Cetane helps sellers reach their goals. We bring interested, qualified buyers into a customized auction process providing you more choice, strong offers, and smooth transactions. Business owners reach their goals when Cetane navigates.
Visit us at www.Cetane.com or call 860-592-0089 for a confidential, FREE business value range estimate.
Cetane helps sellers reach their goals. We bring interested, qualified buyers into a customized auction process providing you more choice, strong offers, and smooth transactions. Business owners reach their goals when Cetane navigates.
Cetane helps sellers reach their goals. We bring interested, qualified buyers into a customized auction process providing you more choice, strong offers, and smooth transactions. Business owners reach their goals when Cetane navigates.
Cetane helps sellers reach their goals. We bring interested, qualified buyers into a customized auction process providing you more choice, strong offers, and smooth transactions. Business owners reach their goals when Cetane navigates.
Cetane helps sellers reach their goals. We bring interested, qualified buyers into a customized auction process providing you more choice, strong offers, and smooth transactions. Business owners reach their goals when Cetane navigates.
Cetane helps sellers reach their goals. We bring interested, qualified buyers into a customized auction process providing you more choice, strong offers, and smooth transactions. Business owners reach their goals when Cetane navigates.
Visit us at www.Cetane.com or call 860-592-0089 for a confidential, FREE business value range estimate. Navigating
Visit us at www.Cetane.com or call 860-592-0089 for a confidential, FREE business value range estimate. Navigating
Visit us at www.Cetane.com or call 860-592-0089 for a confidential, FREE business value range estimate.
Visit us at www.Cetane.com or call 860-592-0089 for a confidential, FREE business value range estimate.
Visit us at www.Cetane.com or call 860-592-0089 for a confidential, FREE business value range estimate.
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Winter 2025 Issue 3
Since taking the Pro Landscaper brand to the US earlier this year, we’ve had the privilege of seeing the awe-inspiring projects across the country, from sun-soaked poolside terraces in California to communitycreating public realms in New York. Our International Awards gave us an opportunity to take this even further, spreading our reach across the Americas to explore the vast variety of landscapes throughout the continents.
The shortlisted projects for the North & South America Heat—which you’ll see throughout our Winter Edition—truly showcase this diversity, as well as the environmental considerations designers and contractors are now making to ensure their landscapes are more resilient than ever.
But what really shines through is the philosophy of Mario Schjetnan, winner of the 2025 Oberlander Prize and this issue’s main interview. He sees landscapes as being about culture, ensuring they connect to those who are using it—whether it’s the owner of a small backyard in Brooklyn, workers at an office building in São Paulo, or yogis in child’s pose in a park in Irvine—and to the history of the site and its surrounding area.
It’s this type of thinking that separates the good designers from the great, and what makes Schjetnan’s belief that landscape architecture is the profession of the future all the more indisputable.
Seattle waterfront park transformation opens as city’s new “front porch”
The City of Seattle is celebrating the grand opening of its new 20-acre waterfront park designed by Field Operations which has been transformed into a public promenade.
From an old, elevated viaduct highway into a new space with bike lanes, event piers, gardens, beaches and new connections from downtown to the waterfront of Elliott Bay, the waterfront is now Seattle’s new “front porch”.
Extending 26 blocks, the waterfront park supports public access, vivid programs and events, health and wellbeing, biodiverse habitats and new experiences.
Marshall Foster, director of Seattle Center and former director of the office of the waterfront and vivid projects comments: “Today we have a new waterfront that embraces Seattle’s history and culture, connecting our downtown back to Elliott Bay and welcoming people from all walks of life.”
After 15 years of planning and designing, and over $800m investment, the vision has been in development in collaboration with Jacobs Engineering, WSP, HNTB and many others, including key stakeholders, community groups and indigenous Tribal representatives.
IElizabeth Street Garden announces new affordable housing project
n the preservation of Elizabeth Street Garden (ESG) in New York City and its community, the ESG organization has announced new affordable housing units will be built nearby.
