ASLA UTAH OCTOBER 2022 NEWSLETTER

October 31, 2022 by ASLA Utah

ASLA UTAH OCTOBER 2022 NEWSLETTER

UPCOMING EVENTS

LuckyDog Recreation - Lunch & Learn November 3rd, 11:30am ASLA UT Offices 280 S 400 W REGISTER HERE

LAEP Speaker Series: Friday, Nov. 4 2022, 3:30pm Brad Howe, SCAPE Adapting to Change ZOOM LINK: CLICK HERE

LAEP Speaker Series: Friday, Dec. 2, 2022, 3:30pm Daniella Hirschfeld, Uncharted Waters: Creating Climate Capacity AGGIE CAST LINK: CLICK HERE

ASLA National Conference on Landscape Architecture November 11-14, 2022, San Francisco, CA REGISTER HERE

Victor Stanley On-Demand LA CES™ Education Sessions:
SEE CLASS SCHEDULE & REGISTER HERE

ASLA Presidents Message

Adam Castor, ASLA Utah President

Greetings ASLA Utah. I hope everyone is having a wonderful fall season. It always seems to go way too fast but it is nice to see the mountains layered in snow. Another thing that seems to have gone by too fast is my term as chapter president. In a few weeks we will transition in new committee members and Jake Powell will take the wheel as chapter president. My role will become that of past-president and I will be focusing most of my chapter efforts on planning next year’s annual conference. I am excited about this next phase of the presidency and about working with the new committees on what lies ahead for our chapter. If you weren’t able to hear Jake’s lunch-time introduction speech at this year’s conference, trust me when I say that he will do a great job as president and the chapter is headed in a good direction.

In a couple of weeks I will be traveling to San Francisco along with Bryce Ward ASLA UT Trustee, Jake Powell ASLA Pres. Elect, and Jenny Sonntag, Ex. Dir., for the ASLA National Chapter Presidents Committee and Board of Trustees meetings. These meetings bring chapter presidents, trustees, and executive directors together with executive committee members of ASLA to discuss everything from strategic planning, advocacy, and licensure to finances, website updates, and membership services. The common thread weaved into pretty much all of the presentations and discussions is how can ASLA and its chapters serve our membership better. ASLA presents and provides a ton of information over a day and a half of meetings, but the conversations with other chapter leaders on where they have had success, what they have struggled with, ideas on retaining existing members and growing new membership, opportunities to advocate for landscape architecture as a licensed profession…these conversations provide so many opportunities to learn about other chapters and I am looking forward to coming back with more ideas on how ASLA Utah can better serve its membership.

The past couple of months have been busy, the September and October calendars both packed full of fun events. The executive and subcommittee members have all made huge contributions to a very successful in-person Annual Conference, a Park(ing) Day event inspired by elementary school kids’ artwork, our virtual Advocacy Day with elected officials and representatives, and a site tour of the new Millcreek Commons project. Not to forget our Annual Awards Event last weekend celebrating of this year’s award winners, complete with good food and drinks, music, and plenty of socializing. Thank you all so much for making it all happen!

In the past few newsletters, I have highlighted several opportunities to become involved in the chapter, either as a subcommittee chair or member, or as part of a committee that we are developing. We are still looking for volunteers for our chapter strategic planning committee as well as our chapter climate action committee. I expect that we will be hearing more information on creating these committees during the CPC and BOT meetings in November, but if you have any interest in joining please reach out to me or Bryce Ward.

In closing, I would like to give a special thank you to Lucky Dog Recreation and the Berliner crew for the amazing opportunity to travel to Berlin, Germany for a tour of Berliner’s manufacturing facility and several city parks boasting their play equipment. I met up with Rhetta McIff, Jon Ruedas, Mike Wonenberg, and Mark McGrath before joining about thirty other landscape architects and sales reps from across the country for two days of education on all things Berliner, a city tour and afternoon trip to Karl’s strawberry-themed amusement park, and lots of time for socializing.

One of the highlights for me was the sketch presentation given by Karl Kohler, founder of Berliner. With a very thick German accent and while sketching on an iPad, Karl explained and illustrated the scientific calculations and ratios behind the design and shapes of Berliner’s play structures and rope components. It was a fascinating presentation that made the evolution of basic shapes and ropes into unique and complex play structures very clear to visualize and understand. I am also pretty sure that the local kids and their parents were wondering what the hell was going on when, at each of the parks we visited, fifty or so adults came flowing out of a huge tour bus and started taking photos, climbing all over the play equipment, and lining up for trips down the slides. It’s no wonder why each park we visited was so populated with kids and adults at play. In addition to the educational experience and physical interaction with Berliner’s play equipment, I was able to spend four additional days exploring Berlin and its vast expanse of historical buildings, sites and monuments, landmarks, remnants of the Berlin wall, and city parks. It truly is an amazing city and culture to experience. Thank you Lucky Dog and Berliner!

An Update and An Opinion: House Bill 282 - Water Wise Landscaping Amendment

Thomas Eddington, VP of Advocacy

HB282 was passed by the Utah State Legislature and signed by the Governor on March 23, 2022. The bill is generally written to promote water-wise landscaping and attempts to define the many components of this landscaping methodology that many of us utilize on a regular basis.

The bill goes on to describe the new limitations of regulatory authority for cities/counties and HOAs throughout the state specifically noting the following for HOAs: An association may not enact or enforce a governing document that prohibits, or has the effect of prohibiting, a lot owner of a detached dwelling from incorporating water wise landscaping on the property owner's property. This provision seems to imply that property owners have the right to remove water consumptive lawn/turf and replace it with native vegetation. This is a welcome opportunity for property owners and landscape architects alike; however, some of the allowances for water wise landscaping and/or materials include "mulch" which HB282 defines as “material such as rock, bark, wood chips, or other materials left loose and applied to the soil.” While the bill goeson to say that HOAs [as well as cities/counties] can “restrict[s] or clarify[y]ies the use of mulches considered detrimental to the association's (or city/county’s) operations,” this leaves interpretation open to the property owner to assume gravel or rock, with no native or water wise exotic plantings, is an appropriate landscape treatment. Furthermore, it is unclear what constitutes a detrimental condition to an association or a city/county. This should be clarified pursuant to future updates to HB282.

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As landscape architects, we understand the implications of too much concrete pavement or asphalt or rock or gravel on a property – most importantly, each material negatively impacts the micro-climate and increases temperatures exacerbating the urban heat island effect. Additionally, unless the property is located in a desert region such as southern Utah or Nevada where it is the vernacular landscape, the introduction of extensive gravel or rock to a property can alter or destroy the character of a property where it is appears out of place.

Certainly, gravel and rock are inexpensive and can help reduce irrigation costs for a property owner but the impacts to the local community can be disruptive. There is indeed a difference between ‘xeriscaping’ and what many landscape architects describe as ‘zero-scaping’ (e.g., unlimited hardscape or gravel/rock). Landscape architects should play a greater role in the preparation of future House Bills and/or their updates.

HB282 can be reviewed here: https://le.utah.gov/~2022/bills/static/HB0282.html

Special Thanks to ASLA Utah Sponsors & Corporate Partners for their Support!

Platinum Sponsors
BioGrass | Rain Bird | Victor Stanley

Learn More About Our Sponsors

ASLA UTAH SEPTEMBER 2022 NEWSLETTER

September 29, 2022 by ASLA Utah

ASLA UTAH SEPTEMBER 2022 NEWSLETTER

UPCOMING EVENTS

Advocacy Site Visit: Millcreek Common Tuesday, October 18, 2022, at 4:00pm REGISTER HERE

ASLA UT 2022 Annual Awards Dinner Sponsored by BioGrass Friday October 28th, 6:00-8:30pm The Shop, 350 E 400 S, 3rd Floor, Salt Lake City Buy Tickets Here

LuckyDog Recreation - Lunch & Learn November 3rd, 11:30am ASLA UT Offices 280 S 400 W REGISTER HERE

Victor Stanley On-Demand LA CES™ Education Sessions:
SEE CLASS SCHEDULE & REGISTER HERE

ASLA National Conference on Landscape Architecture November 11-14, 2022, San Francisco, CA REGISTER HERE

ASLA Utah Advocacy Millcreek Commons Site Visit

Thomas Eddington, VP of Advocacy

As part of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) advocacy efforts to ensure our members and our elected officials continue to maintain a keen awareness of the landscape architecture profession and the many influential projects that have been created around the state, the Utah Chapter invites you to tour one of the area’s special gems: Millcreek Common on Thursday, October 18, 2022, at 4pm.

Millcreek Common was designed by EPG Design which is based in Midvale, UT. Millcreek Common is a community gathering locale that provides a beautiful setting with many recreational offerings. It is home Utah’s largest outdoor skating rink which is specially designed to magically transform from a retro-vibe summertime roller skating rink to a beautiful ice-skating rink in the winter. The site is further activated by special skating activities such as games, contests, and live music are held during the week, and every week they hold a Thursday Food Truck Rally, G.O.A.T Friday, and D.J. Skate night Saturdays.

We encourage our members to join us at this site tour to help us showcase this unique project to our local and state elected officials. The site tour will also include an open discussion about the landscape architecture profession, its benefits, and its contributions to our community. We expect the entire tour and discussion to take about an hour and a half.

Parking information: Millcreek Common plaza is in between Highland Drive and 1300 East on 3300 South. Look for the big construction crane. Other area landmarks include: Harmons Grocery, Crown Burger, Tres Hombres and Home Depot. Access parking via Chambers Avenue, which is just south of Crown Burger. You can also access parking via Woodland Avenue.

RSVP HERE

We look forward to seeing you at this event! Please RSVP by Friday, October 14th at 5pm MT.

ASLA Utah Parking Day Recap

Aaron Johnson, VP of Visibility & Public Affairs

ASLA Utah is proud to announce another success full Parking Day activity this year!!! One of the main highlights was working with the energetic and creative 3rd grade students at Calvin S. Smith Elementary school in Taylorsville. For those that don’t know, we partnered with Mrs. Meredith Harkers 3 rd grade class to design a mini park! They were excited from the minute we arrived! The students loved the idea of creating more green space in our cities paved in asphalt. When asked if they had a favorite park, every hand shot up with stories and experiences they had there. When asked if they had a favorite parking lot there were no hands and a lot of confused looks, ‘why would we have a favorite parking lot?!’. Given a paper with two parking spaces on it, they went to town on designing the best park this world has seen. Many had petting zoos, slides, fishing ponds, shade trees, dog parks, bird houses, and much more! They were excited to share their ideas with the class and hear the oooh’s and ahh’s from their fellow students.

This was a great experience for not only the students and Utah ASLA, but for all those who attended parking day. As part of our installation we showcased all 50 of their drawings and highlighted their ideas! There drawings were easily the most popular part of parking day, and we even had a few students show up with their parents to see their work displayed for all to see.

