When the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library opens its doors on July 4, 2026, visitors won’t just step into a world-class destination — they’ll step into the very landscape that shaped a president and a nation. As local Architect of Record (AOR), JLG Architects—born and bred in North Dakota—saw not just obstacles in Medora’s rugged, windswept terrain, but a rare opportunity to unearth innovation.
While Snøhetta served as the project’s International Design Architect and Design Landscape Architect—shaping the Library’s vision with the TRPL Foundation—JLG has managed a complex team of designers, architects, landscape architects, and engineers as its AOR. A critical aspect of that role is to translate the project’s vision into a buildable, code-compliant reality, working closely with fellow North Dakota-based Landscape Architect of Record Confluence and Construction Manager JE Dunn.
Leading the largest conservation effort in state history means strategic communication of the design with local leaders and the contractors, ensuring the team meets zoning and code requirements of city, county, and state jurisdictions while supporting local goals – helping the public to understand the monumental endeavor taking place in their own backyard.
“We live, work, and play here, so we are intimately familiar with the place and people of North Dakota,” said JLG’s Zach Mathern, Project Architect II. “Our role was to be a bridge or connector of the broader team and vision, then channel that vision through vernacular language and lenses so it’s understandable and doable.”
A World-Class Destination in North Dakota’s Badlands
For JLG, constructing a world-class facility adjacent to Theodore Roosevelt National Park, the Little Missouri National Grasslands, and the small town of Medora (pop. 160) required more than technical expertise — it demanded a deep respect for place and history. The Library’s 93-acre site has now been restored and reimagined, with JLG leading a team of experts to do what has never been done before.
JLG navigated the site’s stringent environmental compliance standards for zoning and land use, including a net increase in grazing area and quality. These efforts built on the values of a rural, resource-limited site, adhering to the pioneering ideals of Roosevelt’s conservation efforts and the everyday efforts of local farmers and ranchers. The project also required acquisition of funding for North Dakota State University labs in exchange for greenhouse space to aid in native plant restoration.
“There’s a powerful connection between Theodore Roosevelt National Park and the historic North Dakota sites where Roosevelt lived and worked—such as the Maltese Cross Cabin and Elkhorn Ranch—so it makes sense that the TRPL Foundation saw an opportunity to immerse visitors in the very landscapes that shaped Roosevelt’s legacy,” explained Mathern. “These destinations already attract visitors, creating a natural synergy to offer a truly comprehensive and memorable experience.”
ImPossible Innovation
TRPL’s immersion into the Badlands terrain presents a wild west wonder of dramatic buttes, steep canyons, colorful clay formations, and striking rock outcrops that make construction on the site as challenging as it is beautiful.
Before breaking ground, the team addressed complex site grading, soils engineering, water management, and the selection of appropriate landscape materials to create a solution that is durable, context-appropriate, and environmentally responsible. These efforts were all aimed at blending the Library seamlessly with its surroundings while safeguarding the land’s natural beauty and ecological integrity — a true test of creativity, technical expertise, and stewardship.
Harnessing nearly four decades of experience designing in harsh northern climates and rugged, remote sites, JLG turned the Badlands’ extremes into ground zero for progressive, sustainable strategies. In fact, many of the sustainable systems and construction strategies necessary to complete the original design vision did not exist at the start of the project. As one such example, Winn Construction’s team visited case studies, brought on collaborators to educate their team, and engaged technicians at Beton and Dickinson Ready Mix to help develop a new low-carbon concrete mix that aligned with TRPL’s total embodied carbon plan.
Local Hands, Global Vision
Construction of the Library has proven that even in the most unexpected places, global vision and local expertise can redefine what’s possible.
The project’s intricacies demanded JLG seek and secure the skills of both local and national teams, including collaborations with Seagate Mass Timber (Vancouver, BC), NDSU Extension (Hettinger, ND), Earth Wall Builders (Coalville, UT), Winn Construction (Dickinson, ND), Beton Concrete (Mt. Vernon, TX), Blue Rhino Studio (Eagan, MN), Standard Sheet Metal (Kansas City, MO), Mercer Mass Timber (Spokane Valley, WA), Grain Designs (Davenport, ND), and countless others.
Although several national contractors contributed, TRPL’s labor pool is overwhelmingly based in North Dakota and the Midwest, adding a local grit that led to many of its biggest success stories, such as the execution of rammed earth walls; a collaboration by Earth Wall Builders of Utah, Snøhetta, and two North Dakota-based companies — JLG and Winn Construction. While Earth Wall Builders served as the rammed-earth specialty subcontractor, Winn Construction executed the on-site work rammed in situ to be approximately two-feet thick, each wall using a stabilized earth mix strengthened with low-carbon concrete.