With the support from Mayor Adams and councilmember Marte’s dedication, the delivery of homes on the Bowery and Suffolk street will take place while preserving the garden.
This will be hrough zoning actions at a privately owned site two blocks away on the Bowery, a vacant city-owned property on Suffolk street and more affordable housing at 100 Gold street.
The project will bring a total of 623 affordable units, alongside hundreds of more homes, whilst preserving and increasing green space in New York.
The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (NYSOPRH) has selected Jacobs to provide professional construction management services across Upstate New York.
Whilst New York has over 250 individual parks, historic sites, recreational trails and other public spaces, maintaining and
Anew public space has opened in the Rosslyn Business Improvement District (BID), a 17-block mixed use, urban center in Arlington, Virginia. The BID, in partnership with Yellowstone Landscape and Monday Properties, has unveiled the NOW, a first-of-its-kind pop-up park at the corner of Nash Street, Oak Street and Wilson Boulevard.
improving these assets requires planning, expertise and commitment to community needs.
To support the NYSOPRH, Jacobs' work will include historic preservation, playground and landscape architecture, utility and infrastructure improvements, surveying, geotechnical support and materials testing.
Focusing on a sustainable, safe and community-centered delivery, Jacobs contract spans western, mid-state and Hudson districts.
Environmental Designs partners with Denver Broncos for stadium landscaping
Landscape architecture, construction and maintenance firm Environmental Designs has been named the official landscaper of the Denver Broncos’ Empower Field at Mile High.
A subsidiary of Monarch Landscape Companies, the Denver-based firm will provide landscape design, installation and ongoing maintenance services for Epower Field.
Brian Helgoe, chief executive of Monarch Landscape Companies, comments on the new partnership: “The Broncos are an iconic part of Colorado’s identity, and with Environmental Designs’ history of delivering award-winning design, construction, and maintenance across the region.”
To commemorate the announcement, Environmental Designs hosted an event on September 26, honoring the individuals whose expertise and dedication made the partnership possible.
The project transformed an underutilized terrace at 1401 Wilson Blvd into a destination designed around ‘connection, learning and play,’ guided by direct community feedback.
Organized into three distinct zones, the ‘Gather’ area provides a terrace with
comfortable seating for lunch breaks or mindful moments.
The ‘Grow’ zone features an interactive urban garden complete with native plants, pollinator-friendly beds and small gardens maintained by the local nonprofit.
Jacobs selected to maintain spaces across Upstate New York
Rosslyn transforms terrace into community-focused pop-up park
Rehumanizing Our Cities
LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE SOLVES PROBLEMS, BUT IT’S REALLY ALL ABOUT CULTURE, ACCORDING TO 2025 OBERLANDER PRIZE WINNER, MARIO SCHJETNAN
Landscape architecture has come a long way since the 80s, muses Mario Schjetnan. It used to be all about aesthetics, with perhaps a large fountain and areas that were difficult to maintain— “pieces of greenery without any contextual concepts.”
Sustainability has helped to change this, though, says the Mexican landscape architect. “You can’t just put in a fountain or a sheet of water; it has to do something for the landscape. The landscape is now about cleaning the city, cleaning the air, restoring pieces—it's about rehabilitation, it’s about survival.
“That’s why landscape architecture has truly become the profession of the present and of the future—because it’s about the world, the environment, and how to save it and make it more human. But then it also needs meaning. It needs to be designed, and design is about ideas and concepts.”
Culture is at the heart of this, says Schjetnan. “Landscape architecture is not just a problem-solving profession; it’s a culture profession.” There’s a process of layering, he says. You first solve the problems, which could be that it needs to be
sustainable, to be connected to the city, and it has to incorporate green and blue infrastructure. “Of course those have to be there. But what about after that? That’s where art begins in a large-scale project. How do you
connect that infrastructure to the culture? What’s the meaning of the project? How are people going to use it? What is it going to communicate? That’s the essence.”
