Activity

Don’t forget that a lot of those public sector projects will be designed by private sector firms and built by private sector companies, using materials supplied by private sector companies.  When the people in those companies have more to spend, their money gets circulated around the economy.

It’s predictable the Midwest Region will be less impacted by Housing, these region has always been behind in economic growth in comparison to the West and East coast. The Intermountain region, most notably Nevada  felt the housing bubble burst the most. Moreover, the overall trend for financial institutions to lend money for construction will be…[Read more]

Andrew has a good point.  Another phenomenon was how uneven the real estate crash was–some regions had a huge bubble and crashed hard, but a lot of areas had much milder swings  This may mean the recovery will be patchy–some areas improving sooner/better than others.  Maybe some of the worst, as Chad suggests, not ever fully recovering (in terms…[Read more]

no worries

Don’t forget Public Works, they’re still a lot of un-spent money from TARP and other Public Funding available. Another reason for a better outlook in 2011 is the FED Reserve is pumping the Economy and holding down interest rates down, in order for Banks and other Financial Institutions to loan money to businesses. With the new tax bill signed,…[Read more]

Add, one additional category for firms with sunny forecast, Firms that specialize in International Practice, and that list is growing.

knock knock
who’s there?
landscape architect
landscape architect who?
That will require 31/2 hours at $ 175/hr plus printing costs.

The stock market and unemployment statistics are not the numbers to watch to understand how landscape architecture is going to fair. Real estate sales, building permits, and growth in real estate equity are the only numbers that directly matter for the overall health of landscape architecture.
 
Outlook for 2011 is not positive.

… how the public sector adjusts to a down economy. It is based on the same assumption raising taxes is. That is that they’ll get more out of the same amount of students. The unaccounted factor is that they may not attract as many students.
 
I think they’ll learn that it won’t work that way, especially in a somewhat remote setting. My e…[Read more]

Minnesota has a “combined” MLA program and an MSLA option.

I have no arguments…just that I hope the positive people are right. We live in an economy driven by two universities whose budgets are getting whacked to hell. It makes us nervous and seems to be getting worse. I imagine recovery will depend on where you live.

Andrew,
UI is dropping BLA accreditation for a forced continuation into the Masters. Glad I went through when I did!

From a recent ASLA survey (as per “landscape arhcitect and specifier news”)–ok, so it’s a free industry rag…
third quarter comparisons 09 vs 10:  billable hours:  same or better                     – approx 70%
     inquires for new work: same or better      + approx 68%
This is good news…..

 … might want to get that Master’s in teaching!

Thanks to all of you.  Honest and to the point, as usual……

Hi Mark
No I haven’t had anyone “step-up to the plate” yet,  I suspect as long as you use pavers suitable for poolside applications (they have been grouted) and you sealed the surface every year they would perform okay. They are certainly strong enough.  You just have to be particular about the supplier of the stone to get a quality product.  So…[Read more]

I’m an avid Fortune magazine reader, and from what I’ve read I believe the major corporations (like GE) have already seen a turn around. These companies are of course heavily supported by the government and can handle the stress of downward economy. As far as the Landscape Architecture industry is concerned it would depend on the market your in.…[Read more]

I would be hesitant to use it with the freeze thaw – it is extremely porous -and it breaks easily. I use it here in the SF Bay Area – we do get some frost here but I won’t use it in frost zones. Sealing it is a temporary patch. It would need to be resealed again and again as part of a regular maintenance.
Also – the pitted travertine isn’t so…[Read more]

Chad,
It’s like that here in S. Florida too, the housing bubble was rampant here. Look, you really have to look, “outside the box” in your case. Use all the resources in your area and look beyond to find new leads. Ask yourself this questions, if thing’s don’t change what will most likely happend if I stay. I don’t have an answer, but I know I got…[Read more]