ASLA Pulls Up a Chair

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Utah’s Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) wants a seat at the table to advance not just the profession of landscape architecture, but the environments for Utahns to thrive.
By Taylor Larsen

It’s great for the A/E/C community, certainly, but for Bryce Ward and the other board members at the ASLA Utah Chapter, landscape architecture deserves a seat at the table where those decisions are made. Bringing in their unique point of view, ASLA Utah is aiming to break through the misunderstanding in their field to plan, design, and steward environments across Utah for residents and visitors to thrive.

There’s the mission, and there’s the practice. Ward explained that landscape architects are expert generalists, meaning he and his fellow professionals are trained to think beyond the site boundaries.

“Buildings are part of an elaborate natural and development fabric,” Ward, recently elected Trustee for the ASLA, said. “Landscape architects think through the impacts development has on the built and natural environments.”

After all, their work is much more than shrubs, benches, and a walking path. The plan is in motion to build toward a cohesive whole, where every facet of the built environment is considered—with landscape architecture joining the party and improving projects across the state.

For Lars Erickson, ASLA Utah President-Elect, the matter is one of dollars and cents in a straightforward equation: clients that value and pay for good design get greater value in their projects.

“Even the simplest of landscape projects can create greater value for our environment with a little more effort,” Erickson said.

More clients are waking up to reality, he said, and seeing how minimizing the impact on our land, water, communities, and wildlife can benefit everyone. But, he continued, “There is a dominant conscience to ‘subdue the land’ rather than integrate more with natural systems."

ASLA is out to change that mindset. Communities and developers have the cultural prowess to work with nature rather than against it to create wonderful urban, suburban, rural, and natural developments beloved locally, nationally, and internationally.

The value of working with the ASLA is a straightforward sell to clients, but what about the value of the association itself?

Tyler Smithson, ASLA Utah’s VP of Membership, said that awarding the top work in the field via their ASLA Utah Annual Professional Awards is a great answer. Here, the best of the best in landscape architecture are awarded for general design, urban design, and residential design, along with planning and analysis.

As it awards the top projects and designers, the association is also building up professional development with online and physical resources for advancement and licensure, annual conferences at the state and national levels, and professional practice networks.

ASLA is out to improve the connections that allow landscape architecture to flourish. Connecting their members with vendors that provide new and improved products that create real value for our clients and partners, promoting best practices and innovative solutions to difficult problems, and, the most recent move, putting resources behind legislative and regulatory support of the profession.

Sometimes you need to make space at the table for people to hear you, and Erickson said these efforts to guide and influence state legislation will allow for landscape architects to “prime State of Utah projects that our profession is best suited for.”

It’s a two-for-one deal, ultimately providing more opportunities for landscape architects and reducing inefficient project management to create greater value for taxpayers.

Lobbying from the local to federal level is how the association values environmental, green infrastructure, and professional needs. ASLA wants to raise awareness across the industry in how their domain can build comprehensive, climactic-responsive infrastructure that wisely stewards resources and improves the lives of those in the Beehive State.

At the legislative level, the board and other landscape architects are excited for a few bills either in motion or under review.

HB 343 in the 2024 General Session is a significant step forward, as it allows state departments to hire licensed landscape architects as prime contractors on projects that the department determines to be landscape architecture projects. With unanimous votes in both State House and Senate, the association is awaiting the Governor’s signature.

Another bill, HB534, modifies and eliminates various state boards and commissions. Now, instead of the Landscape Architects Licensing Board, they have joined to form the Architects and Landscape Architects Licensing Board. Landscape architecture has gained an actual seat—seats, in this case—on the licensing board. Membership includes two landscape architects, four architects, and one member of the general public and becomes effective on the first of October.

It’s a positive move to give the landscape architecture field the recognition it deserves. Erickson said the board may create special or ad hoc subcommittees to advise the board on issues.

“This is an opportunity for the landscape architects to work together on a subcommittee to develop recommendations related to landscape architect issues for the full board to consider.”

The moves to speak up in the state are combining with the association’s efforts to integrate with architecture in the form of a move to AIA Utah’s headquarters in the Ford Building in downtown Salt Lake City. From ASLA Utah's perspective, this has given more legitimacy to the profession to have a space where both architectural practices can learn and collaborate in designing a better Utah.

ASLA is strengthening the relationships and commitments with future generations as well, especially with Utah State University. As the only institution in the state that offers a dedicated landscape architecture program, Erickson called the relationship between USU and ASLA symbiotic. Coordinated efforts like the mentorship and portfolio review groups support the students and give young professionals access to our members putting theory into practice.

“Having access to professionals in a mentorship environment benefits the students and practitioners,” Ward said. “As these students emerge into the profession, they help fill landscape architectural design roles in the fastest-growing state in the country.”