Whilst all the projects from Schjetnan and his firm, Grupo de Diseño Urbano (GDU), embody this, it’s the Xochimilco Ecological
Park that arguably stands out the most. The 684-acre park—which was completed in 1993—revitalized a threatened wetland landscape within Mexico City, recovering lakes and canals, for instance, and preserving and reactivating the historic chinampa agricultural system, integrating it with educational and recreational spaces such as trails, plazas, and a visitor center.
“It was the layering of an area that was developed in the prehispanic era,” says Schjetnan. He studied the “invariants” of the landscape—elements, physical or nonphysical, that have “cultural continuity” such as sheets of water, vertical elements of greenery, the chinampas or artificial islands, surrounded by mountains. Plazas, for instance, are a defining element of Mexican urbanism, as are platforms, or raised structures, in prehispanic architecture.
Schjetnan looks for this cultural continuity in all his projects. Take a new residential area with a golf course that GDU created in Malinalco. When they started to excavate the walls to the golf course, in what is a volcanic area, they started to uncover stones of varying sizes, which Schjetnan insisted be retained and reused.
INTERVIEW
The largest stones were used for the walls to the complex, the middle stones were used for the dry-stone walls in areas such as around the pools, and the smaller stones were used for the road. “So, now you have connected this place to its origins. That thinking is important.”
Schjetnan’s approach is one that was first sparked by his father, an architect who loved nature. He’d take his son to nurseries to buy plants and to visit construction sites, passing on his passions.
“He built his own little boat, so we would go to Acapulco on the west coast of Mexico, where we had a house, and we’d go the nearby lagoons and out to sea to fish. I loved that experience, the adventure of it.”
Schjetnan also became an avid golfer from a young age, admiring the landscape and becoming “pretty good” before his career started to take up more of his time. He still plays now but says he sometimes keeps this fact to himself.
when it was developed in the 60s by architect Oscar Niemeyer. Burle Marx partly inspired Schjetnan to study landscape architecture, and he visited Berkeley while Schjetnan was studying there.
When he came back to Mexico in the 70s, Schjetnan was invited to be the first chief urban designer at INFONAVIT, the Mexican Institute of the National Housing Fund for Workers, founded by the government to provide low-income private-sector workers with affordable housing solutions.
Throughout his five years in the role, Schjetnan travelled across Mexico, helping to deliver 100,000 new housing units in 110 cities across Mexico, including 45,000 in Mexico City.
Mexico is a mosaic of cultures; it’s very diverse—ecologically, socially and anthropologically
His father taught at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), where Schjetnan went to study architecture as well. Throughout his studies, he was influenced by “the great modernists of Mexican architecture,” in particular Luis Barragán, who won the Pritzker Prize—the profession’s highest accolade—in 1980. “He was an extraordinary man; I befriended him for many years, never working for him, just learning a lot from him.”
Schjetnan still designs buildings, or “places where people meet,” to complement the landscapes GDU creates, such as parks and other urban sites. But his true passion is landscape architecture and the large-scale transformation of public spaces for cities.
He enrolled on a course at the University of California, Berkeley, where he chose to study urbanism in his second year, learning from “great teachers” such as the British urbanist Donald Appleyard and American urban planner Kevin Lynch, who is considered a pioneer in urban design.
Schjetnan was also in awe of Roberto Burle Marx, a Brazilian landscape architect who worked on Brazil’s new capital, Brasília,
The experience proved to be “extremely forming,” seeing the varied socio-economic statuses throughout the country. “Mexico is a mosaic of cultures; it’s very diverse— ecologically, socially and anthropologically. You couldn’t do the same things in Yucatan as in Sonora, and so on.” It left him no longer wanting to work as a public official. That’s when he founded GDU with José Luis Pérez and both their wives in 1977—nearly 50 years ago—working on small projects at first.
It was difficult at that time, though, admits Schjetnan. “In Mexico, people didn’t really understand what landscape architecture was, and there wasn’t even a school of landscape architecture, or a society”—though Schjetnan changed the latter, becoming one of the founders of the Mexican Society of Landscape Architects.