Involving the 3 rd graders was a unique, amazing and inspiring experience and one that we hope to do as often as possible. Utah ASLA was even reached out to by National ASLA to be mentioned in their recap of parking day nationwide!

Huge thanks to Progressive Plants for lending us some beautiful trees and shrubs for the day. Thanks to Landscape forms for donating the tables and chairs for the day, and of course, and massive thank you to SoHo Food Truck park for accommodating us this year! Thanks to everyone who makes this wonderful profession run and we look forward to seeing you at other events.

ASLA Utah Parking Day Recap

Tyler Smithson, VP of Membership & Member Services

This year's ASLA AZ + UT Awards collaboration featured numerous high-quality projects that were submitted from around Arizona in the categories of general design, residential design, unbuilt, analysis and planning, landmark, student collaborative, and community service. The Arizona USLA Awards program celebrates excellence by recognizing the firms, individuals, and agencies responsible for outstanding works of landscape architecture and environmental planning that promote an enhanced quality of life in Arizona and beyond. Additionally, a big thanks to August Bateman, Ladd Schiess, Melissa Fryer, and Survier Castillo served as the jurors from the ASLA UT Chapter.

Special Thanks to ASLA Utah Sponsors & Corporate Partners for their Support!

Platinum Sponsors
BioGrass | Rain Bird | Victor Stanley

Learn More About Our Sponsors

CLICK HERE TO BECOME A 2023 SPONSOR or Corporate Partner

ASLA UTAH AUGUST 2022 NEWSLETTER

August 30, 2022 by ASLA Utah

ASLA UTAH AUGUST 2022 NEWSLETTER

UPCOMING EVENTS

NEXT WEEK!!!! Don’t miss out - REGISTER NOW!! ASLA Utah Annual Conference 2022
September 8th & 9th, Salt Lake City, Utah Conference Schedule: Click Here

Omega II Fence Systems - Lunch & Learn NEXT Wednesday, September 7th, Noon ASLA UT Offices 280 S 400 W REGISTER HERE

Victor Stanley On-Demand LA CES™ Education Sessions:
SEE CLASS SCHEDULE & REGISTER HERE

ASLA National Conference on Landscape Architecture November 11-14, 2022, San Francisco, CA REGISTER HERE

Leadership Express

Adam Castor, Chapter President

Hello ASLA Utah!

It seems hard to believe that the first of September is coming this week and that the annual conference is coming up in less than two weeks. The summer has gone by so quickly with preparations and planning for the conference, as well as the other ASLA events that are planned for this fall. I am excited about the topic for this year’s conference and the lineup of speakers and landscape architects that we will hear from. There is sure to be plenty of good information to go around and an impressive collection of experienced professionals. If you haven’t already, please consider registering for the conference and come enjoy two days of catching up with colleagues and vendors, visiting sponsor booths, acquiring some valuable continuing education credits, and showing your support for the ASLA Utah chapter. I am looking forward to seeing everyone again.

The 2022 Election has ended and I would like to congratulate and welcome the winners announced in this newsletter to the ASLA Utah Chapter Executive Committee, we’re super happy to have you all on board

There are sill several opportunities listed to become involved in the chapter:

Climate Action Committee – We are still looking for volunteers to join this committee on climate action, initiated by ASLA national. I would love to report that we have some members interested in participating on this committee at the CPC meetings in November, so please reach out if you are interested.

Strategic Plan – We are still looking for volunteers to join this committee to help shape the chapter’s strategic plan and vision for the future. Involvement is the best way to make a difference, so if you are interested in this committee please reach out.

ASLA Virtual Advocacy Day – We were able to fill two of the three openings to participate in the Virtual Advocacy Day meeting. Thanks to Seth Bockholt and Thomas Eddington for registering for this important meeting, they will be discussing landscape architecture and advocating for our profession with Utah legislators and representatives on September 29th.

Landscape Architecture Board – We received three resumes for nominees to fill the vacant position on the Utah Landscape Architecture Board. The nominees are Lars Anderson, landscape architect with PEC; Dave Harris, landscape architect with EPG; and Scott Peters, landscape architect with VENN Collaborative. Thank you Lars, Dave, and Scott for volunteering to fill this position.

Calendar Updates: Here is a look forward to what is coming up on the ASLA Utah calendar:

ASLA Utah Annual Conference on Landscape Architecture – September 8-9, 2022
Park(ing) Day – September 16, 2022
Advocacy Site Tour September 22, 2022
ASLA Virtual Advocacy Day – September 29, 2022
Awards Banquet – October 2022
ASLA CPC Meetings – November 9-10, 2022
ASLA National Conference on Landscape Architecture – November 11-14, 2022

Here is a look at what is happening at ASLA National: ASLA National Conference in San Francisco – Designing A Better Future: There’s only one week left to register for the ASLA 2022 Conference at the early-bird rate. Register to join 6,500 of your peers, and learn about the 120 education sessions, 25 field sessions, 6 Deep dive sessions and 3 LARE prep workshops.

Free Student Conference Registration: The ASLA Fund is offering free registration to student members for the 2022 ASLA Conference on Landscape Architecture in San Francisco. To receive the free registration, students are required to donate approximately four hours of their time helping at the conference. Once students register, they will receive an email from Judy Mehlman with details. The registration deadline for the student volunteer program ends September 21, 2022.

Government Affairs: The State Government Affairs team continues to track nearly 200 occupational licensing bills including bills that threaten to weaken or undermine licensure, reduce barriers to licensure, and/or have a direct impact on the profession. They are working closely with the Idaho-Montana Chapter (IMASLA) to respond to Governor Greg Gianforte’s efforts to cut regulatory red tape. In June, the Montana Department of Labor and Industry (DLI) released a survey asking licensees alarming questions about the future of landscape architecture licensure in the state. Lt. Governor Kristen Juras is leading the governor’s effort to reduce red tape, and after learning that landscape architecture licensure may be targeted for elimination, State Government Affairs worked with IMASLA to send a letter to help educate her on the profession and its impacts in the state. We continue to work with the chapter on next steps including hiring a lobbyist and engaging the entire Montana membership in advocacy efforts.

In July, State Government Affairs submitted written comments and provided oral testimony on Colorado proposed Rule 1.7. ASLA supports improving the mobility of the profession and shared our concerns that the proposed rule would create a barrier to obtaining endorsement/reciprocity in Colorado for emerging professionals. We also recommended removing all references to federal licensure to avoid confusion and asked that the board consider aligning their education and experience requirements with the Uniform Licensure Standard for Landscape Architecture. 

General ASLA Highlights

The Executive Committee held its summer retreat in Ohio. The committee began discussions on the FY2023 annual operating plan and budget, participated in a leadership workshop, and reviewed recommendations for the 2023-24 federal priorities agenda among other items.
Recently, ASLA completed its updated version of the white paper, Landscape Architecture is a STEM Discipline, which includes a comprehensive section on Landscape Architecture Education’s Use of STEM-Related Research, Innovation, and Technology.  This section (Section 4; pages 20-41) includes many examples of university landscape architecture program-led research projects, including projects that partner with federal, state, and local government agencies.  In fact, some of these projects partner with the US Army Corps of Engineers, USDA, USDOT, HHS, and more. The section also highlights the development and deployment of new technologies by university landscape architecture departments, faculty, and students, including several projects that led to the issuance of U.S. patents. The section continues with a brief history of landscape architecture’s practice and the US patent classification system, a clear indicator of the profession’s work in developing new technologies.
ASLA announced it is developing a Climate Action Plan (CAP) and introduced the CAP Task Force Chair Pamela Conrad, ASLA, the Task Force, and Advisory Group. The announcement was made via a press release, blog post, all member email, and four social posts. A new CAP webpage was also released, which will evolve as more information related to the plan is released.

Thank you to all of our members, our executive director and our committees, and especially our sponsors. There are a lot of exciting things happening at ASLA Utah, none of which would be possible without all of your support. Until I see you at the conference….cheers!

Adam Castor, ASLA Chapter President

ASLA UT EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE 2022 ELECTION RESULTS

CONGRATULATIONS!!! These great ASLA Members will be join the Utah Chapter’s Executive Committee. in November 2022

President-Elect – Paul Stead
Secretary – Ladd Schiess
VP of Membership & Membership Services – Tyler Smithson

Want to get to know your new Executive Committee Members? CLICK HERE

PLATINUM SPONSOR ARTICLE

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*Pittsburgh Expands Tech to Parks after Years of Success and Savings with Smart Waste Bins*

Sensor equipped waste bins send Pittsburgh real-time data, monitoring everything from fullness to street-level conditions. Now that crews can optimize their waste collection, a job that once required 25 people now only takes 8. Allowing workers to focus on other pressing tasks, including street repairs and cleaning up vacant lots. Along with measuring receptacle fill levels for more efficient collection, Relay also collects street-level data that can help cut CO2 emissions, improve public health and bring environmental equity to all parts of the city.

Relay sensors were soon piloted for their parks. The sensors were originally deployed at Pittsburgh's Frick Park and have since been spreading throughout the city as parks are renovated. They have proved beneficial for the parks, especially in hard to access areas like trails. Previously, trucks would slowly navigate these trails to check whether a waste container required collection. Now, the Relay sensors omit the need for this by monitoring the fill levels and weights of all containers so that they can be collected at the optimal time.

Pittsburgh is also approaching the task of CO2 reduction by way of carbon sequestration from the 40,000 trees the city currently has street-side. The Relay system can enhance this initiative using its environmental sensors to measure the temperature of every container within the city. When these sensors determine an area has atypically high temperatures, the city can then evaluate and determine if there is insufficient tree coverage, which would provide analytical support for planting trees there in the future.

Conference Registration

Special Thanks to ASLA Utah Sponsors & Corporate Partners for their Support!

Learn More About Our Sponsors

CLICK HERE TO BECOME A 2023 SPONSOR or Corporate Partner

ASLA UTAH MAY 2022 NEWSLETTER

May 31, 2022 by ASLA Utah

ASLA UTAH May 2022 NEWSLETTER

UPCOMING EVENTS

Victor Stanley, ACTIVATED + INCLUSIVE: Dynamic Mixed-use Environments, LA CES Credits: 1.0 PDH, Jun 28, 2022 | 12 PM MST
Speakers: Lisl Kotheimer, Associate, Landscape Architect & Jeffrey Pongonis, Principal, Landscape Architect @MKSK. REGISTER HERE

Early Bird Rates End July 31st ASLA Utah Annual Conference 2022
September 8th & 9th, Salt Lake City, Utah
REGISTER HERE

REMEMBER to VOTE!! ASLA UT Executive Committee Elections Open Positions: Pres. Elect, Secretary, VP of Marketing/Visibility, VP of Membership. Contact: Jake Powell, jake.powell@usu.edu

CALL FOR ENTRIES ASLA Utah Professional Awards Entries due 5:00 pm Friday, June 24. CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO

Leadership Express

Adam Castor, Chapter President

Hello everyone!