It is all part of the plan found in ASLA’s strategic planning document, aligning national goals with the practice as experienced in Utah, building advocacy and awareness, serving and supporting members, and empowering the future of the profession—all under the leadership of stellar association governance and management.

And it is intentional, Ward said. “Having a plan helps our organization achieve its goals in making Utah a better place to live and employ the craft of landscape architecture.”

As the profession flourishes, so do the places in Utah where people love to be. The voice of landscape architecture is growing with literal and figurative seats at the table, and Ward said they want the state—at both public and private levels—to look to their expertise to continue to plan, design, and execute better spaces.

“We are a profession founded on the stewardship of our natural environment and the precious resources that sustain our cities and lifestyles. We expect to be at the table when discussing important issues like the Great Salt Lake, water use issues, and how we grow our neighborhoods and preserve our high quality of life.”

They have their seat at the table; now it is up to ASLA and their membership to speak up.

Meet ASLA’s recently elected board:

President: Jesse Allen

Secretary: Ladd Schiess

Trustee: Bryce Ward

Continuing board members:

Past President: Paul Stead

President Elect: Lars Ericson

Treasurer: Adam Castor

VP Membership & Member Services: Tyler Smithson

Vice President of Advocacy: Thomas Eddington

Vice President of Visibility and Public Affairs: Josh Quigley

Vice President of Professional Development: Tanner Snow

Executive Director: Jenny Sonntag

President: Jesse Allen
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Secretary: Ladd Schiess
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Executive Director: Jenny Sonntag
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Trustee: Bryce Ward
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Kimley-Horn SLC Office Marks 10 Years

By By Brad Fullmer • 04 Oct, 2024

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A Future Paved with Intentionality

By Taylor Larsen • 03 Oct, 2024

Nearly 90 minutes into a conversation with Dave Edwards and Bruce Fallon, the two remembered a story about the values of WPA Architecture from years before. Fallon was in talks with the principals at the firm to define values for the rest of the company. Longtime ownership, with decades of experience founding and building up their own firm, weren’t against the idea, but the idea of formalizing it all seemed inconsequential. Fallon had been a Principal with the firm for ten years and finally asked longtime Principal Alan Poulson (who retired in December 2023), ‘What motivates you?’ to which [Poulson] answered, ‘Providing for my family.’ The thought has stuck with Fallon and Edwards ever since. “It drove [Poulson] in everything he did,” Fallon said. “He was excellent in everything he did so he could provide for his family.” Now that the two lead WPA as Principals, they have looked to embrace excellence through intentionality—in purpose, relationships, and work ethic—that will lead the firm to new heights.

Marmalade Plaza Bearing Fruit

By Taylor Larsen • 01 Sep, 2024

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That ingenuity in design and execution was a theme as the project team delivered a public space befitting Salt Lake’s historic Marmalade District. The plaza design took off in 2014 with LOCI Principal and founder Michael Budge and his newly minted firm working on their first project. Instead of funding delays that pushed construction back, Marmalade Plaza would need to wait for future development to finish before starting. The landscape architect said the half-acre parcel was always set up as a public space between existing developments at that time (Marmalade Library; Capitol Villa Apartments) and future projects (Harvest Apartments; Grove at Marmalade townhomes). Public involvement quickly settled on a design priority that remains top of mind for many Utah residents—water. “From day one, we wanted a water feature,” said Budge. The plaza would honor the body of water that existed on site previously, one the Army Corps of Engineers had to ensure wasn’t a wetland. The LOCI team designed an abstract wetland in its place, complete with water boxes for the future rushes to be installed. Winning the construction bid was Cal Wadsworth Construction’s entry point to test their collective chops. “We thought that all of the concrete work was exciting,” Jordan Wadsworth said. As Director of Operations for Cal Wadsworth Construction, the design that called for board-formed precast cubes, cast-in-place bridges and steps, plus sandblasted artistic flair would push him and his team to innovative heights. Turning the site from a post-development mud pit into an urban oasis was challenging on such a tight site. One small entrance on the southern edge for concrete trucks and construction teams required high-level sequencing to get the right people on-site at the right time. Connection and coordination were always at the forefront, especially with how the project integrates with the nearby buildings. That LOCI was hired by Harvest Apartments, adjacent to the to the north and west, to design their landscaping and more was a huge win, ultimately helped to site the complex’s three apartment buildings and combine features where landscaping seen in project dovetails perfectly in the other, flowing together like the plaza’s 100-ft-long water feature. “It’s not an easy design and hats off to the contractors who built it,” said Budge. Not easy is an understatement, especially with the ipe (pronounced E-pay) Brazilian hardwood decking. Dense, heavy, durable, and challenging meant a few hundred drill bits were sacrificed at the altar of construction. But the team persevered, developing a system to make cuts so clean that the hardwood boards appear pre-engineered. “All of it was hand done,” Wadsworth said of the work with the decking. Precision and care were standout features of the Cal Wadsworth Construction team as they self-performed cast-in-place concrete benches with the gentlest curves, three concrete bridges, as well as concrete steps across the northern end of the water feature—all surrounded by two lines of paperbark maple trees. “It’s refined,” said Budge. “It’s less so someone’s backyard, but [more] an urban plaza you’d find in a major city.” The slight bend in the form of the benches, water feature, and around 1,600 SF of decking are not only a circulation effort moving people from southwest to north or vice versa, but a testament to the work from the Cal Wadsworth team to artfully construct such complicated forms. The design also called for precast concrete cubes ranging in height between 9” - 3’9” in height. Built by Brigham City-based Mountain West Precast, each of the cubes was picked and placed close to the final location before a forklift positioned each of them on their respective bolts before epoxying them in place. Wadsworth said it came together “like a Tetris puzzle.” The project team dug deep into their problem-solving bag after the fire marshal refused to allow the grass turf of LOCI’s original design. The landscape architects pivoted to replacing the turf with two 25-foot-plus sycamore trees to help cool and shade the plaza’s 5,000 SF of concrete hardscape.

