Landscape Architecture in the News

Jeff Carbo, FASLA
American Society of Landscape Architect's FirmFinder
-slideshow includes projects by:
Jeffrey Carbo Landscape Architects and Site Planners
Root Design Company
Orange Street Studio
Arentz Landscape Architects
Turn Your Backyard Into Paradise
Kiplinger Personal Finance Magazine
When it comes to backyards, a couple of lawn chairs and a portable grill just don't cut it these days…In fact, spending six digits to create a backyard retreat isn't a big deal anymore, says Jeff Carbo, an award-winning landscape architect in Alexandria, La. His firm, Jeffrey Carbo Landscape Architects and Site Planners, has worked on projects that run up to $300,000…A landscape architect charges $85 to $135, on average, to create a design plan, Wendell says, and could spend 12 to 18 hours creating that plan. A landscape designer typically charges $50 to $75 an hour. To find a designer or architect, talk with friends or family who have used one or check the American Society of Landscape Architect's FirmFinder and Association of Professional Landscape Designers' database of firms.

Robert Chestnut, ASLA
Bill Maneri, ASLA
Amanda Barton, ASLA
American Society of Landscape Architects
Garden rooms helping to enhance quality of life
Charleston Post Courier (Charleston, SC)
A backyard suddenly is transformed into a dream dining space. The driveway of a house plan has come to life as a foyer. A rarely visited corner beside a house is now a beautiful reading nook…"The trend is toward smaller yards that are special," says Robert Chesnut, a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects. People don't want high-maintenance yards. They want small gardens, but more detailed, more usable. I design these spaces to make them usable 11 months out of the year… Bill Maneri, a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects on Kiawah Island, says a close connection between the residence and outdoor rooms is an important one…Amanda Barton, a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects on James Island, likes to work on existing outdoor rooms and has a preference for preservation. The gardens designed in Charleston by landscape architect Loutrel Briggs during the 1920s still influence a lot of the outdoor rooms being created here today, she says.

Chalet Garden & Nursery Shop 
Robert Milani, ASLA
Chalet Gets Silver and Gold for Green Excellence
Lawn & Landscape 
Four backyard, interconnected, garden rooms for a Park Ridge home and outdoor continuity for a Lake Forest residence's main house, coach house, pool and rear yard, garnered Excellence in Landscape Construction and Maintenance Awards for Chalet of Wilmette…An Excellence in Landscape Gold Award for Construction and Silver for Maintenance was presented for a Lake Forest residence...Chalet's Robert Milani, senior landscape architect, design team leader, and Chalet Project Awards Program leader, designed and directed the construction and maintenance of the site.  "Extensive drifts of perennial and annual flowers, evergreens, environmental factors, differing light levels, drainage issues and the use of the lawn, pool deck, walkways and woodland garden paths are instrumental in the comprehensive landscape maintenance program," Milani explains.

ASLA Green Roof
Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates
ASLA Retrofits Headquarters with Green Roof
Architectural Record 
The American Society of Landscape Architects opened a green roof on its Washington, DC, headquarters in conjunction with Earth Day this year. “We wanted to show how you can maximize both the environmental benefits and the aesthetic and amenity benefits of a green roof through the landscape architect’s design,” said Nancy Somerville, executive vice president of the ASLA.  The 3,300-square-foot roof, whose design was led by New York–based Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates, replaces a standard black tar surface on the 10-year-old brick building. Visitors to the roof climb a staircase to reach an aluminum-grate landing suspended above various succulents.

John Parsons, FASLA
Mayor's Stadium Proposal Advances
Washington Post (Washington, DC)
The D.C. Zoning Commission approved the mayor's plan for the new Nationals stadium in Southeast yesterday, including his proposal to wrap four levels of parking inside two condominium towers, a first for Washington architecture.  The $281 million towers will also feature a boutique hotel, shops and restaurants and will be designed so that the parking levels are not visible from the street…"This is going to be very handsome, and the housing is very exciting," said John Parsons, who joined three other members of the commission in voting to approve the plan. The fifth commissioner, Carol Mitten, was absent.

Beatrix Farrand, ASLA
American Society of Landscape Architects
Bridgewater garden open to public this Sunday
Greater New Milford Spectrum (New Milford, CT)
The Beatrix Farrand Garden Promisek at Three Rivers Farm in Bridgewater is up and running for the season. The garden is open the last Sunday of each month from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. through the month of September.  In addition, the garden will be open this coming Sunday, July 9, from noon to 4 p.m.  A $5 per person donation is suggested.  In 1921, Beatrix Farrand, a founding member of the American Society of Landscape Architects, designed the garden for Dr. Frederick Peterson, a noted New York neurologist who entertained family, friends and clients on the 300-acre property, which is situated at the confluence of the Shepaug and Housatonic rivers.