I hope that you all had an enjoyable holiday weekend despite the cool temperatures and rain that have moved in, and no doubt created some last-minute changes to somebody’s plans. For us, this time of year has typically meant traveling to a baseball tournament somewhere or a float down the Green River. This year, we’re in between the spring and summer seasons of high school baseball and we have been able to enjoy the long weekend at home and catch up with friends and family over dinner.

Without the distraction of the things that have typically taken place over Memorial Day weekend, I spent some time looking at and reading about memorial sites of all kinds across the country that included design by landscape architects. There are some amazing projects out there in honor of those that have served and those that made the ultimate sacrifice for our country. Here are a few photos of the memorials that I enjoyed learning more about:

National Veterans Memorial and Museum – Columbus, OH (Allied Works, OLIN, Ralph Appelbaum Associates)

World War I Memorial – Washington D.C. (Original design: M. Paul Friedberg, FASLA and Oehme, van Sweden. Recent design: GWWO Architects, David Rubin Land Collective)

Eunice Veterans Memorial – Eunice, NM (MRWM)

Layton Vietnam Memorial – Layton, UT

While I was at Architectural Nexus, I had the opportunity to work with JoEllen Grandy and Layton City on the Kenley Amphitheater and plaza renovation project, as well as the Vietnam Memorial Wall. Our scope of work did not include design for the site or the memorial, rather we provided construction drawings for the memorial and raised planters adjacent to the memorial wall. This project turned out to be a beautiful memorial for the veterans and their families of the Vietnam War.

Now that we have made it through all of the excitement of World Landscape Architecture Month, the executive- and sub-committees have turned attention to working out the final details of the annual conference and filling this year’s ballot with nominees for our open positions. If you are interested in volunteering a little bit of time and helping the ASLA Utah chapter advocate for the landscape architecture profession and our chapter members, please reach out and nominate yourself of someone you know that may be interested. It’s a great time to be a landscape architect and there are some great opportunities to become a part of ASLA.

ASLA National Happenings:

Government Affairs

Deadline Extended to Sunday, June 5: Federal & State Legislative Priorities Survey

Please help ASLA Government Affairs by participating in the biennial Federal & State Legislative Priorities Survey. We are encouraging all Chapters to meet one of the following goals: 1) chapter participation of 25%, or 2) a 25% chapter participation increase when compared to your chapter’s participation two years ago.

Help determine ASLA’s federal legislative agenda and state advocacy activities for 2023-2024. As the national voice for the landscape architecture profession, we want to hear from you on what you think are the most important policy issues. ASLA works with chapters, state and federal legislators, state and administration officials, and regulatory bodies to advance policies critical to the profession.

The purpose of this short survey is twofold:

1. To formulate ASLA’s federal legislative priorities for the 118th Congress.

2. To provide useful data to help guide chapters' state legislative priorities and advocacy efforts.

Two years ago, we broke all of our previous response records when close to 2,400 ASLA members took our priorities survey. This year, help us surpass 3,000 by not only taking this survey yourself, but by encouraging your friends, colleagues, chapter members, and all landscape architects to participate. Every voice matters, and we want to make sure as many people as possible are heard. Your ASLA Government Affairs team thanks you in advance for your responses! With your input, ASLA will continue to succeed in our mission to advocate for you and your profession.

State Government Affairs: As of May 18, 21 states remain in legislative session. ASLA staff is tracking 197 occupational licensing bills. The state government affairs team continues to work closely with chapters on legislative advocacy initiatives, including submitting public comments for the proposed rules for the implementation of the Illinois Title Act.

Throughout the spring, the Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Washington Chapters worked with their governors, legislatures, and mayors to declare April as Landscape Architecture Month and/or April 26 to be Frederick Law Olmsted Day. These proclamations help to educate the public on landscape architecture’s technical substance and public significance. They also serve as a reminder of the impact that design choices invariably have on community, opportunity, resilience, and equity.

The Alliance for Responsible Professional Licensing (ARPL) recently developed a new Fact Check Resource to set the record straight on the various myths and purported problems that anti-licensure individuals contend can only be solved by drastically weakening or outright eliminating licensing. ARPL also recently announced the results of a state-wide survey of Louisiana voters showing voters are deeply concerned about anti-licensing proposals being discussed in Baton Rouge during this legislative session. The results showed widespread public support for maintaining rigorous professional licensing standards for professions that have a clear impact on public health, safety, and welfare.

Over 50 applications were received for the Women of Color Licensure Advancement Program (WCLAP). In April, the WCLAP jury selected the 10 awardees, which will be publicly announced in the May 31st edition of LAND. The WCLAP aims to support women of color in their pursuit of landscape architecture licensure and increase racial and gender diversity within the profession.

Professional Practice

SKILL|ED Project Management for Landscape Architects June 21-23, 2022, 12:00-1:15 pm MST

Join ASLA National for a new course series focused on effective project management for landscape architecture professionals. As a project manager, you have a million things to keep track of at any given stage. Effective project management keeps you focused on each step of the way, from beginning to end. Through this course series, you will learn how to develop core project management plan components to bring you, your clients, and the project team into alignment on resources, milestones, and budget.

Speakers: Christine E. Pearson, ASLA – Director of Quality Management, Browning Day
Clarence Lacy – Project Director, RIOS
L. Irene Compadre, ASLA – Principal @ Arbolope Studio Lecturer @ the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts, Washington University in St. Louis, Lecturer @ Washington University in St. Louis
Michael Powell – Director of Marketing & Public Art, Arbolope Studio
All sessions will be available for on-demand after the live event for registered attendees!
As always, thanks to all of our sponsors and members for all that you do for the ASLA Utah Chapter. We look forward to seeing you all again soon!
Adam Castor, ASLA UT Chapter President

ASLA Committee Opportunity

Thomas Eddington, VP of Advocacy

We need your help. ASLA Utah is working with our partner entities to review the current Utah Division of Facilities Construction and Management (DFCM) fee structure that is used as a guide for project bidding. At issue is the fact that the current language in the bidding documents does not include landscape architecture in the Basic Services section:

Basic Services will vary from project to project. The following is an example of a typical project distribution as a percentage of the fee. The distribution will be determined on a project by project basis by the Prime Firm:

Architectural 60%
Mechanical 15%
Structural 12%
Electrical 10%
Civil 3%

We would like to form a sub-committee of landscape architects with experience or interest in state funded projects and work with AIA Utah and other partner entities to ensure landscape architects are included in the State’s bidding documents in the future.

If you are interested in joining this working sub-committee or have questions, please contact Thomas Eddington, thomas@inplandesign.com. Thanks!

Girls Night Out with Rain Bird

Jenny Sonntag, Executive Director

Cactus and Tropicals was the setting for the first ever Girls Night Out with Rain Bird! This original and fun event was an effort to help accomplish part of the DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) challenge given to each chapter from ASLA National. Diversity involves celebrating difference based on gender, race, sexual orientation, sexual identity, culture, or ethnicity. Equity is defined as fairness, and inclusion means "for all people."

Women are still a minority in the Landscape Architect profession and often there is only one female LA in an entire firm of architects. In an effort to help women in this profession network, bond and simply have a fun night out Rain Bird’s Tiffany Haveron crafted a unique event to gather female LA’s, learn about new hydration products, and then each attendee learned how to build their own small succulent container garden to take home. As you can see from the photos - it was a riot and we hope to schedule more fun interactive events like this in the future. Thank you Rain Bird for getting us together to learn, laugh and create!

Special Thanks to ASLA Utah Sponsors & Corporate Partners for their Support in 2021 and look forward to working with you in 2022!! Renew your Sponsorship Here

Learn More About Our Sponsors

CLICK HERE TO BECOME A 2022 SPONSOR or Corporate Partner

ASLA UTAH JUNE/JULY 2022 NEWSLETTER

May 31, 2022 by ASLA Utah

ASLA UTAH JUNE/JULY 2022 NEWSLETTER

UPCOMING EVENTS

Early Bird Discount Ends July 31st Don’t miss out - REGISTER NOW!! ASLA Utah Annual Conference 2022
September 8th & 9th, Salt Lake City, Utah

Victor Stanley On-Demand LA CES™ Education Sessions: RACE & SPACE CONVERSATIONS, PART I & II, ACTIVATED + INCLUSIVE: DYNAMIC MIXED-USE ENVIRONMENTS, WATER MANAGEMENT IN A CHANGING CLIMATE: INSECURITY, PED 101 – INTEGRATING PEDESTRIAN SAFETY AND COMFORT INTO EVERY STREETSCAPE
REGISTER HERE

Hunter Industries/FX Luminaire. Lunch & Learn Tuesday, August 23rd, Noon ASLA UT Offices 280 S 400 W, SLC REGISTER HERE

REMEMBER to VOTE! ASLA UT Executive Committee Elections

VOTE HERE

Omega II Fence Systems - Lunch & Learn Wednesday, August 7th, Noon ASLA UT Offices 280 S 400 W REGISTER HERE

ASLA National Conference on Landscape Architecture November 11-14, 2022 San Francisco, CA REGISTER HERE

Leadership Express

Adam Castor, Chapter President

Hello ASLA Utah!

I hope you are all staying busy and having an enjoyable summer. With the dog days of summer rapidly approaching, so too are some exciting ASLA events and activities that we are working on at the chapter level.Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Voting: The ballot for this year’s election has been issued. If you haven’t already, please take a moment to cast your vote for the three nominees for President Elect, VP of Membership & Membership Services, and Secretary, or provide a write-in nominee. On the ballot this year are Paul Stead for President Elect, Tyler Smithson for VP of Membership & Membership Services, and Ladd Schiess for Secretary. A big thank you to these gentlemen for their willingness to join the executive committee! There are also numerous sub-committee positions open, so if you are interested in filling a position and becoming involved in the chapter, please reach out to anyone on the executive committee.

