Category: Landscape Architecture

How to Minimize the Impact of Urban Heat Islands

Many city dwellers flee to the countryside to cool off when summer’s heat hits – and for good reason. Urban areas tend to be hotter than the surrounding countryside because of the “urban heat island” effect. Urban heat islands occur in urbanized areas where vegetation and trees have been greatly reduced or eliminated and there… Read More »

Native Plants Improve Environment, Reduce Maintenance Costs

Native plants play such a critical role in our ecosystems. They have coevolved with the soils, rainfall patterns, and climatic conditions of a region. Native plants also have specialized relationships with the birds, butterflies, pollinators, and other wildlife of a region, providing nutrition and nesting. A common misconception is that all plants can provide the… Read More »

Visual Communication: Enhancing the Message and Inspiring Collaboration

By Craig Stoffel, PLA It’s been said that drawing is a designer’s first language, communicating ideas in 2D that will eventually be constructed in the real world. The graphics vary in detail, complexity, and refinement, and for good reason. Similar to for-construction drawings, which have established milestone deliverables of schematic design, design development, and construction… Read More »