Movin' on UP!

By Doug Fox • 01 Sep, 2024

There’s a new jewel in the crown of Silicon Slopes architecture: the visually stunning Traverse Heights Office Building. The six-story structure, housing 57,000 square feet of Class A professional office space and featuring a floor-to-ceiling curtain wall glass facade, sits like a queen on a bluff overlooking the I-15 corridor in Lehi and the expanse of Utah Valley. If you’re traveling through that section of north Utah County, you can’t miss it on the east side of I-15. “It is impossible to exit the freeway and not see this building standing large, perched over Silicon Slopes,” said Jared Francom, Project Director for Okland Construction. “It stands apart by location, approach and visibility.” The building, owned by Woodley Real Estate, came with a price tag of around $25 million. In addition to the ownership group, tenants include Bank of America, Fidelity Investments, Solidarity Capital, Paramount and family offices for both Curt Doman and Todd Pederson, among others. “We have had way more demand than space,” said Eric Woodley, owner/developer. “It certainly stands out and is a unique offering. The offset design really sets it apart from the rest [of the buildings in Silicon Slopes].” According to David Anderson, Design Principal for Babcock Design, the core concept of the building differed significantly from the typical five- and six-story workplace projects his firm has created along the Silicon Slopes stretch of I-15. “On the heels of several projects designed around 100,000-plus-square-feet tech-sector tenants that prioritized efficient floor plates and large-scale shared amenities, this project targeted smaller, high-end user groups with an interest in a refined, iconic space,” Anderson said. “As a result, efforts were made to sculpt a unique exterior form with shifting floor plates cantilevering high above the ground plane, which provided extensive usable outdoor space.” COVID Conundrums The journey from land acquisition in 2020 to certificate of occupancy in 2023 turned out to be no easy feat. Mentally, Wasatch Front residents may be a few years removed from the peak period of the COVID-19 pandemic but its architectural impact is still being felt and the Traverse Heights Office Building is a prime example. The project started during the mid- to latter stages of the pandemic in 2021 and was designed amid the challenging fallout of material shortages throughout the building industry. Year-long lead times and cost escalation on structural steel products at the time tilted the design decision toward a post-tensioned concrete structure, Anderson said. But that strategic switch spawned its own set of COVID-created conundrums. “By the time construction ensued, of course, there were concrete shortages throughout the state due to shutdowns of several cement production plants,” Anderson said. “Okland Construction worked miracles to acquire concrete during the shortage and significantly minimized delays in the construction schedule.” Choosing concrete both for the look and the difficulty of procuring steel, Woodley noted that the concrete shortage hit during the mat-footing pour — basically the most inopportune time possible. “It was a nightmare to work through, but we had a great construction team to help us navigate it,” he said. On a positive note, the decision to use post-tensioned concrete affected both the overall form — achieving some dramatic cantilevers in the office space – as well as the feel of the interiors, said Anderson. “Exposed architectural concrete sheer walls and solid concrete slabs created a crisp, smooth and dramatic interior space with exceptionally high ceilings,” he said.