Through Harvard’s Loeb Fellowship—a program for mid-career design professionals which he was recommended for whilst teaching in Arizona—he learnt more about public-private partnerships, exemplars of which are the Chapultepec Park Conservancy, the second largest city park in Latin America that GDU rehabilitated over a
20-year period, and La Mexicana Park on the outskirts of Mexico City. In Harvard, he took a “wonderful” class with Carlos Fuentes, a Mexican writer who taught a history of Latin American through literature.
The fellowship also Schjetnan allowed to reflect more on his firm, which had become more of a “cooperative” with a handful of partners—which Schjetnan says worked well for coming up with ideas and was very “exciting” but didn’t work as well from an economic point of view. “People had different interests, and nobody paid attention to the business side of the office.” So, when he returned, he restructured it.
have their own offices. We invite them to collaborate with us as they know the culture and the philosophy of the office— and that has proven extremely successful.”
Sometimes, the client is not the person who pays you; the client is the person you are serving
Knowing the office philosophy is important, as it translates into GDU’s work. It first stems from Schjetnan’s time at UNAM, a free, public university that he says encouraged students to want to give back. He’d also always wanted to work in the public space, which is why he chose to study urban design. “My father said to me, ‘You do realize that, going to Berkeley and doing urban design, your main client is going to be the government?’ I said, ‘Yes, I understand, and that’s going to be difficult.’ So, when I came back to Mexico, I didn’t want to the
Now there are three associates and Schjetnan’s daughter Ana, who is not an architect or landscape architect but instead studied law and now manages the office as a partner. “That’s been very successful,” he says proudly. She took courses in managing a small office and swapped with an office for the US for a period of time to learn how to activate and inspire people, he explains. “She’s now been in the office for 20 years, which has been great—that will be the next generation.
“We now have an office of about 25-30 people and when we have big projects, like we do, we work with some of the people who have worked with us previously but who now
typical thing of becoming successful and wanting a bigger house and then an estate and things like that. No, that was not my direction. My direction was to look everywhere I could for jobs in the public space, and that starts to put you on the map as someone who is recognized for that.”
He sees his trade as being about serving people as much as possible. “Of course, I can serve anybody—we do large estates, yes. But that’s not our main trade, or our main mission as an office. We’ve had around 30 large-scale parks built—nearly 20 in early cities in Mexico—three urban projects in the United States, large-scale private developments in Chile and China and so on. Our network is about public work, and 40% of business is private work, such as large-scale residential projects, and we apply the same philosophy across these.”
It goes back to what he would tell his own students. “Sometimes, the client is not the person who pays you; the client is the person you are serving. I’ve worked in very poor areas of Mexico, as you can imagine
when I started in housing, and now in the work that we do. Those are our clients, not the politician or public office that's going to pay for the project.”
Because “access to open space, particularly green open space, is a human right,” says Schjetnan. “The world is having an explosion of cities. That’s why everyone is working in the Middle East— because it’s expanding.
the 2025 Cornelia Hahn Oberlander International Landscape Architecture Prize from the Cultural Landscape Foundation. “It is a great honor to have that recognition—for my office and for myself, but also for my country, for Latin America."
If you develop new areas for cities, you have to start with open space; you have to start with where not to build
There are cities in Africa that are going to hit 20 million people soon, and India’s population is larger than China’s now. Is there open space? The concept of accessibility to open space, to nature in the cities? If you develop new areas for cities, you have to start with open space; you have to start with where not to build; that creates the system of the creation of open spaces and the accessibility of it.”
This philosophy, this approach, is what saw Schjetnan become the latest recipient of
The late Kongjian Yu—the previous Prize winner, who sadly died in a plane crash earlier this year— developed the idea of sponge cities. “We now have to look at fast developing cities and the right to open space to have equity. Landscape architects can solve these problems and rehumanize our cities. That’s very important. We can work with the local communities and, even if it’s a poor area, we can still achieve great things for the city.”
The underlying layer that Schjetnan perhaps hasn’t listed but is undoubtedly present in his projects is this hope—a belief that the right landscape can make a huge difference, to the environment but more importantly to the people who use it.
