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Rob, the disconnect is exactly my point.  I haven’t been able to find great examples to show him.  So that is why I am reaching out to this community for successful projects.  Have you seen any or designed any?

I agree–behave!  Don’t make us stop this car….
Apart from the all too real grim realities of (un)employment out there, I just find the idea of an LA union kind of bizarre and funny–especially given the kind of people who are attracted to this profession.   Sort of like cats doing synchronized swimming.  (Caution: the following is intend…[Read more]

Drought tolerant species can have some very ornamental properties, even some natives, depending on where you are.  The other thing is, how many ornamental plants are hardy enough not to get trampled.  The majority of end cap islands that are between the parking and store are void of shrubs and groundcover because of people too lazy to walk a…[Read more]

Thomas, In regards to your comments on gov’t involvement… Couldn’t agree more.  I think we probably share very similar political viewpoints.  Sometimes getting to them is the difficult part.

Adam,
 
I agree about the comment regarding native plants.  In that direction, my one thought was that if you compare shorter-lived native perennial plantings to longer-lived non-native “ornamentals” then, yes, you will have to replace plants that have shorter life expectancies sooner.  What if you compared longer-lived native shrubs with the lo…[Read more]

I think the tone of this thread is indicative of the frustration many of us have with the profession at this time.  However it has gotten a bit out of hand.  Let us strive to remain constructive and  civil with each other.

I’ve created a monster…

Not all D/B firms are set up as “sell or be gone”.

I don’t know if this applies, but I live outside of a small town near a larger city, and I have seen outright hostility to anything which would attract low paying jobs or housing.  Everyone wants all the services and yard work, but they don’t want more of the people doing them to live there, and the local rules are written to keep it that way.

This was a preliminary hearing where they discussed whethet it was going to go through a limited review process or a complete review, so the meeting was to determine what would be the issues addressed if it was determined that a limited review was appropriate. In other words, it was recommended by staff that mitigation for housing should be on the…[Read more]

Adam, there is a bit of a disconnect in your posting.
 
On the one hand, you want to counter the boss’ arguement that a native planting will need to be replaced in a few years.
On the other, you acknowledge that there are few landscape maintenance firms than can properly maintain such a landscape.
Until you can propose a workable solution to the…[Read more]

Sounds like crazy talk from people who don’t get out much.  How are they expecting the developer to mitigate it–build subsidized housing for 7 people?
Maybe he/she should put a local job posting up and bring in the long list of the people already living there who would love one of the 7 jobs.  Better yet, bring all of them to the next meeting. 

All plants are native to somewhere.
Ignorance is bliss.  To hold onto this perspective you describe that is held by your boss, he/she really has to live, eat, work and shop with his/her eyes completely shut to all new landscape construction these days, especially in California.   Not to mention ignoring increasingly stringent new construction code…[Read more]

I believe that the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) is the closest thing that LAs have to a union and, as such, is an important body.

When I took the tests I had two main issues with them:

1. The limited testing times.
2. The incredibly irritating questions in A, B , and D.  

It’s been a few years but I remember walking out of those tests infuriated that these were the questions that were going to make me a landscape architect.  They didn’t seem to have anything to do with what I h…[Read more]

So far you have consensus.   What kind of mitigation was discussed?   What would they ask the developer to provide?

focus on efficiency – if you can market the process and how little time it took you to produce a  product thats what will get you hired. stick with sketchup,photoshop and autocad. all other ‘fancy’ modeling and rendering will be outsourced in most offices unless there is money to do it in house.

Trace, you need to learn how to not assert something about someone and then attack them for it.  Make a point, then argue for the point instead of denigrating people.  Please, or no one will listen to you.

I may rant, but I don’t feel disgruntled or disenchised.  Far from it.  And that after 30 years. 

I meant a non-office job like design/build. I did not mean to imply that it is not part of the LA realm. I have done both. I don’t see many design/build professionals complaining about hours  or pay. It is sell or be gone. Pretty simple. You change your perspectives about art and client input pretty quickly under those circumstances.