June 2022

Summer is in full swing! I hope you all are finding ways to get outside while staying cool.

PGASLA elections are here! We have a number of great candidates this year. We have finalized the slate and voting is right around the corner. Please participate and vote! Thanks to the candidates for showing interest and passion for our profession and our chapter. 

Last month, ExComm approved the sponsorship of two student scholarships for the Summer Design Experience at Kansas State University. It was a three-day, faculty-led, experience for high school students that introduced them to landscape architecture and other allied design professions. The two campers that received our scholarship were from the Kansas City and Wichita areas. Their experience was a success, and they will be look for job shadowing opportunities while they are still in high school. Thank you to our sponsors for providing opportunities for our chapter to allocate money to meaningful efforts like the Summer Design Experience!

We have some upcoming events that we want you to keep in mind:

Our 2022 Sponsorship Event is right around the corner. This is a fun way to thank our generous sponsors for their continued support of PGASLA! This casual event will be held outdoors, weather permitting. Heavy appetizers, drinks, and games will be provided by PGASLA. The event will be held on Thursday, September 22^nd at Char Bar in Westport. Please RSVP by September 15^th.  

Please join us for our Annual Meeting at Top Golf! We will look back on the year’s activities, initiatives, and education, along with welcome the new Executive Committee members. Registration includes drinks, heavy appetizers, Top Golf game play, along with some prizes! We hope to see you there! Mark your calendars for October 5^th from 5:00-8:00. Please RSVP by September 28^th. 

And last but not least, we have LINKS events planned for August 18^th and September 14^th. Please consider attending as these are ideal times to network and to expand your knowledge base.

Information for signups is below. If you have any questions regarding any of these events, please feel free to reach out to Jackie Dietz at jackie.dietz@forms-surfaces.com.

From ASLA National, they have shared a video regarding advocating for our profession through site visits. The recorded webinar can be viewed with this link. Also, they have provided a handy document that describes ASLA at a glance. It includes breakdown of practice type and educational requirements to become a landscape architect. 

As always, PGASLA ExCom welcomes your thoughts and input. Please reach out and let us know how we can continue to improve our service to our members.

Until next time,

Brett Payton, PLA, ASLA

PGASLA President

August LINKS: Greening the Amenity Deck

August 18 @ 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm

Join Catherine LeDuke with Tournesol for virtual presentation. Attendees may either attend virtually via zoom, or in-person at CfAD. Virtual attendees will be required to complete a 10-question quiz following the presentation. *Note, Catherine will not be joining in-person in Kansas City.

Over time, urban parks and other open landscaped areas are being lost to development. One solution to mitigate this issue is to reconsider undeveloped areas such as building roofs to create green amenity spaces. Amenity decks can provide some alleviation of lost green space, while affording developers the potential to monetize underutilized spaces in their buildings and provide an advantage over older buildings to attract tenants.

Learning Objectives:

1. Describe the social and health benefits of outdoor amenity spaces in urban environments
2. Identify the contributions of amenity decks to reducing heat island effect and controlling and filtering stormwater runoff
3. Review the preliminary structural, weatherproofing, maintenance, and functional considerations when designing green roofs and walls
4. List amenity deck landscaping options and their design considerations, and
5. Compare the function and construction of green roofs, green walls, and blue roofs

Course will provide 1.0 continuing education credits and provide Health, Safety, and welfare credit.

Lunch will be provided for those attending in-person. A ZOOM link will be provided 2-days prior for those attending virtually. Email Jackie Dietz with any questions at jackie.dietz@forms-surfaces.com.

September LINKS: Catenary Lighting

September 14 @ 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm

Join Shannon Yust for this LA CE accredited course on catenary system designs will offer a unique and comprehensive understanding of the use of lighting within catenary systems. The presentation includes examples of lighting installations from around the world.

A catenary is a curve that is found throughout nature and the built world. This course presents the history of catenaries in architectural and landscape design and examines the relationship between catenary systems and lighting in urban site planning. We discuss engineering and environmental factors, types, of catenary lighting layouts, and real examples of catenary lighting installations around the world.

Learning Objectives:

1. Contextualize the history and gain a basic understanding of what a catenary is.
2. Understand how a catenary can be implemented into an architectural design and the benefits of its use.
3. Learn the engineering requirements and various factors, including environmental, for the design and specification of a catenary lighting system.
4. Review and understand the different types of catenary layouts.
5. Case Studies – Review real world applications and their appeal.