We Need Your Help: There are some upcoming committee opportunities to volunteer for within the ASLA Utah chapter and also a board position to fill at the state of Utah. It would be great to see more of our membership get involved in these opportunities. In coordination with ASLA, we are beginning to organize the following committees:

Climate Action Committee – During the spring Chapter President’s Committee (CPC) meeting, ASLA challenged each state chapter to create a committee focused on collaborative research, climate positive design, and education, and to support ASLA’s climate action plan. Our goal would be to first select a climate action leader and then create a support committee to begin building a climate action strategy and network, as well as participate in regional climate-focused events. The wheels are already in motion in our region, particularly in Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. If you are passionate about the negative impacts of a changing climate and would like to participate in making a difference, please let me or Seth Bockholt know. We have had some good conversations with these other states’ chapter presidents and would like to see the Utah chapter become more engaged.
Strategic Plan – Shortly after the annual conference last year, ASLA unveiled its updated strategic plan for 2022-2024. In an effort to better align each chapter’s strategic plan with ASLA, we have been encouraged to create a strategic plan committee that will meet once or twice per year to review our chapter’s strategic plan, compare it to ASLA’s strategic plan, and make recommendations for updates and changes. There are still questions to be answered and logistics to be sorted out as this committee develops, but the first step is identifying Utah chapter members that are interested in participating. This is a great opportunity to share your thoughts, concerns, and ideas on how the chapter serves its membership, on the issues that the chapter is focused on, how we advocate for the landscape architecture profession, and how we support the ASLA organization.
ASLA Virtual Advocacy Day – On September 29, 2002 ASLA will be holding a national Virtual Advocacy Day which includes an on-line meeting between congressional leadership within each state and members from each state’s ASLA chapter. We are looking for at least three members interested in joining this meeting for a discussion with our elected leaders and representatives on the value of landscape architects and the importance of professional licensure, among other things. There will be more information and details about this event coming soon, but if you feel like this is something you would like to participate in, please reach out to me or Thomas Eddingtion, VP of Advocacy.
Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing (DOPL) – There is currently an opportunity to fill a vacant position on the Utah Landscape Architecture Board. This is a five-person board made up of four licensed landscape architects and one member of the general public. The current members include Ole Russell Sleipness (LA), Jay Bollwinkle (LA), Josh Sundloff (LA), and Corinna Harris (Public). David Garce (LA) recently resigned from his position as chairperson, which created the vacant position on the board. DOPL has reached out to ASLA Utah with a request to provide three nominees for their review to fill this position. If you, or another landscape architect that you know, would be interested in pursuing this opportunity, please let me know. If we don’t receive any willing nominees, the executive committee will select at least three landscape architects we feel would make a good candidate for the position and then notify each nominee and coordinate a submittal to DOPL, which reviews each of the nominees’ resumes and ultimately makes the final appointment for the governor’s approval. Due to potential conflicts of interest, current officers of professional associations are viewed by DOPL as inappropriate nominees for this position.

Calendar Updates - Here is a look forward to what is coming up on the ASLA Utah calendar:

National Site Tour Month – August 2022
ASLA Utah Annual Conference on Landscape Architecture – September 8-9, 2022
Park(ing) Day – September 2022
ASLA Virtual Advocacy Day – September 29, 2022
Awards Banquet – October 2022
ASLA CPC Meetings – November 9-10, 2022
ASLA Conference on Landscape Architecture – November 11-14, 2022

Here a couple of updates from ASLA:

ASLA Conference in San Francisco – Designing A Better Future

There’s only one week left to register for the ASLA 2022 Conference at the early-bird rate. Register by July 27th to get the early-bird rate. Join 6,500 of your peers, learn about the 120 education sessions, 25 field sessions, 6 Deep dive sessions and 3 LARE prep workshops. Visit aslaconference.com and take advantage of the savings. REGISTER HERE

Are you planning to take the LARE and are attending the ASLA 2022 Conference on Landscape Architecture? Register for the LARE Prep workshops by July 27th to get a steeper discount. For sections 1, 2, and 3 prep courses, only $75. Section 4 is $115 before July 27th .

Have you seen these field sessions at the ASLA 2022 Conference on Landscape Architecture? Quantifying Climate Resilience in the Public Environment, Buzzing Through Pollinator Gardens, and Urban Wild in Transition: How a Landfill Became a Community Treasure. Explore all 25 field sessions. Space is limited for all field sessions.

Public Relations - NEW Park(ing) Day with Schools

This year, ASLA brings Park(ing) Day to PreK-12 schools, libraries, and community centers across the country! And this year Park(ing) Day isn't just one day, but a full weekend -- September 16-18, 2022. Let’s help students re-imagine streets one parking space at a time. Using a parking space in front of a school, library, or community center, landscape architects can partner with PreK-12 students to think outside the classroom. Help students discover how to improve our public spaces, strengthen social connections, and boost health and well-being.

ASLA is announcing this a little earlier this year so the chapters can start planning with PreK-12 schools. I look forward to catching up and seeing you all at an upcoming event, and hopefully before then talking more about the committee opportunities at ASLA Utah. Thank you for your continued support and all that you do for the chapter.

Adam Castor, ASLA Chapter President

ASLA Utah Annual Conference

Seth Bockholt, Past President

CONFERENCE SCHEDULE

Day 1: September 8th, Radisson Hotel, Salt Lake City

Kicking off the conference with a hearty breakfast at the general session where you will have time to catch up with colleagues. Keynote speaker Mark Johnson and other sessions will provide Continuing Education Credits to fulfill your requirement for licensure and the Vendor Expo will provide access to over 30 expert consultants, manufacturers, and suppliers.

Day 2: September 9th, Salt Lake City Public Library Main Branch

The educational sessions will begin with a quiz intended to diagnosis your design-business acumen; helping you choose which breakout sessions to focus on attending. Specific sessions will include classes on various aspects of the business of design including:

Sales - Sessions on the advantages of specialization, marketing and pricing models.
Administration - Sessions on contracts, healthy work environment & design business accounting.
Operations - Project management, teaming models and design process’.

Lunch will be provided and enjoyed on the courtyard.

Don’t miss out on this unique opportunity to grow your business acumen. Whether you want to start your own firm someday, raise the bar with your current practice, or learn how to be a more valuable team player, this year’s ASLA UT conference will provide a lot of fun and growth opportunities for all!

ASLA UT ANNUAL CONFERENCE

KEYNOTE SPEAKER - MARK W. JOHNSON, FASLA

Mark Johnson graduated from Utah State in 1975, extending his internship at Maas and Grassli in Ogden into full employment. He later moved to Jones and Jones, where he was both an exhibit designer and leader of river and watershed planning efforts. Following a year of european travels, he graduated from Harvard University in Urban Design in 1982. He moved to Denver in 1983 and became co-founder of Civitas.

Civitas has grown into a nationally prominent firm in the design of public spaces and infill redevelopment. Founded with the mission "To Engage People with Nature in Cities", Civitas has gone on to projects across the US, Canada and in Europe, Asia and the Middle East. The mission has become even more relevant and needed following the lessons of the Covid pandemic.

Mark is also a co-founder and current chair of the CEO Rountable, an informal group of 25 firm leaders who have been meeting bi-annualy for more than 25 years. The group exists to share the challenges to landscape architecture as a profession. Over the years the Roundtable has taken on topics including education, best practices, the identity and positioning of the profession, and, notably, business issues related to sustaining high impact national and global practices.

Mark is a frequent lecturer at universities, ASLA, ULI, the UK Landscape Institute, the Salus Network and the International Academy of Desgn and Health. He was previously Chair of the Editorial Committee of Landscape Architecture Magazine and later Harvard Design Magazine; Chair of the ASLA Committee on Policy; and current Treasurer of the Van Alen Institute, New York.

Member Spotlight

Tyler Smithson, Chair Awards and Membership Committee

Rob Hussey

ASLA Utah Member, Arch Nexus

What led you to landscape architecture?

UW-Madison had an LA program and no Arch program, which is a big part of the reason I tried it initially, but realized very quickly how interesting I found the subject matter to be. It sounds so obvious now, but the idea that outdoor spaces are designed specifically to evoke certain feelings and accommodate a particular experience or activity really resonated with me. Almost like learning another language, suddenly I was able to understand why some places that I had traveled to felt so impactful or special – the thought of being able to create those types of places was (and is) very exciting to me. I was also attracted to the combination of art and science, and that Landscape Architecture is can be an “outdoor activity” by nature.

· What is your favorite part of your practice?

So far, I have really enjoyed putting thought into and designing ways to combine beautiful design with ecological functions (particularly stormwater management/water conservation), I am excited to continue learning and to implement those ideas. I have learned over the last couple years how important it is for an LA to advocate for environmentally sensitive design on all projects.

· What is your favorite hobby?

Mountain biking in the summer, skiing in the winter. Skiing if I had to choose one.

· What do you find inspiring?

Landscape Architects are uniquely positioned to face the challenges we are facing as urban areas continue to grow and more stress is put on existing infrastructure (both green and gray) and the ecosystems we’re a part of. We will need to play an important role in future development to reverse existing issues and contribute to solutions.

Special Thanks to ASLA Utah Sponsors & Corporate Partners for their Support!

Learn More About Our Sponsors

CLICK HERE TO BECOME A 2022 SPONSOR or Corporate Partner

ASLA UTAH APRIL 2022 NEWSLETTER

April 29, 2022 by ASLA Utah

ASLA UTAH APRIL 2022 NEWSLETTER

UPCOMING EVENTS

LA’s GIRLS NIGHT OUT - RAIN BIRD
Tuesday, May 17th, 5:00pm - 7:00pm
Cactus & Tropicals, 12252 Draper Gate Drive, Draper Space limited to 25 - RSVP HERE

VICTOR STANLEY Live Virtual Learning Event 1.0 PDH (pending)
Thursday, May 12th, 12:00pm Instructor: Shawn T. Kelly, PLA, FASLA
REGISTER HERE

2022 ACEC Build Business Summit, May 12-13 Conference Center at Miller Campus 9750 S 300 W, Sandy ASLA UT gets member rate. More info: HERE

SAVE THE DATE!! ASLA Utah Annual Conference
September 8th & 9th
More Detail Coming Soon!

CALL FOR NOMINATIONS! ASLA UT Executive Committee Open Positions: Pres. Elect, Secretary, VP of Marketing/Visibility, VP of Membership. Contact: Jake Powell, jake.powell@usu.edu

CALL FOR ENTRIES ASLA Utah Professional Awards Entries due 5:00 pm Friday, June 24. CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO

Leadership Express

Adam Castor, Chapter President

Spring is such a wonderful time in Utah! It is so refreshing to finally see the early season bloomers that don’t mind a few inches of snow and an overnight freeze, the variety of flowering trees and shrubs showing off vibrant pinks, whites, reds, and yellows, and the array of greens set off by emerging conifer trees and grasses of all kinds.

As landscape architects we are so fortunate to have projects that allow us to get out of the office and into the field to see our design work either becoming a reality or coming back to life after a winter of dormancy; to be able to design with plant materials and create spaces that can have such a profound impact on our human senses, through all of the seasons; to be able to engage the environments that make Utah such a special place.

In recognition of Frederick Law Olmsted’s 200th birthday and the profession of landscape architecture, Red Butte Gardens hosted a celebration of Olmsted’s influence here in Utah. David Hart, AIA Fellow, provided a history of the Utah Capitol building dating back to the late 1700s and into the 1800s and the involvement of John Olmstead in the development of the master plan for the capitol building site. David’s presentation also highlighted the changes made to Olmsted’s master plan by German architect Richard Kletting and the efforts to implement many of Olmsted’s early ideas back into the renovation of the site and the construction of new buildings. Cynthia Bee provided a presentation on Frederick Law Olmsted’s notable projects, writings, and career moves, as well as his influence on her work designing residential landscapes. This event was well attended and it was a great opportunity to showcase the profession of landscape architecture.