ASLA Pulls Up a Chair

By Taylor Larsen • 01 Sep, 2024

It’s hard to keep track of all the decisions made about the built environment happening in Utah. A new commercial design here, permitting there, and the beginning and end of so much master planning. It’s great for the A/E/C community, certainly, but for Bryce Ward and the other board members at the ASLA Utah Chapter, landscape architecture deserves a seat at the table where those decisions are made. Bringing in their unique point of view, ASLA Utah is aiming to break through the misunderstanding in their field to plan, design, and steward environments across Utah for residents and visitors to thrive. There’s the mission, and there’s the practice. Ward explained that landscape architects are expert generalists, meaning he and his fellow professionals are trained to think beyond the site boundaries. “Buildings are part of an elaborate natural and development fabric,” Ward, recently elected Trustee for the ASLA, said. “Landscape architects think through the impacts development has on the built and natural environments.” After all, their work is much more than shrubs, benches, and a walking path. The plan is in motion to build toward a cohesive whole, where every facet of the built environment is considered—with landscape architecture joining the party and improving projects across the state. For Lars Erickson, ASLA Utah President-Elect, the matter is one of dollars and cents in a straightforward equation: clients that value and pay for good design get greater value in their projects. “Even the simplest of landscape projects can create greater value for our environment with a little more effort,” Erickson said.

Big Plans on Campus

By B. Garn • 01 Sep, 2024

Students at Utah’s higher education campuses this fall likely found themselves navigating around construction fencing or finding once familiar pathways to class temporarily blocked as concrete trucks rumbled by and tower cranes cast shadows across campus. From the new buildings for the University of Utah’s School of Medicine that are reshaping the upper campus of the state’s flagship university to plans for a major campus expansion at Utah Tech University (UTU) in St. George, a surge of projects planned and funded several years ago are now taking shape on university campuses from Logan to St. George.

Precast Market Ready to Take Off in Utah

By Taylor Larsen • 01 Sep, 2024

It’s not rocket science. According to Kevin Martin, Geneva Pipe & Precast’s General Manager for the Orem office, precast concrete is a simple, albeit different, solution for a construction problem. “We’re still building a metal cage and building a mold and putting concrete around it,” he said. Simple, sure, but effective. With a huge concrete market to capture, expanding infrastructure with new and growing communities, and a broken labor market showing no signs of repair, the trajectory for precast is upward and onward as the new year approaches. No Rest for Precast Each of those interviewed spoke to how there is not just an insatiable demand for precast in Utah, but that they regularly field calls from out of state to supply jobs across the West. As a byproduct, one trend that may be gone forever is the winter slowdown, especially as development ticks up across the state. Said Martin, “We used to use the winter months to build up inventory, but the new way of doing things is putting pressure on us to keep production high year-round.” Demand for neighborhood infrastructure products is here to stay, especially for growing cities around the state. Developments are popping up across Utah County in Lehi, Saratoga Springs, and Eagle Mountain, as well as an exploding demand from the southward development in places like Payson, Santaquin, and even Benjamin, nestled snugly just south of Spanish Fork. Precast, those interviewed said, is ready to meet it with pipe, box culvert, manholes, and more. With expanding development combined with the growing capabilities of precast concrete, "slowdown" might not enter the precast vernacular again. Lee Wegner, Regional Sales Manager for Contech Engineered Solutions, noted the possibilities that opened up with the Latter-day Saint temples in the 2010s changed the game on precast concrete in Utah. High-level detail and molds brought awards and new possibilities, with rope-like features and scalloped corners doing the best impression of skilled masonry work. “Almost every piece was unique,” said Wegner of their work on the Payson Temple. While unique is not the word precasters want to hear in such a standardized process, the pride of seeing what their work accomplished in the final build helped to reimagine what was possible in precast shops. “We’re pushing the envelope a lot more and are much more adaptable to the needs of the market.”

Innovative Infrastructure

By Milt Harrison • 01 Aug, 2024

Crews from Whitaker construction installed a massive 63-inch diameter HDPE pipe for North Davis Sewer District that allows treated and cleaned wastewater to flow to the Great Salt Lake, putting water back into the ecosystem while combatting dropping water levels. (photos courtesy Whitaker Construction)

Brilliantly Executed Spaces and Thinking

By LADD MARSHALL • 01 Aug, 2024

The Intermountain Chapter of the International Interior Design Association (IIDA) held its annual BEST Awards competition on May 16 at The Natural History Museum of Utah, with the UVU Sorensen Student Center capturing the "BEST of the BEST" and "BEST Play" categories. BEST stands for Brilliantly Executed Spaces & Thinking, and the IIDA awards are among the most prestigious given to interior design professionals in both residential and commercial markets. An array of unique projects were submitted, projects that go beyond painting a pretty picture while truly encompassing great design in function, form, and style. IIDA Intermountain recognizes that successful interior design requires a collaboration of many disciplines including consultant teams, project managers, vendors, contractors, and more. These awards are a celebration of that collaboration and of dynamic overall design happening throughout the Intermountain region.

Next Gen

By Brad Fullmer • 01 Aug, 2024

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