BUILT-IN GRILLS • COMPONENTS • FIREPLACES • PARTS • MORE
Project Details
Location Los Altos, California, USA
Project value
$300k approx.
Size of project 836m2
Completed 2023
EResilience in Bloom
ECOGARDENS LANDSCAPE DESIGN
coGardens Landscape Design has transformed a front yard in Los Altos from what was a once water-thirsty lawn into a beautiful living ecosystem, embodying the clients’ values of sustainability, community, and everyday joy.
There were challenges to overcome, such as runoff caused by soil compaction, and protecting the roots of massive coast live oaks, redwoods and an elm. But principal designer Shireen Zia saw these as opportunities to “design with intention.”
To slow runoff, Zia used subtle berms to hold water in planted pockets and to create secluded seating areas for privacy and erosion control. Water use in the yard was more than halved through well-thought-through design decisions such as this, as well as hydrozone mapping and using GraniteCrete paths and a finely tuned
drip irrigation system to create a gentle flow between zones while conserving water.
Mediterranean and California natives including manzanita, salvia, achillea, Epilobium, and ceanothus were chosen for their resilience and the role they could play in feeding pollinators, softening edges and marking the seasons.
Raised vegetable beds are at the heart of the space, enclosed to protect the produce from wildlife. Beside them, an open gravel picnic area with an arbor and string lights hosts children’s performances, outdoor dinners, and spontaneous neighborhood gatherings, whilst a cozy, circular firepit area offers a space to relax.
The yard now acts as a sanctuary for both the people and the wildlife who use it.
Shortlisted: Residential Project Under $500k ABOUT ECOGARDENS LANDSCAPE DESIGN
EcoGardens Landscape Design, led by award-winning designer Shireen Zia, CPLD, specializes in ecological, water-wise gardens tailored to the San Francisco Bay Area’s climate. With a focus on biodiversity, drought resilience, and refined aesthetics, Zia creates spaces that are both functional and inspirational. Her work has been recognized by the Association of Professional Landscape Designers, the Perennial Plant Association, and Fine Gardening Magazine for its innovation, beauty, and environmental stewardship. ecogardens.design
Shortlisted:
Residential Project Under $500k
Bedford Stuyvesant Charmer
FEROX STUDIO
Project Details
Location
Brooklyn, New York, USA
Completion 2020
Ayoung family were looking for their small, undeveloped yard in Brooklyn to be transformed into a lush, seasonal and multifunctional outdoor space. Situated within the dense and vibrant neighborhood of Bedford Stuyvesant in Brooklyn, the garden needed to serve as both a daily escape and a lively play environment whilst also supporting pollinators.
A stylish custom playhouse by Huts fits seamlessly into the rest of the design whilst bringing a charm and playfulness to the outdoor space. It’s surrounded by undulating beds filled with pollinator-friendly perennials, airy ornamental grasses, and year-round shrubs. Species such as Cotinus coggygria, Cedrus atlantica ‘Glauca Pendula’, Stachys byzantina, Salix, Echinacea, and Hyssop form a gentle gradient of pastels and silver hues.
Above the dining table, an outdoor chandelier sets the scene for evening meals, with exterior lighting extending the garden’s functionality well into the night. The family now spends more time outdoors and their garden has generated interest from their neighbors too, as well as attracting pollinators and small urban wildlife.
The Bed-Stuy backyard—with its defined zones for play, relaxation and entertaining—shows how impactful the transformation of a small area in a compact city can be, nurturing family life and providing the ideal retreat.
ABOUT FEROX STUDIO
Ferox Studio is a multidisciplinary design studio based in Los Angeles, California, focusing on the art and practice of landscape, interor and textile design. feroxstudio.com
A1966 Southern Californian home designed by Moise, Harbach & Hewlett—the same firm behind the original Cheech Marin Center—needed a landscape that respected the home’s mid-century lineage. The homeowners also wanted it to be more environmentally conscious than the 12,000 sq ft of irrigated lawn that was in place. So, Ferox Studio created a garden that was water-wise, habitat-rich, and architecturally attuned, with spaces to take in the sweeping view toward the San Bernardino Mountains.