The executive- and sub-committees have been busy this month with celebrations for World Landscape Architecture Month and Fredrick Law Olmsted’s 200th birthday, organizing our call for professional awards nominees, and the USU student awards. In addition, we have made a call for nominees for the upcoming 2022 ballot. There are several positions open on the executive committee and plenty of opportunities to become a part of a subcommittee. Please consider adding your name to the ballot, or nominating someone that you feel would make a good addition to the Utah chapter.

Here is a look at what is happening nationally at ASLA:

Chapter Presidents Committee (CPC)

The spring CPC meetings are being held virtually on April 28th and 29th. The agenda for the spring meetings includes a variety of topics such as government affairs, an update on ASLA national from CEO Torey Carter-Conneen, ASLA presidential candidate speeches and questions, climate action committee, membership update, chapter strategic planning and discussion workshop, membership dues, and membership discussion workshop. The CPC meetings are sure to be information packed and will be attended by Utah chapter leadership.

Government Affairs Take Action - Olmsted Proclamation Introduced in Congress

This year, April 26 marks the bicentennial of the birth of Frederick Law Olmsted, the founder of American landscape architecture. To recognize this occasion and raise public awareness of the profession, ASLA urges you to ask your congressional representatives for their support on H. Res. 1013. This proclamation will not only recognize Olmsted for his many contributions, it will also help to educate the public on landscape architecture’s historical and present significance. It will serve as a reminder of the impact that design choices invariably have on community, opportunity, and equity. It only takes a moment to send a letter to your legislator. Take action today!

Honors and Awards Student Awards Call for Entries - Each year, the ASLA Student Awards honor the best in landscape architecture from around the globe. Submissions are welcome in General Design, Residential Design, Analysis and Planning, Urban Design, Communications, Research, Student Community Service Award, and the Student Collaboration Award. Award recipients receive featured coverage in Landscape Architecture Magazine, the magazine of ASLA, and in many other design and construction industry and general-interest media. Award recipients, and their clients will be honored at the awards presentation ceremony during the 2022 ASLA Conference on Landscape Architecture in San Francisco.

· Entry Registration Fees Due: Friday, May 13 by 11:59 pm PST. · Submission Deadline: Friday, May 23 by 11:59 pm PST

Professional Practice ASLA Affinity Partner Webinar: Land Kit - May 3, 2022, 11:00pm - INFO HERE
Join ASLA for a presentation to learn how Land Kit can help you create workflows that will speed up your 3D Modeling, Design, and Visualization processes and develop more efficient and fluid workflows. Chris Landau will present the features and opportunities offered by the landscape plugin Land Kit. Speaker: Chris Landau, Affiliate ASLA, Principal, LANDAU Design+Technology

Thank you to all of our sponsors and members for your continued support of the ASLA Utah Chapter. We appreciate all that you do and look forward to seeing you all at upcoming events.

Adam Castor, ASLA Chapter President

WLAM Service Project

Aaron Johnson, VP of Visibility & Public Affairs

Hello! I hope everyone is having a great World Landscape Architecture Month (WLAM)! As this month wraps up I wanted to give an update on how the Utah ASLA Chapter shared/celebrated the profession of landscape architecture.

On April 23rd (day after Earth Day) we joined the Taylorsville City and their Parks and Recreation Committee to plant over 350 native/water wise plants in a local Labrum Park in Taylorsville. The goal of the project was to identify areas where traditional turf grass could be replaced with water wise/native plant material while creating an identity for Taylorsville parks and educating residents on how to create water wise landscapes in their own yards. The project began as an idea back in 2019 and after a Covid-19 delay funding was secured by Taylorsville City and the Landscape Leadership Grant from the Jordan Valley Water Conservation District. Over the past year members of the community and Taylorsville Parks and Recreation Committee donated their time after work and on weekends to dig up grass, lay path edging, move dirt, pull weeds, install irrigation, and lay weed barrier fabric. All of which culminated in the April 23rd Loving Labrum Park activity where we battled the weather and uncertainty to create a beautiful place for residents to come and learn about our environment.

Live Earth sponsored the event by providing refreshments and donating their product to use on the plants! We were lucky enough to have the weather cooperate with us and only sprinkle on us for a few minutes (despite the predicted weather all week). Amazingly, we had close to 35-40 volunteers to come help! An amazing turn out considering the weather. This crew of amazing volunteers consisted of Taylorsville residents, Utah ASLA members, elected officials, youth council members, and anyone who drove by and wanted to help. Families of all ages helping, friends and neighbors, and new friends all joined together to sweat, work, laugh, and get muddy to help the community they loved. It was an amazing experience and one that I will not soon forget.

Thanks to all those who came and gave their support and volunteered their time! Huge thank you to Live Earth for sponsoring the event! As we go forward trying to make this world a better place, please remember, that change/impact begins with a simple idea. Anyone can make a difference.

USU LAEP Awards Banquet

Adam Castor, ASLA UT President

On Friday, April 15th the LAEP department at Utah State University held their annual awards banquet at the Logan Country Club where faculty and students were recognized for their outstanding work and achievements in landscape architecture. I had the opportunity to travel up to Logan to present the ASLA student awards, but I was invited to come up ahead of the banquet to visit the sophomore Analysis and Design studio and to sit in for the Friday speaker series featuring Billy Fleming. It was great to engage with the students and to see the team project that they were collaborating and working on, which would make an incredible improvement to the campus on the east side of the Fine Arts building.

The awards banquet was well attended by both faculty and students, as well as our Executive Director Jenny Sonntag and members from the Advancement Board. On behalf of the ASLA Utah chapter, I would like to congratulate all of the award nominees and winners. Here are the awards that were presented at the awards banquet:

Outstanding Sophomore: Mary Claire Jennings

Outstanding Junior: Corinne Bahr and Braya Robbins

Senior Faculty Medal: Hannah Hanks and Cooper Parson

Outstanding 1st Year Grad: Addison Martin

Outstanding 2nd Year Grad: Sam Johnson

Graduate Student Faculty Medal: Katelynn Hall and Lloyd Sutton

Outstanding Faculty Award: Todd Johnson

Olmsted Scholar Nominees: Nairobi Jimenez (undergraduate) and Lloyd Sutton (graduate)

Outstanding Students – every single LAEP student

ASLA Honor Award: Lloyd Sutton (graduate)

ASLA Merit Award: Derek Jenson (graduate)

ASLA Honor Award: Hallee Kinikin (undergraduate)

ASLA Honor Award: Nairobi Jimenez (undergraduate)

ASLA Honor Award: Nikki Holbrook (undergraduate)

*An Homage to Frederick Law Olmsted on the Occasion of his 200th Birthday*

**Michael Timmons, Professor Emeritus, USU LAEP**

It is a fool’s errand to attempt to convey the enormity of Olmsted in a brief essay, let alone in a course of landscape history. Sadly, those few lectures suffered by most landscape architects during their college education forms the extent of our awareness of his contributions. We know the story of Central Park; we can list a handful of his notable projects; we are aware of his letter to the NYC Board of Park Commissioners in 1858, offering his resignation as park designer and signed Messrs Olmsted and Vaux, Landscape Architects, which we take to be the first use of that title and the “birth of our profession”. We are also likely familiar with his poetic words outlining our profession first penned in Walks and Talks of an American Farmer in England, 1850, and later repeated in his letter to the Board of Commissioners of Central Park, May 20, 1858, upon his appointment as Architect-in-Chief:

“What artist so noble as he who, with far-reaching conception of beauty and designing power, sketches the outlines, writes the colors, and directs the shadows, of a picture so great that Nature shall be employed upon it for generations, before the work he has arranged for her shall realize his intentions!”

But to scratch beneath the surface is to gain an appreciation of a remarkable human being. My own discovery and fascination with Olmsted began with a move to Massachusetts to begin my professional career, and later, graduate studies. So often I would find myself wandering the paths of Boston’s Emerald Necklace, entranced by the vision and artistry of the man who had sculpted and planted this landscape a century earlier. My good fortune to enroll in a graduate school elective course at Harvard, 50 years ago was, I have to say, transformative. The course was entitled “Frederick Law Olmsted and the American Environmental Tradition”, and was taught by noted Olmsted scholar Albert Fein, who had published his book by the same title earlier that year.

Fein wove together the biographical threads of a career so unpredictable, it would defy the imagination of a most creative writer of fiction. From civil engineering apprentice, to clerk in a dry-goods store, to cabin boy on a steamer to China; from farmer to journalist to editor/co-owner of Putnam’s Monthly and co-founder of The Nation (the oldest continuously published weekly magazine in the United States); from author of numerous works chronicling his travels through England and the antebellum southern slave states, including The Cotton Kingdom, to designer and Architect-in-Chief of Central Park; from Executive Secretary of the pre-cursor of the Red Cross (US Sanitary Commission) serving Union Forces in the Civil War, to authoring the report of the Yosemite Commission to the Governor of California, outlining the purpose and value of what would later become Yosemite National Park; and from designing some 100 parks, to establishing an office with his two sons that would create over 6,000 planned/designed landscapes across North America. But perhaps more profound than this tangible chronology was the set of environmental and social values he infused into the fledgling profession that grew from his efforts. Fein’s course jolted me into a realization that Olmsted was about far more than creating pastoral landscape scenes.

One wonders, with his practical take on politics and ability to succeed in the face of extreme political bickering, what role he may have played if he were present among us today? Would his skill and savvy have been able to navigate the great rift that so bitterly divides us?

Public Lands and Open Space

As I walk the trails system above my home in Logan with my dog, (not coincidentally named Olmsted), I gaze across the valley reflecting on past, present, and future. While I enjoy a network of public parks and open spaces that would have been unimaginable in 1822, I wonder at the same time if we are forward-focused enough.

I note in the recent Earth Day issue of the Salt Lake Tribune, that Utah lost an estimated 713 square miles of natural and agricultural open space between 1982 and 2017 to development and urban sprawl driven by record levels of population growth. The article observes that nationally, a new study tallies a total of 68,000 square miles of vanished open spaces over that same time … larger than the entire land mass of the State of Florida. Olmsted would be urging us to be proactive in encouraging smart growth and preserving space for our grandchildren. He would be saddened at the deterioration of our national parks due to underfunding, and outraged at the push by our representatives to privatize public lands.

Global Environment

The catastrophic threat to our global environment would have been beyond his wildest nightmare, but the sustainable practices he followed, had they been embraced, may have prevented us from reaching our present situation. Olmsted would ask how a humankind so advanced that we can explore the solar system and look down on planet earth 1,000 miles below from a satellite window, allow our home to succumb to a spiral of self destruction? Indeed, the man who envisioned converting a landfill in Manhattan into a verdant green-lung serving 1.7 million souls would be urging us to forgo short-term comforts, suck it up, and move forward posthaste to salvage our very future.