A Conservation Journey
At the start of the project, JLG’s Senior Construction Services Specialist Chris Johnson and Principal & Community Practice Studio Leader, Jennifer Burke Jackson, road tripped from North Dakota to Billings, MT, and Denver, CO, to explore rammed earth installation, with the goal to authentically emulate the soil layers of the Badlands bluffs.
TRPL’s rammed-earth walls are designed to echo the complex geology of the Badlands, including layers of natural soil, sand, and gravel compacted into solid, stone-like walls with visible horizontal strata. These walls are energy efficient, locally sourced, and built to last centuries with minimal upkeep.
Johnson and the team also traveled to Canada to see the newest installations of heavy timber — a material rarely attempted at this scale in North Dakota. The team wanted the Library to feel rooted in the landscape, which required looking beyond exposed steel and concrete; instead intentionally celebrating wood as both a structural system and an emotional, experiential material.
In the breezeway, TRPL’s mass timber and custom glue-laminated (glulam) beams by Mercer and Seagate utilize all parts of the log to minimize waste and maximize carbon benefits. This material required intricate fabrication and significant forethought aligned with precise positioning of lighting, becoming what is now considered to be the state’s largest mass timber project to date.
“For JLG Architects, the windswept terrain wasn’t a barrier — it was an invitation to innovate. As TRPL’s Architect of Record, we understand the spirit of the Badlands and the significance of this place — not just as a backdrop, but as a living, breathing part of our nation’s story. TRPL is more than a building; it is a transformative experience that rises from the land to teach and inspire a new and needed perspective.”
—Michelle Mongeon Allen, FAIA, LEED AP |CEO, JLG Architects
Orchestrating the Arrival
Since TRPL is connected to the 144-mile Maah Daah Hey Trail system, JLG was tasked with orchestrating a design that engaged several visitor arrival sequences, including the consideration of foot, auto, bike, and horseback traffic. Here, hiking, backpacking, and running account for about 70% of the trail’s use, while mountain biking and horseback are the next most popular ways to travel the trail. The Maah Daah Hey trail system features nearly every type of terrain found in Western North Dakota, including a patchwork of mixed-grass prairie, exposed sedimentary layers, and scattered pockets of juniper and cottonwood trees.
As AOR, this project wasn’t just about managing a complex team and evolving site, it was about communicating on a local level while solving technical challenges. “We know the unique terrain and what it takes to build in this remote region of North Dakota. We understand what is reasonable and not reasonable to do here,” explained Mathern. “JLG is good at managing complexity, and we’ve proven ourselves to be a credible communicator of ideas within North Dakota and more specifically in the regions of Medora, Billings County, and Western North Dakota.”
A Walk in the Clouds
From the earthen walls and mass timber to the Library’s contoured accessible roofing and immersive prairie, TRPL rises from the land, offering a transformative experience that intimately connects visitors to Roosevelt’s storied journey.
The Library’s 121,000-square-foot walkable and ADA-accessible rooftop invites visitors to follow the growth of over 400,000 native prairie plugs that have been hand-collected over four summers, germinated at NDSU Extension’s research center, and returned to Medora to be planted throughout the site and on the TRPL roof. This mass timber and concrete roof is topped with insulation, roofing, and 15 inches of soil to support more than 140,000 of the native prairie plugs, echoing the natural landforms of the area.
The prairie boardwalk further connects to the Library’s landscape and scenic views with a plaza and seating lawn, a bridge, a sunken path, a grassland pause, a sweeping overlook, and a shaded trailhead.
When TRPL opens on July 4, 2026, every storied layer of its rammed-earth walls will usher in an immersive, ever-changing experience — one that invites visitors to discover new perspectives with every season. From this unexpected corner of the Badlands, a world of inspiration will ripple outward, connecting people across the globe through the enduring legacy of curiosity and future-forward stewardship.
“For JLG Architects, it is an extraordinary honor to be the regional leader redefining what is possible on a global scale — in cultural, sustainable, and collaborative design. TRPL stands as a beacon for conservation, innovation, and transformation — inviting visitors from around the world to experience the power of place and the enduring impact of a 143-year conservation vision that is even more relevant today.”
— Jennifer Burke Jackson, AIA, LEED AP | JLG Principal, Community Practice Studio Leader