It chose a palette of native and climate-adapted plants, with two sculptural olive trees framing the entry, surrounded by plants and shrubs such as Yucca whipplei, Salvia apiana and Eriogonum giganteum which offer form
Project Details
Location Riverside, California, USA
Completed 2023
and shadow, softening the home’s architecture, as well as ecological performance.
Permeable materials throughout the site encourage infiltration and groundwater recharge, and hardscape elements use life-cycled wood reclaimed from felled Los Angeles trees. On the sloped areas, deep-rooted natives stabilize the soil and reduce erosion. Ferox Studio’s decisions have reduced water use on the site by more than 90% and created habitats for the local wildlife.
The Via Villarta Garden has become a model for how design in Southern California can honor architectural heritage, restore ecological function, and make a major transformation while maintaining budget.
Ferox Studio is a multidisciplinary design studio based in Los Angeles, California, focusing on the art and practice of landscape, interor and textile design. feroxstudio.com ABOUT FEROX STUDIO
Via Vallarta Garden FEROX
Redwood Retreat (Hull Residence)
Nestled in the redwoods of Central California in the Santa Cruz mountains, the Hull Residence’s outdoor space is a stunning retreat designed to harmonize with its natural setting.
With a modest budget, K&D Landscaping executed a vision that blends into the forest surroundings whilst offering modern functionality, such as using a curved pathway and reclaimed wood deck.
The planting palette complements the shaded microclimate, featuring native ferns, shade loving perennials, and ground covers that reduce erosion.
There’s a bespoke firepit area, a bocce ball court, a waterfall pool & spa, an outdoor kitchen and a putting green, as well as minimal lighting to offer warmth and usability without disturbing the tranquility of the environment.
The Hull project honors the site’s history and topography—delivering privacy, sustainability, and simplicity.
K&D Landscaping is a trusted, family-owned landscape design and construction firm based in Watsonville, CA, serving residential and commercial clients across Santa Cruz County. Known for its sustainable, water-wise solutions and attention to detail, it specializes in custom outdoor spaces that blend functionality with natural beauty. With a strong reputation, K&D delivers expert craftsmanship, clear communication, and reliable service from concept to completion. kndlandscaping.com
Project Team
Installation and construction management
Asmall paver patio, a simple pathway to the pool, and removing the grass to stop his dog tracking mud into the house—that's all the owner of this charming Craftsman bungalow was looking for when he enquired about upgrading his outdoor space.
But Michael Bernier could see far more potential at the initial on-site meeting and, through his conversations with the client, he was able to draw out how they wanted to feel in the space and how they envisaged enjoying it to create a tranquil escape.
A full outdoor kitchen with a BBQ and fridge provides the ideal cooking area, whilst the Cumaru hardwood deck with a gas fire pit offers a relaxing space in the evenings. There’s a lush Zen Garden with a relaxing stone fountain, whilst dramatic lighting has been used throughout the yard.
There was already a pool in place that was to stay as it was, and the existing giant mulberry tree with its sheltered canopy spread over the space like a cozy embrace was to be retained. Bernier then utilized any unique materials already on the site, such as the existing planting beds that were edged with rustic railroad ties; he repurposed these as a design element, guiding the viewer’s eye from the house out towards the pool and acting as a retaining structure for the pea gravel in the Zen Garden.
Instead of a few simple changes, Bernier has transformed the yard into an inviting and warm outdoor space, with four functional ‘rooms’ which the client now uses nearly every evening.
Michael Bernier Design
Hollywood Bungalow
Michael Bernier is the founder and lead designer of Michael Bernier Design, a premier landscape and exterior design firm based in Los Angeles, California. After a prolific career as an advertising creative director, Bernier discovered his true passion while studying Landscape Architecture at UCLA, marrying his design expertise with his love for natural environments. For more than a decade, his designs have brought to life his client’s vision for beautifully inviting and functional outdoor living spaces. michaelbernierdesign.com
Architect FGMF Arquitetos
Landscape designer Hanazaki
Project Team
Walkway House
ABOUT FGMF ARQUITETOS
The Walkway House has been designed to seamlessly integrate into its surroundings, be that its urban setting within Sao Paulo or the forest it threads through. FGMF Architects’ design emerges from a deep connection with the terrain’s unique features, with the site consisting of two distinct areas: a flat grassy section and a steep, densely wooded slope, both positioned below a dead-end access road.