Social Reform

To Olmsted, creating parks and open space was not an end in and of itself, but a means of improving quality of life for urban dwellers, particularly the poor:

“It is one great purpose of the Park to supply to the hundreds of thousands of tired workers, who have no opportunity to spend their summers in the country, a specimen of God's handiwork that shall be to them, inexpensively, what a month or two in the White Mountains or the Adirondacks is, at great cost, to those in easier circumstances.”

Prior to Central Park, Olmsted made journeys through the South, writing detailed commentary on general industry and life style. His keen observations and vivid descriptions of inhumane and unjust treatment of enslaved blacks were printed in journals in the largely oblivious northern states, and eventually bound as a series of books raising awareness of the cruel practice of slavery. Promoting a clear message that black lives mattered, would he think about continuing racial inequality 120 years after his own death?

Medical Care

In 1862, driven by a sense of moral obligation, he took a leave from ongoing work with Central Park to offer his services as Secretary of the US Sanitary Commission. His accounts from the battlefield detailing the horrific conditions being suffered by severely wounded and ailing troops, cried out for the provision of humane treatment and advances in scientific medicine. More broadly, he urged a greater responsibility of government and society in general to address issues of public health. What would he have said about a health care system 160 years later which, despite our great wealth as a nation, still cannot provide universal health care for all?

War

Serving the Union forces during the Civil War, he spoke of atrocities of war that should be unthinkable in 2022. What would a man who questioned how Northern and Southern brothers could be killing each other in 1862 think to see Russian troops slaughtering Ukranian brothers, sisters, and children 160 years later?

“The possession of arbitrary power has always, the world over, tended irresistibly to destroy humane sensibility, magnanimity, and truth”

On this, the bicentennial of his birth, I would encourage every landscape architect to venture on a pilgrimage to more fully understand the importance and relevance of his Olmsted’s work to our contemporary world and practice. A personal visit to some of his masterworks is unequaled as a means of gaining an appreciation of his true genius. A few years ago, I was privileged to undertake a brief internship at the Olmsted Center for Historic Landscape Preservation at Fairsted, Olmsted’s home and office in Brookline, Massachusetts, and now the Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site. Sitting at my desk in what was his bedroom, looking out the window at the Olmsted elm which had been planted around 1810 and around which he had designed his own domestic landscape, I could quite literally sense his spirit.

If you are unable to undertake a physical pilgrimage, I encourage reading either from his own works, or the excellent biography by Rybczynski, A Clearing in the Distance. For a jump start, I’d suggest a visit to the National Association for Olmsted Parks website at https://www.olmsted.org/the-olmsted-legacy/frederick-law-olmsted-sr and the website of the Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site https://www.nps.gov/frla/index.htm.

Lastly, consider how we, as landscape architects of the 21st Century, can pay homage to the wisdom of our founder 200 years after his birth. Are we promoting the well being of all levels of society through our work? Are we truly embodying sustainability in everything we do … every choice of materials from plant pallet to hardscape embodying low carbon footprint? Are we raising our voices, imbued with the wisdom and moral compass of Olmsted, to fight for the protection of our public lands, and to create democratic green spaces in the face of ever-increasing urbanization/suburbanization of our world?

Special Thanks to ASLA Utah Sponsors & Corporate Partners for their Support in 2021 and look forward to working with you in 2022!! Renew your Sponsorship Here

Learn More About Our Sponsors

CLICK HERE TO BECOME A 2022 SPONSOR or Corporate Partner

ASLA UTAH MARCH 2022 NEWSLETTER

March 30, 2022 by ASLA Utah

ASLA UTAH MARCH 2022 NEWSLETTER

UPCOMING EVENTS

SAVE THE DATE!! ASLA Utah Annual Conference
September 8th & 9th
More Detail Coming Soon!

WORLD LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE MONTH
Saturday, April 23rd, 9am-10:30am
T.John Labrum Memorial Park, 6020 S 1900 W. Taylorsville RSVP HERE

CALL FOR NOMINATIONS! ASLA UT Executive Committee Open Positions: Pres. Elect, Secretary, VP of Marketing/Visibility, VP of Membership. Contact: Jake Powell, jake.powell@usu.edu

CALL FOR ENTRIES ASLA Utah Professional Awards Entries due 5:00 pm Friday, June 24. CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO

Leadership Express

Adam Castor, Chapter President

Greetings ASLA Utah,

I hope that this finds you all doing well and enjoying some time outside in this nice spring weather that we have had. It’s hard to believe that we’re already at the end of March, but with World Landscape Architecture Month (WLAM) and the celebration of Frederick Law Olmsted’s 200th birthday coming up in April, we’re looking forward to some opportunities to get outside again and celebrate landscape architecture.

Also, there is an opportunity to meet up at Red Butte Garden in April for a bicentennial celebration of Frederick Law Olmsted, America’s foremost landscape architect. Spend an evening learning about Olmsted’s consequential design imprint on America’s landscape, as well as his numerous contributions as an author and conservationist. This event will also feature lectures from AIA Fellow, David L. Hart, and Cynthia Bee, award-winning public speaker and sustainable landscape expert.

Student Awards. On Tuesday the annual student awards jury was held for Honor and Merit awards. I was fortunate to be asked to participate on this jury again, along with David Anderson and David Evans from the USU LAEP department, Hailey Wall from LOCI, and Kyle Funk from Loft 6/4. This year there were two nominees from the graduate program: Lloyd Sutton and Derek Johnson; and three senior nominees from the undergraduate program: Hallee Kinikin, Nairoby Jemenez, and Nikki Holbrook. All of the nominees were required to submit a two-minute video and their portfolio, which were all very well done. It is great to see the amazing quality of work that is coming out of the LAEP graduate and undergraduate programs, and I am looking forward to presenting the awards at the awards banquet on April 15th in Logan.

Now for some ASLA National News:

APRIL IS WORLD LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE MONTH! For #WLAM2022, we explore: What is landscape architecture? What does landscape architecture mean to you? ASLA invites you to post your answers on your social media channels throughout the month of April. And since this year, on April 26th, we’ll celebrate Frederick Law Olmsted’s 200th birthday feel free to incorporate his legacy into your answer. By the end of April, ASLA National will identify the top five posts based on the number of Likes and Comments, but make sure you tag your post with the hashtag #WLAM2022 so it can be tracked. All details and images can be found at: https://www.asla.org/WLAM2022

NEW ASLA iAdvocate 101 – Amplifying Your Voice. Do you want to learn more about making your voice heard with legislators on Capitol Hill or in your State Legislature? Do you have questions about ASLA’s iAdvocate network or just want to learn more about our indispensable grassroots technology? If so, please join the ASLA Government Affairs team for a webinar – ASLA iAdvocate 101 – on Wednesday, April 6, at 1:00 pm MST. The government affairs team will discuss the why and what of our grassroots advocacy system, and who can join iAdvocate. The team will also address how chapters can use the iAdvocate for state grassroots campaigns. All ASLA members are invited to join. REGISTER HERE

Member Discounts. Did you know ASLA has a bunch of discounts available for members to help with their practice/office needs? Our affinity partnerships provide member discounts for things like practice insurance, home and auto insurance, medical insurance group rates for small business/sole-proprietors, cyber insurance, discounts for purchases from Office Depot/Office Max (download the membership card from our page) and more. All can be viewed here after you login on asla.org. Members that take advantage of these offers can pay their membership dues on the savings alone.

State Government Affairs As of March 14, thirty-seven states are convened for legislative session. ASLA staff is tracking 180 occupational licensing bills. The State Government Affairs team continues to work closely with several chapters on legislative advocacy initiatives. More information on state licensure and legislation can be found HERE

The State Government Affairs team joined CLARB to host a quarterly Web Licensure Summit on Thursday, March 10. Nearly 60 individuals received a report on recent legislative activity and heard an update on CLARB's Uniform Standard recommendation. The web summit also provided information on the newly launched Women of Color Licensure Advancement Program.

As always, please feel free to reach out to me or anyone on the executive committee with questions or thoughts.

Cheers! Adam Castor, Chapter President

World Landscape Architecture Month (WLAM)

Aaron Johnson, VP of Visibility & Public Affairs

World Landscape Architecture Month (WLAM) is here! Every year in April National ASLA, in conjunction with the state chapters, launches a large media campaign to promote the profession of Landscape Architecture through social media, community interaction, print media, interviews and volunteer activities. The Utah Chapter of ASLA is excited to participate and we have a great plan to promote our wonderful profession!

This year for WLAM we will provide a series of Instagram posts and stories highlighting the history of landscape architecture in Utah and its affect on our communities. We will showcase a few projects that have helped create amazing spaces dedicated to improving our lives. The beauty and importance of our profession is not only the impact it has on our environment but the impact it has on the people who interact with it every day.

History has shown that the Utah Chapter of ASLA loves and prioritizes opportunities to serve the community. Last year we helped clean up a section of the Jordan River by the Tracy Aviary and had a great turn out. This year for the WLAM service opportunity we will be assisting the Taylorsville Parks and Recreation Committee in their Loving Labrum Park activity. The Parks and Rec Committee have been volunteering nights and weekends to remove an underused portion of grass and create an educational garden of water-wise and native plants. The goal of the project is to inspire residents of Taylorsville to remove their wasteful grass and conserve water by planting native plants at their own homes. We will be planting over 300 plants in a previously underused area of a great park in a wonderful community.

Winter Social

We kicked off 2022 with the Winter Social event on Thursday March 10th. It was really good to meet in-person and catch up with some of our sponsors and members again, we can’t thank you all enough for the support that you provide to the Chapter. For those sponsors and members that weren’t able to make it, we missed you and hopefully we’ll see you in April.

Special Thanks to ASLA Utah Sponsors & Corporate Partners for their Support in 2021 and look forward to working with you in 2022!! Renew your Sponsorship Here

Learn More About Our Sponsors

CLICK HERE TO BECOME A 2022 SPONSOR or Corporate Partner

ASLA UTAH FEBUARY 2022 NEWSLETTER

February 28, 2022 by ASLA Utah

ASLA UTAH FEBRUARY 2022 NEWSLETTER

UPCOMING EVENTS

SAVE THE DATE!! ASLA Utah Annual Conference
September 8th & 9th
More Detail Coming Soon!

WINTER SOCIALASLA Utah Annual Conference
Thursday, March 10th, 6:30pm
ASLA UT Office, 280 S 400 W RSVP HERE

Leadership Express

Adam Castor, Chapter President

Hello ASLA Utah Chapter Members!

I hope you are all doing well and staying busy. Each month ASLA sends CPC News and Leadership Express to its chapter presidents, which helps keep us up to date on current events happening at the national level and within other state chapters. There is an incredible amount of information that is provided by ASLA about a lot of things going on, too much to share in our newsletter. But in the spirit of sharing information and keeping you all up to date, here are a few notable topics from the February CPC News and Leadership Express:

Honors and Awards: Accepting Entries for the ASLA Professional and Student Awards. Submissions are now open for the ASLA 2022 Professional and Student Awards! Each year, the ASLA Professional Awards honor the best in landscape architecture from around the globe. At the same time, the ASLA Student Awards give us a glimpse into the profession’s future. Recipients receive coverage in Landscape Architecture Magazine and are honored at the awards presentation ceremony during the ASLA Conference on Landscape Architecture in San Francisco, November 11-14, 2022.

