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You really might be better off hiring a mason for this and watching them closely to see how THEY do it. Since you are using thin pieces and you are in a climate with a lot of freeze-thaw cycles, make sure you have a thick base, 4-6″, thoroughly compacted. On a home project I did when I lived in NJ, I cut bluestone with a regular circular saw with…[Read more]

I only know of one firm in Southern California that uses ArchGIS on a regular basis. At $20,000, for a basic package, most people can’t afford it. It’s a powerful tool though but it’s a “big picture” tool. You really only need it for large scale projects / regional planning. We used it quite a bit at Colorado State University, in the L.A. program.…[Read more]

I use it all of the time, but I never did in private practice. I think government work uses it more. It is a very expensive package and many firms just don’t want to pay the price. When I was at G&O , only the main office had the software. They could export the data into ACAD files as needed. I did not know it at all when I started this position.…[Read more]

I don’t mind the “idea” of lounges, it’s just the execution of the lounge that was poorly done, in my opinion. It bears little resemblance/reference to the human form that’s intended to use it. They appear to not be used much, and when they are, you see people in weird positions, looking uncomfortable. You’ll see people using backpacks to create…[Read more]

I work for a multi-discipline firm and we have our own dedicated Natural Resources staff who use it quite often. So in answer to your question, I do not. Many of their projects with Minnesota DNR and Soil/Water Resources Board require its use, I am only occasionally involved with those projects.

ps, good point about the Memorial benches inappropriate use, also , Thomas, but I hate that design in the memorial and hate it in the High Line..What exactly is that design good for? And the people who worked on the Memorial wanted to commemorate the FLIGHT OF THE PLANES? Too weird for me..Let’s see – my parents were crushed by a semi, so I think…[Read more]

thanks! really appreciate all your thoughts and comments.

thanks and…

thanks for your insight!

Yeah, those things you call ‘lounges’ Thomas – I really hate them..Why can we continuously RUIN something as old as a bench, for goodness sakes..I have one college, an LA who does most of our big designs, who has a personal hatred for benches, and will not include them in his designs!..To me that is like a painter hating paint..We are crafts…[Read more]

I’ve seen it used with mixed success. Where you have very flat slopes and little surface runoff, it seems to be fine. If you get any concentrated flow on it, even at 3-5% slopes it can erode badly. (I’m talking about generic stabilized DG, like 1/4″- with Road Oyl or Stabilizer or any of those products used as a binder.)

If it’s poorly mixed or…[Read more]

And sometimes Lines (linear forms) create curves… the implied curve… connect the dots in your minds eye…

As noted earlier, it’s interesting that the design strives to recapture the condition of the tracks after they had gone unused for decades, only with a veneer of “style”. Urban decay had given the raised platform a unique character that can only be achieved with time; hardy plants volunteered – taking root in unlikely places, metals developed…[Read more]

Oh, one more thing. Having dedicated GIS people in your firm doesn’t count…the LA must use the software as part of everyday work…THANKS!

I saw that they had used it by Old North Bridge in Concord, MA. at least 5 years ago. I would guess that some Land8Loungers have visited that historic site in recent years.Maybe they could comment. I saw it between the Old Manse and the main approach to the bridge along the current road edge, It was granite stone dust and seemed quite new at the time.

I guess it depends on how you want to critique it. It is the only piece of landscape architecture that I have ever seen non-industry related people post about on Facebook so in that sense it is pretty successful.

The main problem has been in getting it installed correctly. It is messy and somewhat challenging for contractors to install as well, so might have some hidden costs (this is the mixed kind). Some of the companies require inspection during installation to warranty the product, which can be difficult if there are no certified inspectors in your…[Read more]

I think that is a really important point, Jason, how high-maintenance his design is, just to appear natural.. This goes against the basic tenets of ecological design, sustainable design. He would have been better off creating some kind of matrix and letting volunteers be cultivated – the ‘tree that grew in brooklyn’ was an Ailanthus, after all..