Sam Williamson, ASLA
Samuel H. Williamson Associates
Urban villa
The Oregonian (Portland, OR)
When Nike executive Craig Zanon steps out onto his loggia, he greets a serene setting. There before him, a stone-clad pool mirrors the sky; beautiful gardens and greenery extend into the distance. Squint a bit and you're in Italy, or at least a backyard retreat far outside city limits. But just beyond Zanon's Italian-cross-pattern gate sits an urban street.  A lawn reinvented:  Undeterred by the dimensions of his Southeast Portland lot, Zanon called upon landscape architect Sam Williamson in 2003. His reque st: Transform the lawn behind his newly purchased 1927 Italianate home into something much more.  Williamson, principal of Portland-based Samuel H. Williamson Associates, was charged with designing a pool and garden as well as integrating an existing detached garage -- all within the 10,200-square-foot property.

EDAW
Olympic Champions
Metropolis Magazine
Jason Prior embodies a growing trend in place making: the merging of landscape architecture and urban planning. Trained in both professions, Prior heads EDAW’s European operations out of the London office and spearheaded the planning effort behind the city’s successful bid last year for the 2012 Olympics… Prior and his team have shown an adroit touch in other cities as well. In the wake of a 1996 IRA bombing in Manchester, EDAW was brought in to rethink the shattered city center; less than ten years later the area has witnessed a total transformation.  Currently working on a scheme for Belfast, Prior spoke to executive editor Martin C. Pedersen recently in New York about 2012, the challenge of New Orleans, and the importance of team building.

Peter Walker, FASLA
New Plan Unveiled for W.T.C. Memorial
The New York Times (New York, NY)
The names of the dead would be raised to plaza level from the pools below, as many relatives have demanded. But roaring waterfalls would still cascade into those pools, at the bottom of two enormous voids marking the place where the twin towers stood...The new $510 million plan, one of several developed by the construction executive Frank J. Sciame at the request of the governor and mayor, would fundamentally alter a visitor's experience while keeping signature features of the original design, by Michael Arad and Peter Walker, which was chosen in 2004 after a juried, worldwide competition.

Peter Walker & Partners
Revised Design for Freedom Tower Unveiled
The New York Times (New York, NY)
Eager to avoid creating a fortress that overshadows the World Trade Center memorial, the architects of the Freedom Tower unveiled a new approach today. They would clad its 187-foot-high, bomb-resistant concrete base in a screen of glass prisms rather than metal panels.  This and other notable refinements were described by the building's lead architect, David M. Childs of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill. He spoke at an awards ceremony held by the New York chapter of the American Institute of Architects in 7 World Trade Center, overlooking the Freedom Tower site, which is under excavation…Peter Walker & Partners are the landscape architects, as they are for the trade center memorial. Both the memorial and the area around the tower would be planted with sweetgum trees, known for their star-shaped leaves and brilliant autumnal color.

David Motzenbecker, Associate ASLA
Oslund and Associates
Landscape architects show plans for McGuire Park
Minneapolis Skyway (Minneapolis, MN)
Open green space dominates the proposed 8-acre park slated for the east side of the Guthrie Theater.  “We wanted a simple, bucolic space for Downtown we felt was lacking,” said David Motzenbecker of Oslund and Associates, the project’s designer.  The design consists of about four winding concrete paths, including a 10-foot bike path, that stretch from 2nd Street South to West River Parkway. One path would spiral up to an observatory on a central hill ascending 25 feet above the green space.  “The paths were done to represent historically the way the water would flow down to the river,” Motzenbecker said.

Lawrence Zucchino, ASLA
David Brown, ASLA
JDavis Architects Announces New Employee
The Open Press (press release) 
Raleigh, NC (OPENPRESS) June 28, 2006 -- Lawrence Zucchino, managing principal of JDavis Architects, has announced that David Brown, ASLA, has joined the firm as a landscape architect. In this position, Brown will be responsible for the design and management of projects. Brown a former member of the Raleigh Appearance Commission, helped develop a new Tree Conservation Ordinance for the City of Raleigh.   “David is an important addition to our team and we are fortunate to have him join the firm,” said Zucchino. “His extensive knowledge and background in landscape architecture, combined with his management skills, make him the perfect person to oversee our projects and meet the needs of our clients.”

Michael P. Pointer, ASLA
Bowman Consulting Promotes Michael Pointer to Principal
MAPuser.com 
Chantilly, VA — Bowman Consulting is pleased to announce the promotion of Michael P. Pointer, A.S.L.A. to Principal.  “Michael’s [Pointer] commitment and depth of expertise is a huge asset to our growing firm.  I am confident in his abilities as a leader and certain he will do an excellent job continuing our growth in Winchester and areas West," said Pat Quante, P.E., Regional Vice President of the Western Business Unit.  Pointer brings over 20 years of planning and civil engineering experience in all aspects of land development.  As Principal, and a member of the Board of Directors, Pointer will be actively involved in the firm’s strategic operations while continuing to serve as Branch Manager of the Winchester office.