Highlights: On February 1, ASLA kicked off its Black History Month celebration with the Black Landscape Architects Network (BlackLAN). This year, ASLA's celebration of Black History Month is dedicated to the BlackLAN and the advancements made within the organization over just the last year.

Development and Strategic Partners: The ASLA Fund is raising money for ASLA’s inaugural Minecraft Design Camps to take place in underserved high schools around the country in conjunction with ASLA Chapters. You can sponsor a school to participate in these camps here.

Public Relations, Communications, and Marketing: A video of the ASLA 2030 Vision presentation at the ASLA Conference on Landscape Architecture by immediate past ASLA President Tom Mroz, FASLA, and ASLA CEO Torey Carter-Conneen, along with the 2022-2024 Strategic Plan with milestones, was publicly released and incorporated into the About ASLA section and home page of ASLA.org. For future reference, please go to About ASLA to review and share the 2030 Vision and 2022-2024 Strategic Plan with milestones.

Landscape Architecture Magazine: Landscape Architecture Magazine Online’s website design refresh is scheduled to debut in April, World Landscape Architecture Month. When complete, the emphasis will be on making the magazine’s extensive online content mobile friendly and easier to find and share, as well as introducing and testing new features in anticipation of the 2023 launch of the new LAM Online.

Government Affairs: As of Monday, February 14, forty-five states were convened for legislative session. Staff is tracking 165 occupational licensing bills. The state government affairs team has worked closely with several chapters on legislative advocacy initiatives.

State Government Affairs is also working closely with the Idaho/Wyoming Chapter to voice concerns on the creation of a combined landscape architecture and architecture board. This newly created combined board would provide unequal representation, giving architects sole regulatory authority over landscape architect’s best interests.

Recently, the White House unveiled the Guidebook to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law – a roadmap to funding available under the law, which informs the public about what to apply for, who to contact, and available funding. ASLA also informed members about a series of training webinars on all the types of infrastructure funding available.

Professional Practice: On February 1, ASLA hosted The Year to Achieve: How to Grow Your Business with Bill Truby Achievements, ASLA’s newest affinity partnership. The webinar recording is now available in the ASLA Online Learning Library. ASLA members have access to a special discount for Truby Achievements leadership training courses, which can be found on ASLA's member benefits page under Affinity Partnerships.

Mentorship Program: ASLA’s Mentorship Program has a total of 174 active relationships, in addition to 46 that have already been completed. Additional mentors are still needed for the mentorship program. To register, please enroll here. Emerging professionals are now invited to enroll in the program as an added member benefit.

Here at Home

· March 10th – Winter Social. Always a good time to catch up with other landscape architects and an opportunity to thank our sponsors for all that they do for our chapter. I hope to see you all there.

· April – World Landscape Architecture Month (WLAM)

· September 8th – 9th – ASLA UT Annual Conference. I’m looking forward to meeting in person again at this year’s conference. Seth is compiling a meaningful agenda of topics and speakers, and the venue should provide a great experience for a two-day format. More details and information to come on that as well.

As always, please reach out with any questions, concerns, ideas, or you are interested in volunteering for a subcommittee position. Despite the political and social issues that we’re currently experiencing, it’s a good time to be a landscape architect and it’s a fun experience to be a part of the chapter executive and sub committees. We have a lot going on and welcome anyone interested in helping us meet our objectives.

Cheers! Adam Castor, Chapter President

World Landscape Architecture Month (WLAM)

Aaron Johnson, VP of Visibility/Public Affairs

It’s that time of the year again! World Landscape Architecture Month (WLAM) is coming soon in April. Every year in April National ASLA, in conjunction with the state chapters, launches a large media campaign to promote the profession of Landscape Architecture through social media, community interaction, print media, interviews and volunteer activities. The goal is to promote and showcase the importance of Landscape Architecture to government and elected officials, private developers and most importantly the public. I’m sure many of us have been asked the “What is landscape architecture exactly?... or… Can you mow my lawn?”, though these are great questions and a start they don’t quite encompass the dynamic capabilities our profession provides to our mental, physical, and emotional wellbeing. WLAM is our chance to provide a platform to spread the how important the profession of Landscape Architecture is to our built environments.

The Utah ASLA Chapter is proud to be a part of this movement and prioritize participating each year. In years past there has been an opportunity for each chapter to “takeover” the National ASLA Instagram page with projects and events that are happening locally in Utah. This year, however, there will not be an Instagram takeover rather a concentrated effort to reach our communities and local residents that make Utah so unique. To reach many individuals and families, the Utah ASLA Chapter will still be utilizing a variety of media platforms to showcase our great profession. To help us accomplish this goal we are asking for help from you! We are looking for unique, inspiring, beautiful, and meaningful landscape architecture projects that have made your communities one of a kind. Doesn’t have to be a park, it could be anything in our landscape or urban communities that have created a sense of place for you and your loved ones. Please reach out to me, Aaron Johnson, to submit, share ideas and for ways to get involved with WLAM 2022.

Please email a2ron1991@gmail.com to help promote the profession of Landscape Architecture

ASLA Utah 2022 Annual Conference

Seth Bockholt, Past President

The Business of Design

The ASLA UT 2022 Conference held September 8th and 9th on ‘The Business of Design’ will offer attendees education opportunities on the ins and outs of working in, starting, and running a design business. You will have the opportunity to learn from local business leaders in architecture, engineering, and landscape architecture highlighted with an insightful Key-Note address from Mark Johnson FASLA, founder of CIVITAS.
The conference will kick off with breakfast at the general session where you will have plenty of time to catch up with colleagues. Later, sessions will provide attendees Continuing Education Credits to fulfill their requirement for licensure and the Vendor EXPO will provide access to over 40 expert consultants, manufacturers, and suppliers.

The educational sessions will kick off on the morning of September 8th and begin with a quiz intended to diagnosis your design-business acumen; helping you choose which breakout sessions to focus on attending. Specific sessions will include classes on various aspects of the business of design including:

Sales - Sessions on the advantages of specialization, marketing and pricing models.
Administration - Sessions on contracts, healthy work environment & design business accounting.
Operations - Project management, teaming models and design process’.

Lunch will be provided during the session and Vendor EXPO and the first day will be capped off with a Principals Roundtable and questions and answer period.

Day two of the ASLA UT 2002 Conference September 9th, join your colleagues for breakfast at the Vendor EXPO and stay to visit with over 40 sponsoring manufacturers, suppliers, and consulting experts. Simple sessions will be held on the nuances of working with various client types such as Private Developers, Contractors on alternative delivery models, Government departments as well as sub consulting with architects and engineering firms. The conference will culminate with an inspiring keynote address by Mark Johnson, FASLA founder of CIVITAS.

Save the date! Don’t miss out on this unique opportunity to grow your business acumen. Whether you want to start your own firm someday, raise the bar with your current practice, or learn how to be a more valuable team player, this year’s ASLA UT conference will provide a lot of fun and growth opportunities for all!

Special Thanks to ASLA Utah Sponsors & Corporate Partners for their Support in 2021 and look forward to working with you in 2022!! Renew your Sponsorship Here

Learn More About Our Sponsors

CLICK HERE TO BECOME A 2022 SPONSOR or Corporate Partner

ASLA UTAH JANUARY 2022 NEWSLETTER

January 30, 2022 by ASLA Utah

ASLA UTAH JANUARY 2022 NEWSLETTER

UPCOMING EVENTS

SAVE THE DATE!! ASLA Utah Annual Conference
September 8th & 9th
More Detail Coming Soon!

LAEP Speaker Series
Friday, February 25th, 3:30pm
More Info: Click Here

Leadership Express

Adam Castor, Chapter President

I will admit that when two snowstorms in quick succession rolled through Utah in December and left deep snow across the Wasatch Front, I couldn’t help feeling hopeful that maybe it was the start of a series of winter storms that would help relieve the drought conditions in Utah and across the western United States. Unfortunately that hasn’t materialized yet, as we have just experienced another dry January here in Utah. But with our wettest months still to come I remain hopeful that our water conditions will improve over the coming months. In the meantime, I intend to continue pursuing ways to plan and design thoughtful communities and landscapes that reduce water consumption.

At the Chapter President’s Council meetings in Nashville last year, Seth Bockholt and I were able to connect with several chapter presidents from the other “four-corners” states. Over the past recent years Utah, Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico have all experienced similar drought conditions, record high summer temperatures, wild fires, population growth, and increasing demand on water resources. Naturally, these climate and population issues often became the topic of conversation at the CPC meetings and as a result, the four-corners chapter presidents are currently working on an opportunity for a virtual meet-and-greet and to organize discussions about the environmental issues we are facing, and what landscape architects are doing or what landscape architects can do to help address these issues through design and advocacy.

The idea of an annual intermountain region meeting/conference between the four corners chapters, as well as Idaho and Montana, has also been floated as a way to bring together members of these chapters around these critical issues. As these networking opportunities continue to evolve, it would be great to be able highlight projects and studies that Utah landscape architects have worked on, or are currently working on, that include climate positive design measures to address and mitigate climate change. If any of our members across the state have projects that could be shared and perhaps featured in a monthly newsletter, please reach out.

Stayed tuned for more details and updates on our collaboration with the four corners chapters, as well as our upcoming events: the winter social in March, World Landscape Architecture Month in April, and the 2022 annual conference.

Cheers!

Adam Castor, Chapter President

The Utah ASLA Memorial Scholarship

Aaron Johnson, VP of Visibility/Public Affairs & Geoff Ellis, Memorial Fund Chair

Over the past 50 years the Utah ASLA Memorial fund has been used to provide opportunities where previously there had been none. It has influenced landscape architecture in Utah, as well as helping to grow the profession on a national scale. Funds have been used in the construction of the ASLA National headquarters in Washington DC, and most recently it has provided a way for students to learn and grow in the profession.

Created in the memories of Happ Young and Karsten Hansen, pillars of the landscape architecture community in Utah, the purpose of the fund was defined as providing visibility for the profession and benefits to the general community in Utah. The Memorial Scholarship was established in 2012 for students in the LAEP Department at USU, with the first award granted in 2013.

Recent Scholarship Recipents:

2021/22 Logan Hall, MLA in prog.

