Tanya Olson

What I mean by ‘purist’ is trying to get everything back to a pristine condition….

We did have an ecologist working on the mitigated wetlands with us, but not on the stormwater wetlands. My emphasis was in ecology for my master’s in landscape architecture – mostly worked on wetlands as I was in the middle of the prairie pothole region – so I knew a thing or two about wetlands.

The project was very interesting – a farm field…[Read more]

Honestly, I’m not angry or frustrated with anyone. Personally I think the recession is a great excuse to access our most creative thinking and do a lot of long overdue self reflection and reflection about our profession. The only thing I have seen in LA Mag that relates in any way to the conversations that the rest of us are having is the letter…[Read more]

On a related note: Does the ASLA seem woefully out of touch in recession-related discussions to anyone else?
I haven’t seen much at all in LA Mag. and the ASLA conferences are still just as expensive. Are you all members? Do you pay your own membership fees? Can you afford the ASLA conferences? 20-50% unemployment? Why isn’t this a front-page…[Read more]

Never used it but having lived in the north for most of my life, it looks like a GREAT idea. I wonder if there is any chemical leaching or significant runoff of chemicals….?

I don’t know if we can still be considered ‘front range’ but just a little further up north – Black Hills SD / WY….laid off from a black hills firm October 2008 and started my own company summer 2009. The firm I was laid off from is really really busy, but not hiring anyone new. Most of their work is city/state/federal. I think they are waiting…[Read more]

The way of the future with one foot in the past…part of your cultural heritage…

I believe it was actually a separate contract. Maintenance within the specs has never really seemed to work unless the landscape contractor is also contracted to do long term maintenance – its a communication gap I think.

Maintenance plan, maintenance plan, maintenance plan!

I have worked on two projects that illustrate the difference – one was a creek restoration with a 5-year maintenance plan with oversight by the landscape architect. It was a very successful project with almost no invasive exotics.

The other project was a parkinglot stormwater wetland system.…[Read more]

Wow! What an eye-opening link. Thanks for posting.
I THINK you are saying (in your previous entry) that there is a difference between criticizing and critical thinking – one is destructive the other, productive. Sometimes its easy to forget the vast difference between the two.

yes! Exactly what I was talking about – transformation. Unfortunately, we have almost non-existant cultural strategies for dealing with crisis and using it for the fuel of transformation.

What a great strategy! Its so simple and honest – you can’t find THAT in any self help book!
Value – Creation….you must be reading the blogs of Steve Pavlina?…[Read more]

I have also been noticing the same thing and wondering about it. I’ve heard (through the grapevine) of people from the design professions (architects in this case) literally ceasing to function or contribute when they got laid off – sit around and watch tv and go the bar every night.
It probably has to do with the overall culture of the place they…[Read more]

Artist + scientist + lawyer + marriage counselor!
ha!

That Celebration is the poster-child for New Urbanism. gag.

I have to say I really like Stapleton, though. They had me sold with the allee of Quercus fastigiata and lots of grasses.

Maybe this is already an area of study in FL, but your location makes me wonder about sustainable urban forests in areas with close-to-surface groundwater. Understand – all I’ve seen of development in FL is islands and channels…What if boulevards were planted with cypress and were also water channels – like Venice filled with wetland…[Read more]

I think the ferns were predominant in the Mesozoic era which includes the triassic and jurassic periods. Unfortunately I didn’t get to see Ponyo when it was in the theatres…..looking forward to it on DVD as I am a huge Miyazake fan.

What did you think of the glow-in-the-dark plants? It reminded me of velvet black light AC/DC posters…ha! They…[Read more]

I’m so glad someone else has been thinking about this! The way landscape is portrayed in film and media makes me wonder how it forms a landscape aesthetic in children.

Miyazaki has an astounding view of nature – I particularly love ‘Spirited Away’ and ‘My Neighbor Totoro’ – or really any of his films – he changed the way nature was represented in…[Read more]

I had a professor say ‘we design everything outside the front door’. You could quibble with the specifics, but it certainly gets the idea across when someone asks!