Category: Landscape Architecture

10 Powerful Elements Bring Public Spaces to Life

By Chris Silewski, PLA How do you make a space great? Design it for its intended uses but with flexibility for those uses to change over time. And give people not just a single focal area in which to congregate but at least 10 ways to engage with the space. Look carefully, and you’ll notice… Read More »

Planning with an Eagle Eye: Highway Project Brings Bird-Watching Bonus

By Chris Silewski, PLA If you have a public space to design, it’s best to ask the public what they would like designed. Then be ready to work with the many public sector entities, businesses, and organizations that all need the project to fit in reasonably with surrounding infrastructure and stakeholders’ dreams for the future.… Read More »

LEED Certification: Is It Worth Obtaining?

The Westlawn Gardens project in Milwaukee was certified as the world’s highest-rated LEED Neighborhood Development at the time it was built. Ayres partnered with Torti Gallas Partners, which provided this photo. Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) started about 25 years ago as an effort to build smarter, healthier, and more energy-efficient and sustainable… Read More »