A large slab with a green roof helps the house to blend into the landscape. It has been created at street level, allowing entry via a path that crosses a reflecting pool and leads to an open staircase. Beneath the roof, a 14m walkway connects the courtyard and the wooded area, with the social and leisure spaces opening onto a flat section, where the pool and solarium form a central patio.
On the lower level, suspended walkways weave through trees, linking elevated
Founded in 1999 by FAU-USP colleagues, FGMF creates contemporary architecture with diverse materials and techniques, emphasizing the relationship between architecture and humankind. With no rigid formulas, each project starts from scratch, using design as a research tool. Its work spans various scales and programs, reinforcing its belief that architecture, like life, should be pluralistic, heterogeneous, and dynamic. fgmf.com.br
Shortlisted: Residential Project Over $500k
volumes supported by pilotis and giving the appearance of floating amongst the canopy. These house the office and gym, immersing them in nature.
The private areas are contained within a floating volume above the ground floor slab, enclosed by brise-soleils. This section opens onto views of the city, the central courtyard, and the site’s majestic trees, balancing privacy with a strong connection to the surroundings.
Addressing challenging elevations with precision grading and elegant retaining systems, K&D Landscaping created a high-end landscape for the Rich Residence, building a luxurious retreat for the client.
Along with renovating an outdated pool, it curated multiple zones that included formal gardens, fire-gathering areas, outdoor dining, custom play spaces, and bespoke carpentry shade zones. The planting palette is balanced and strategic, creating privacy while framing panoramic views.
Underlying each of the decisions was sustainability. Water efficient systems, smart lighting, and long-term resource planning were integrated without compromising aesthetic goals.
The Rich Residence doesn’t just elevate the property; it redefines what residential outdoor living can be.
Rich Residence K&D LANDSCAPING
Shortlisted: Residential Project Over $500k
ABOUT K&D LANDSCAPING
K&D Landscaping is a trusted, family-owned landscape design and construction firm based in Watsonville, CA, serving residential and commercial clients across Santa Cruz County. Known for its sustainable, water-wise solutions and attention to detail, it specializes in custom outdoor spaces that blend functionality with natural beauty. With a strong reputation, K&D delivers expert craftsmanship, clear communication, and reliable service from concept to completion. kndlandscaping.com
Project Details
Location
Santa Barbara, California, USA
Project value
$850k approx.
Size of project 1.3-acre property
Completed 2024
Santa Barbara Adu
SCOTT MENZEL LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT
These Santa Barbara empty nesters wanted a place for their children to comfortably visit with grandkids. They turned to a popular option in California—an accessory dwelling unit, or ADU, to expand their liveable area and offer a little extra breathing room for out-of-town visitors, and asked Santa Barbarabased landscape architect, Scott Menzel to design an outdoor space that would tie the two living spaces together, give them an area for hosting barbecues or dining outside, and be a calming sanctuary where they could entertain visitors or enjoy the garden alone.
The ADU was designed by architect Kas Seefeld and takes up 991 sq ft of the backyard of the client’s home. Adjacent to the ADU, the outdoor kitchen features a built-in pizza oven, gas grill, and smoker. A bar with seating sits different colors and textures. The palette includes mostly Mediterranean and drought-tolerant plants, as well as roses, grasses such as Pennisetum ‘Fairy Tails’ and Sesleria, lavender, Jerusalem sage, Santa Barbara daisy, and peppermint geranium, among others.
The danger of any new addition or sizeable build is that the new features will look incongruous with the original residence, yet Menzel’s project takes inspiration from the natural environment; the earthen tones of the flagstone ground the vibrant pops of color in the garden, and the finished project feels like an organic extension of the environment.