2020/21 Saul Karamesines MsBRP in prog

Past Recipients:

2019-2020 - Survier Castillo 2018-2019 Patricia Beckert B+MLA in progress 2017-2018 Drew Hill - B+MLA 2016-2017 Emmeline Zenger - BLA '17 2015-2016 Hailey Wall - BLA '16 2014-2015 Sam Taylor - BLA '15 2013-2014 Kim Cloward Drown - MLA, '14

The Utah Chapter of ASLA recognizes the ever growing importance of the Memorial Scholarship within our community and is dedicated to helping it grow. Since 2012, the investments in the fund have done well, and we’ve been able to increase the scholarship amount from $1,000 to $1,500, making it one of the larger scholarships at LAEP. Even so, that amount does not go very far in today’s dollars, and we’d like to grow the fund to the point where it would provide a scholarship to cover an entire semester’s tuition.

To reach our goals we are excited to announce new opportunities for funding provided by our amazing sponsors and members, please reach out to Jenny Sonntag (uaslaexecutivedirector@gmail.com) to learn more! In addition, the Utah ASLA website will feature a brief history of the scholarship, highlight the past winners of the scholarship, and provide information on how members and sponsors can donate to the Memorial Scholarship Fund.

Go to: (utahasla.org/memorial-fund) for more information.

This fund has been touching the lives of students and the community for over 50 years! 2018 scholarship recipient Patricia Beckert said it best, “Since I was younger, I have the dream of getting higher education, but I did not have opportunities after finishing high school. In Peru, quality education is a privilege for the rich and powerful. Coming from another country, growing up in a single family household, and becoming the first generation in my family to go to college, I value educational opportunities because higher education is expensive, and this scholarship is helping me pay for part of my tuition this year.”

ASLA Utah Member Spotlight

Tyler Smithson, Membership Committee Chair

Brenda Wadsworth

Langvardt Design Group

ASLA UT: Why did you choose Landscape Architecture as your profession?

Brenda: I love being outside and I love design. When I was about 10 years old I drew up a design for our family farm in Hurricane, Utah; I created a ‘Vacation Village!’ I try not to think about what it would be worth today if it had been built.

ASLA UT: Tell us about your educational background and any past professional experience.

Brenda: I majored in Urban Planning at the University of Utah, at the time it was the closest program to ‘pre-architecture’. I didn’t know Landscape Architecture was a thing. As a planning intern I worked for a private economic analysis firm who teamed up with Landmark Design on a project in Flaming Gorge. Meeting Jan Striefel was absolutely inspiring. From talking to her and seeing her work I knew I wanted to be a landscape architect. But I was already on the ‘Planner Track.’ I worked for the state of Utah in the Governor’s Office of Planning and Budget on rural land use issues—federal and state land coordination policies— for a few years. It’s pretty divisive stuff. I have a few good stories about the old ‘Sagebrush Rebellion Ranchers’ and what was happening at the time the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument was designated. I wanted to get as far away as I could from western land use planning and policy, so I went to grad school in Syracuse, New York. SUNY college of Environmental Science and Forestry has a great Landscape Architecture program. Before starting, I spent a year in AmeriCorps working on a neighborhood revitalization initiative. I also had a baby! Attending grad school in landscape architecture with an infant is not a choice I’d recommend to a friend.

ASLA UT: How do you currently practice Landscape Architecture?

Brenda: HAHA! Probably like everyone else right now, I careen from deadline to deadline, hope I don’t make too many mistakes, and hope at least some of what we are doing turns out ok. That’s why it’s so important to have scheduled moments—like our conferences—to connect, learn, and remind ourselves that what we do is powerful and important.

ASLA UT: What project have you been involved in that you take great accomplishment in and why?

Brenda: One of the first residential projects I did on my own was super fulfilling. It was on the ‘urban-wildland interface’ in California. It was early in the ‘green design’ movement (which was ridiculous—it’s what we do anyway, right?) So the client was on board with harvesting water, planting native, attracting wildlife, and preserving the native oaks. Visiting the site a year later and seeing everything functioning, filling in, blooming, (although native plants are a challenge!) and best of all: birds, insects, and critters showing up! was a proud parent moment.

The Church of the Holy Family image was sourced from http://www.pamelaburtonco.com/projects/church-of-the-holy-f amily/.

ASLA UT: What is a project outside your design influence that impacted you greatly and inspires you?

Brenda: There are so many. I love ‘vernacular’ spaces like the warm urbanism of East Los Angeles. I aspire to create flexible and engaging public spaces where good things can happen. I had the chance to tour Pamela Burton’s Church of the Holy Family in Agoura Hills, California and hear her speak about it. SUBLIME.

Special Thanks to ASLA Utah Sponsors & Corporate Partners for their Support in 2021 and look forward to working with you in 2022!! Renew your Sponsorship Here

Learn More About Our Sponsors

CLICK HERE TO BECOME A 2022 SPONSOR or Corporate Partner

ASLA UTAH DECEMBER 2021 NEWSLETTER

December 30, 2021 by ASLA Utah

ASLA UTAH DECEMBER 2021 NEWSLETTER

UPCOMING EVENTS

ASLA Utah Sponsor Thank You Dinner Thursday, January 27th, 6:30pm-9:00pm *Recent covid test or vaccination card required :) RSVP HERE

UNLA Green Conference Jan. 18, 19, 20, via Zoom 8:00 am-5:00 pm
Jan. 25, 26, in-person Conference & Trade Show
Mountain America Expo Center, Sandy, UT **Come Visit ASLA Utah’s Booth! RESISTER HERE

Leadership Express

Adam Castor, Chapter President

Adam Castor, ASLA Chapter President

The Utah ASLA Memorial Scholarship

Aaron Johnson, VP Visibility & Public Affairs, & Geoff Ellis, Memorial Fund Chair

The recipients to date have been:

2021-2022 Logan Hall - MLA in progress 2020-2021 Saul Karamesines - MsBRP in progress 2018-2019 Patricia Beckert - B+MLA in progress 2017-2018 Drew Hill - B+MLA 2016-2017 Emmeline Zenger - BLA '17

2015-2016 Hailey Wall - BLA '16 2014-2015 Sam Taylor - BLA '15 2013-2014 Kim Cloward Drown - MLA, '14

Go to: (utahasla.org/memorial-fund) for more information.

LAM - Landscape Architecture Magazine

Seth Bockholt, Past President

Special Thanks to ASLA Utah Sponsors & Corporate Partners for their Support in 2021 and look forward to working with you in 2022!! Renew your Sponsorship Here

Learn More About Our Sponsors

CLICK HERE TO BECOME A 2022 SPONSOR or Corporate Partner

ASLA UTAH OCTOBER 2022 NEWSLETTER

UPCOMING EVENTS

ASLA Presidents Message

Adam Castor, ASLA Utah President

An Update and An Opinion: House Bill 282 - Water Wise Landscaping Amendment

Thomas Eddington, VP of Advocacy

Special Thanks to ASLA Utah Sponsors & Corporate Partners for their Support!

ASLA UTAH SEPTEMBER 2022 NEWSLETTER

UPCOMING EVENTS

ASLA Utah Advocacy Millcreek Commons Site Visit

Thomas Eddington, VP of Advocacy

ASLA Utah Parking Day Recap

Aaron Johnson, VP of Visibility & Public Affairs

ASLA Utah Parking Day Recap

Tyler Smithson, VP of Membership & Member Services

Special Thanks to ASLA Utah Sponsors & Corporate Partners for their Support!

ASLA UTAH AUGUST 2022 NEWSLETTER

UPCOMING EVENTS

Leadership Express

Adam Castor, Chapter President

ASLA UT EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE 2022 ELECTION RESULTS

CONGRATULATIONS!!! These great ASLA Members will be join the Utah Chapter’s Executive Committee. in November 2022

President-Elect – Paul Stead

Secretary – Ladd Schiess

VP of Membership & Membership Services – Tyler Smithson

PLATINUM SPONSOR ARTICLE

Special Thanks to ASLA Utah Sponsors & Corporate Partners for their Support!

ASLA UTAH May 2022 NEWSLETTER

UPCOMING EVENTS

Early Bird Rates End July 31st ASLA Utah Annual Conference 2022 September 8th & 9th, Salt Lake City, UtahREGISTER HERE

Leadership Express

Adam Castor, Chapter President

ASLA National Happenings:

Government Affairs

ASLA Committee Opportunity

Girls Night Out with Rain Bird

Special Thanks to ASLA Utah Sponsors & Corporate Partners for their Support in 2021 and look forward to working with you in 2022!! Renew your Sponsorship Here

ASLA UTAH JUNE/JULY 2022 NEWSLETTER

UPCOMING EVENTS

Early Bird Discount Ends July 31st Don’t miss out - REGISTER NOW!! ASLA Utah Annual Conference 2022 September 8th & 9th, Salt Lake City, Utah

Leadership Express

Adam Castor, Chapter President

ASLA Utah Annual Conference

ASLA UT ANNUAL CONFERENCE

KEYNOTE SPEAKER - MARK W. JOHNSON, FASLA

Member Spotlight

Special Thanks to ASLA Utah Sponsors & Corporate Partners for their Support!

ASLA UTAH APRIL 2022 NEWSLETTER

UPCOMING EVENTS

Leadership Express

Adam Castor, Chapter President

WLAM Service Project

USU LAEP Awards Banquet

Special Thanks to ASLA Utah Sponsors & Corporate Partners for their Support in 2021 and look forward to working with you in 2022!! Renew your Sponsorship Here

ASLA UTAH MARCH 2022 NEWSLETTER

UPCOMING EVENTS

Leadership Express

Adam Castor, Chapter President

World Landscape Architecture Month (WLAM)

Winter Social

Special Thanks to ASLA Utah Sponsors & Corporate Partners for their Support in 2021 and look forward to working with you in 2022!! Renew your Sponsorship Here

ASLA UTAH FEBRUARY 2022 NEWSLETTER

UPCOMING EVENTS

Leadership Express

Adam Castor, Chapter President

World Landscape Architecture Month (WLAM)

Aaron Johnson, VP of Visibility/Public Affairs

ASLA Utah 2022 Annual Conference

Seth Bockholt, Past President

Special Thanks to ASLA Utah Sponsors & Corporate Partners for their Support in 2021 and look forward to working with you in 2022!! Renew your Sponsorship Here

ASLA UTAH JANUARY 2022 NEWSLETTER

UPCOMING EVENTS

Leadership Express

Adam Castor, Chapter President

The Utah ASLA Memorial Scholarship

Aaron Johnson, VP of Visibility/Public Affairs & Geoff Ellis, Memorial Fund Chair

ASLA Utah Member Spotlight

Tyler Smithson, Membership Committee Chair

Special Thanks to ASLA Utah Sponsors & Corporate Partners for their Support in 2021 and look forward to working with you in 2022!! Renew your Sponsorship Here

ASLA UTAH DECEMBER 2021 NEWSLETTER

Early Bird Rates End July 31st ASLA Utah Annual Conference 2022
September 8th & 9th, Salt Lake City, Utah
REGISTER HERE

Early Bird Discount Ends July 31st Don’t miss out - REGISTER NOW!! ASLA Utah Annual Conference 2022
September 8th & 9th, Salt Lake City, Utah