Hargreaves & Associates
Hawkins Partners Landscape Architects
Glatting Jackson
Moffatt & Nichol Engineers
Local Firm Selected For Knoxville, Nashville Projects
The Chattanoogan (Chattanooga, TN)
The Chattanooga firm of Kennedy, Coulter, Rushing & Watson LLC will be helping to redesign both Nashville’s Cumberland River waterfront and Knoxville’s Cumberland Avenue corridor.  The Cumberland River Waterfront Master Plan will reunite KCRW with Hargreaves & Associates, the Cambridge Massachusetts based firm that guided Chattanooga’s 21st Century Waterfront Plan …The Cumberland River project is being coordinated jointly by the U. S. Army Crops of Engineers and the Metro Nashville Parks Department. The design team also includes Hawkins Partners Landscape Architects, Everton Oglesby Architects, Glatting Jackson, Moffatt & Nichol Engineers, and Christopher Leinberger.

Paula Horrigan, ASLA
Trumansburg gives Main Street a new look
Ithaca Journal (Ithaca, NY)
Though construction began more than a week ago, it seemed only fitting to have a more official opening for Trumansburg's Main Street Project, a development plan that has been in the works for 15 years. Saturday, the village is hosting a ceremony for the Main Street Project in front of the Tompkins Trust Company Bank on Main Street from 3-5 p.m….The Art Crawl will be a way to document the before and after of the project, said Paula Horrigan, a volunteer who has been involved with the project since 1995.  relieved and excited,” said Horrigan, a professor of landscape architecture at Cornell University.  “I'm very fond of Trumansburg and would like to see it sustained. I felt it was long overdue in terms of investment in the village.”  The project began June 28 and will continue until October. Main Street will be repaved, the western end will be narrowed for pedestrian and cyclist safety, and the sidewalks will be re-laid.

Laurie Olin, FASLA
Atlantic Yards can’t ‘work’
BrooklynPapers.com 
One of the city’s most-respected urban planning organizations weighed in on Bruce Ratner’s Atlantic Yards last week, saying it simply “does not work” for Brooklyn.   Municipal Art Society President Kent Barwick offered that assessment before a packed house of 500 people at the Hanson Place Central United Methodist Church on June 15 — a mildly stinging rejection of Ratner’s 17-skyscraper, 8.7-million-square-foot arena and commercial development in low-rise Prospect Heights.  But he insisted that demapping Pacific Street between Carlton and Vanderbilt avenues was essential for landscape architect Laurie Olin’s greenspace design.  “If we take out that one street, we can design a park that will save 1.8 million gallons of water a year,” Stuckey said, referring to Olin’s retaining ponds.

Lawrence Halprin, FASLA
Refresh, revive and enhance
Denver Post (Denver, CO)
The other day, a friend asked me, "What happened to the Lawrence Halprin park? It's not there anymore."  She meant, of course, downtown's Skyline Park, three half-blocks on Arapahoe Street between 15th and 18th streets. Though she lives in Denver, she missed the brouhaha over the obliteration of Halprin's 1973 submerged urban park. Things happen to a city over time. Growth, change and reinvention are signs of a healthy place. A look at Sir Norman Foster's addition to the New York City landmark Hearst building on 8th Avenue or a visit to a 15th century Brunelleschi building in Florence - now a GAP retail store - reinforce a truism: Cities that stagnate die.

Bohler Engineering PC
Landscape architecture
Newsday 
PAUL ERSBOLL - New position: Landscape architect at Bohler Engineering PC in Ronkonkoma. The Northport resident most recently was senior project manager for the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, where he worked on the redevelopment of Yankee Stadium, including the design and planning of the stadium's new parks and parking garages…Advice for aspiring landscape architects: "Work hard at developing both your creative side as well as your practical construction skills. The constant growth of our economy will provide ever-increasing opportunities for our practice.

Ten Eyck Landscape Architects, Inc.
Free "Concert Under The Stars" Presents Carlos Rivas & MexSal Band
EVLiving (Scottsdale, AZ)
The hottest ticket in town is free when the Carlos Rivas & MexSal Band perform at Steele Indian School Park on Saturday, July 15 at 8 p.m.  The Phoenix Parks and Recreation Department’s “Concert Under the Stars” series presents the distinctive style of Latin, Jazz and Salsa from a band that is sure to heats things up at the city’s popular outdoor amphitheater at Third Street and Indian School Road. The community is encouraged to bring a picnic basket, blanket and lawn chairs, and enjoy a music-filled evening with family and friends. Refreshments can be purchased at the park.  The “2006 Concert Under the Stars” series is sponsored by the Phoenix Office of Arts and Culture, Ten Eyck Landscape Architects, Inc., the Latino Institute and Gayle Starr. For additional information call 602-495-0739.

American Society of Landscape Architects
Public to be able to vote on design for new park
Statesman Journal (Salem, OR)
Keizer city officials will continue the process of deciding what Keizer Rapids Park should look like with a design effort that begins today and continues Saturday with a public vote.  About 40 representatives of various professional, public and private organizations, including designers from the American Society of Landscape Architects, are scheduled to tour the parkland today, officials said.  A design presentation will continue at 7:30 a.m. Saturday.  The public is invited to participate in a showcase of six designs, at which everyone will get a chance to vote for their favorite.