblestone pavers in Bronze Blend as well as matching Willow Creek Ledgestone walls for seat-wall planters and space for a custom water feature. Local carpenter C and T Construction built an eight-foot cedar fence and custom gate along the street side for privacy and a sound barrier as well as a 20-foot high pergola over the news desk for partial shade. In addition, the pergola serves as an overhead mount for the camera to record demonstration segments from above.

"A challenge was designing the space so that there was enough clearance around the desk and grill island for the variety of camera equipment that they use and to imagine the various camera angles that they might need," said Stunkel. "We worked closely with the production and news crew to design the space in regards to lighting and camera shots. They were a dream team to work with."

WEAU-TV revealed the new outdoor space at a luncheon party to other staff not involved in the design and then to the public at a "Hello Wisconsin" live broadcast.

Julie Stunkel, co-owner of the landscaping firm, said, "The employees were so impressed with all the features built into the space. One employee said to me that she was inspired to have something similar done in her small backyard. The patio and planters plus the kits create a really amazing solution that can be adapted to fit any outdoor space."

"Willow Creek has a lot to offer in styles from rustic to contemporary, and the color blends are just beautiful," said Julie. "Our crew really likes working with the product, and we like that these kits can obviously be installed by us, but that we can also offer them to the homeowners who visit our yard and want to do-it-themselves with a little wherewithal."