Landscape Architecture In the News
A sampling of recent press coverage of landscape architecture. Keyword terms are noted by “>>>” and “<<<” marks.

Up, Up, and Away
Metropolis Magazine
Date: 09/19/07

“Everyone kept asking which direction north was, so we put that in," >>>landscape architect<<< Ken Smith says wryly, gesturing down at a giant N built into the ground. Its right leg extends into an oversize directional arrow, pointing off to our left. We are 400 feet in the air, 40 miles south of Los Angeles, in a donut-shaped metal basket held aloft by a giant orange helium balloon. Wearing a neat all-black ensemble topped with a fedora, his only concession to the California sun, New York-based Smith gazes out at the decommissioned El Toro Marine Corps Air Station.

United American Land Breaks New Ground in NYC with Soho Mews
Quote.com
Date: 09/19/07

by Peter Walker of the renowned firm PWP >>>Landscape Architecture<<<. The nine-story West Broadway building features a main residential lobby, retail stores and entry to onsite parking - the rarest of commodities. Its eight-story companion on Wooster Street features five townhouses with individual private gardens. Residences have spacious layouts with Mafi "vulcano oak" wide-plank floors, 10' ceilings, Gwathmey Siegel-designed Valcucine kitchens and sumptuous master baths. Soho Mews also offers 24-hour concierge service by Luxury Attache, a state-of-the-art fitness center and vintner service from cantina CentoVini. "Our most distinct amenities

Dockland scheme to express 'vitality of Dublin'
Irish Times
Date: 09/19/07

the criss-crossed square designed by New York >>>landscape architect<<< Martha Schwartz. Its design had also been revised to be more open and transparent, he said. The scheme was first unveiled in May 2004 by Devey Properties, but it didn't start moving until Chartered Land took over last November. But Mr Libeskind never doubted it would be built: "Architecture is like theology - if don't have faith you shouldn't do it" It would be "a very dramatic edifice, a major theatre, even by European standards", with bars and restaurants at different levels contained within a "vertiginous space" that would "bring life to this area

Popular beach for unleashed canines undergoes improvements
Kansas City Star (MO)
Date: 09/18/07

for the dog area. Cliff Middleton, >>>landscape architect<<< for the Johnson County Park and Recreation District said, "I think it has one of our most loyal user groups in the park." But because of that heavy use, the site has been in need of repairs, Middleton said. Dogs can be in danger of stepping on sharp rocks located along the edge of the lake. The beach at the off-leash area can also get muddy and slippery, Middleton added. The re-grading of the shoreline is aimed at change that. Trees along the beach and a new concrete maintenance road leading to the shoreline also are being installed. Construction on

Theater outlines expansion plans
Berkshire Eagle
Date: 09/18/07

which includes the Main Stage, according to >>>landscape architect<<< Craig Okerstrom-Lang of Great Barrington. The plan is to eliminate the vehicle traffic between the two campuses and, instead, create a pedestrian walkway. In addition, improved parking, signs, lighting and drainage would make the site visually more appealing and easier to enter and exit, he added. "Right now," he said, "it's a mess - muddy, unsightly and messy." The theater also will install a small dining area adjoining the Unicorn, and a small gift shop in that building, Okerstrom-Lang said. Currently the BTF has neither, he said.

New master plan for parks
Cincinnati Enquirer
Date: 09/18/07

Kurt Culbertson, a nationally recognized >>>landscape architect<<< and authority on Kessler, will discuss Kessler's work, which inspired the creation of Central, Columbia and Victory parkways as well as Mount Airy Forest. The plan guided Cincinnati's park system for more than 60 years. The new master plan will be presented by local >>>landscape architect<<< Chris Manning, lead consultant. The program will be presented by the Architectural Foundation of Cincinnati, the Cincinnati Parks Department and the Cincinnati Museum Center. Dan Hurley, vice president for history and research for the Museum Center, will moderate the discussion.

Fish shouldn't even know of 1,800-student school
Columbus Dispatch (OH)
Date: 09/17/07

"Hopefully, the water that comes off this land will be better than when it was a farm field,” said Scott Sonnenberg, a >>>landscape architect<<< who designed the school's storm-water system. That system has been praised by state environmental officials and conservationists eager to protect the ecologically fragile Darby. "What they are doing is a substantial improvement over what's been done," said Anthony Sasson, freshwater conservation coordinator for the Ohio Nature Conservancy. The Darby is known nationally as a habitat for 37 rare and endangered species of mussels and fish. Over the past decade, urban development has polluted several key Darby tributaries in

Focus on East River Waterfront Facelift
New York Construction News
Date: 09/17/07

what the area could be." Among the >>>landscape architects<<< who participated in the charrette were Ken Smith, who designed the rooftop garden at the Museum of Modern Art in Manhattan; Ricardo Scofidio, designer of the High Line project in Manhattan; Matthew Urbanski, designer of Brooklyn Bridge Park; Margie Ruddick, designer of a master plan for downtown Trenton; Kate Orff, a principal at SCAPE Studio; and Brian Jencek, a principal at Hargreaves Associates.

Academy's Innovative 'Living Roof' is Largest in the State
California Construction Link
Date: 09/17/07