Course will provide 1.0 continuing education credits and provide Health, Safety, and welfare credit.

Lunch will be provided. Email Jackie Dietz with any questions at jackie.dietz@forms-surfaces.com.

Join us for our annual event on September 22 from 6:00-9:00pm to thank 2022 Sponsors for their continued support of PGASLA! Stop by anytime to see Sponsors and Members for a casual in-person gathering. This event will be held outdoors, weather permitting. Heavy appetizers, drinks, and games will be provided by PGASLA.

PGASLA members – 1 free ticket

PGASLA Sponsors – up to 4 free tickets, based on sponsorship level

Non-members / Additional tickets – $15 each

Please RSVP by September 15th. Questions? Email Jackie Dietz at jackie.dietz@forms-surfaces.com

Please join us for our annual meeting at Top Golf on October 5 from 5:00 - 8:00pm! We will look back on the year’s activities, initiatives, and education, along with welcome the new Executive Committee members. Registration includes drinks, heavy appetizers, Top Golf game play, along with some prizes! We hope to see you there!

PGASLA members – $25 each

PGASLA Sponsors – up to 4 free tickets, based on sponsorship level

Non-members – $35 each

Please RSVP by September 28th. Questions? Email Jackie Dietz at jackie.dietz@forms-surfaces.com

Submitted by David Contag, Chapter Trustee

June 2022

Highlights

• The Board of Trustees held its virtual spring meeting April 28-30. Among the items on the agenda, the board swore in new trustees, held discussions about ASLA’s membership structure, learned about developing a communications plan, approved the Community and Stakeholder Engagement Policy, and approved the new IFLA Global Impact Award. The new award is a joint effort between ASLA and IFLA to acknowledge and recognize excellence in landscape architecture by addressing climate impacts. The new award will be included in the 2023 call for entries and will be presented to a project in the Analysis and Planning category.

• Additionally, during its spring meeting, the board elected Monique Bassey, ASLA, as VP-Elect Communications, and Christopher Della Vedova, ASLA, as VP-Elect Finance. They will both be sworn into office at the annual conference in November. The board also selected the 2022 honors recipients. The recipients of the honors will be publicly announced in June.

• The ASLA leaders have had extensive travel to various chapters and universities over the last two months. Their visits are as follows:
• President Eugenia Martin, FASLA, was the keynote at the Idaho/Montana annual conference, May 19-20. President Martin also delivered the virtual convocation at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign on May 15. Both she and CEO Torey Carter-Conneen participated in the Olmsted birthday celebration in New York City, April 25-26. On April 19, she participated in meetings and the banquet awards at the University of TX, Arlington. President Martin was also the virtual keynote at the Vermont Chapter awards ceremonies, April 13. President Martin, Past President Vaughn Rinner, FASLA, and CEO Carter-Conneen also participated in the Twin States Conference (MS/AL), April 7-8. Immediately after, President Martin was the keynote speaker at the Pennsylvania/Delaware Chapter meeting, April 9. On March 31-April 2, President Martin, CEO Carter-Conneen and others participated in LABash at LSU.
• Immediate Past President Tom Mroz, FASLA, was the keynote speaker at the Tennessee chapter annual conference on May 6.
• CEO Torey Carter-Conneen met and presented to the students of the University of California, Davis, May 12-13. During the visit, he participated in a firm visit with trustee Andrew Wickham, ASLA, May 12-13. CEO Carter-Conneen was the keynote speaker at the Central States Conference in Oklahoma, May 4-6. On April 18-19, Carter-Conneen visited the Harvard University Graduate School of Design, where he toured the grounds and met with students and faculty. On April 13, he visited Temple University’s Department of Landscape Architecture and Horticulture Tyler School of Art, where he also met with students and faculty.

• The New Yorker published a story entitled “The Future of Public Parks,” which explores the complex legacy of Frederick Law Olmsted. Landscape architects Sara Zewde, Billy Fleming, ASLA, Kofi Boone, FASLA, Kongjian Yu, FASLA, and Gina Ford, FASLA, are featured in the in-depth story.

• The Government Affairs team launched the biennial Federal & State Legislative Priorities Survey on May 4. As the national voice for the landscape architecture profession, ASLA wants to hear from members on what they think are the most important policy issues. Two years ago, this survey drew nearly 2,400 respondents, which shattered the previous record by several hundred counts. This year, the goal is to reach 3,000 respondents, but to reach this lofty goal we need all ASLA leaders to take the survey immediately and ask their ASLA colleagues to take the survey as well.