The result of Menzel’s hard work is an inviting garden meant to be shared and enjoyed with family and friends.
ABOUT SCOTT MENZEL LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT
Scott Menzel’s firm brings a creative, analytical and common-sense approach to designing user-driven outdoor spaces. Its goal is to create visually stimulating, timeless gardens that fulfill clients’ needs. It strives to make spaces that are inviting, comfortable and dynamic. Menzel weaves his landscapes into regional, historical and environmental and architectural fabric to harmoniously integrate them with the distinctive character of each site. Sustainable principles are inherent in his approach.
scottmenzel.com
Shortlisted:
General contractor DD Ford Construction
Project Team
Building architect Kas Seefeld
Landscape contractor Old Coast Landscape
Project Details
Location
Aptos, California, USA
Aptos Village
K&D LANDSCAPING
When tasked with revitalizing the heart of the historic coastal community of Aptos Village, K&D Landscaping created a public realm that honors the area's natural character whilst fostering connection, walkability and environmental stewardship.
Every design decision, from tree placement to material selection, was guided by a commitment to public safety, accessibility, and human-scale design. Thoughtfully placed gathering spaces, pedestrian pathways, and ADAaccessible connections , for instance, were used to encourage daily interaction and inclusivity.
K&D integrated native coastal plantings and bioswales to support stormwater management and habitat
restoration, and towering native redwoods, Coastal Oaks, and drought-tolerant understory plantings evoke the essence of the California coast.
Aptos Village now has a shared community hub that blends into the surrounding neighborhoods, Aptos County Park and Aptos Creek, providing a place that prioritizes inclusion, sustainability, and long-term value.
ABOUT K&D LANDSCAPING
K&D Landscaping is a trusted, family-owned landscape design and construction firm based in Watsonville, CA, serving residential and commercial clients across Santa Cruz County. Known for its sustainable, water-wise solutions and attention to detail, it specializes in custom outdoor spaces that blend functionality with natural beauty. With a strong reputation, K&D delivers expert craftsmanship, clear communication, and reliable service from concept to completion.
kndlandscaping.com
Luna Park
Aformer military airport in Irvine, California, has been transformed into a new 13-acre park designed to enrich the local community, providing access to a vibrant, activity-filled destination that supports recreation, wellness, and environmental responsibility for residents of all ages.
Twenty large heritage trees were planted, as well as 3,000 shrubs and 400 regular-sized trees, all giving the impression of a well-established landscape, despite the park only opening this summer. They created an immediate sense of maturity, providing generous shade and supporting the local habitat.
Low-water, low-maintenance shrubs and grasses feature throughout the landscape, which is irrigated using reclaimed water—including the eight-acre open turf area—significantly reducing potable water demand while keeping the park green year-round.
The array of amenities in Luna Park also includes a beach-entry family pool and a dedicated lap pool, a
half-acre shaded playground, hidden pickleball courts, half courts for basketball, and a handball court. There are also shaded BBQ areas, a community building and outdoor soft seating throughout the park.
A variety of activities and areas for all has created a signature community asset that strengthens neighborhood identity, fosters healthier lifestyles, and reflects Irvine’s commitment to high-quality public spaces, sustainability, and long-term community enrichment.
ABOUT LANDSCAPE CRAFT STUDIO, INC.
Landscape Craft Studio, Inc., based in Orange County, California, creates nature-driven landscapes guided by the “Wisdom of a Place.” Established in 2024, the firm specializes in area development, planning, construction documents, and project management for parks, hospitality, healthcare, estates, and culturally sensitive projects. Landscapecraftstudio.com
With distant views of Six Flags Magic Mountain, California’s Verve Park sets itself apart with its intentional design that centers around human connection and multi-generational engagement.
It’s now a dynamic urban hub, at the heart of which is a community building—a flexible space for events, workshops, and neighborhood gatherings. This is framed by one of three large heritage trees, whose preserved canopies offer both a visual anchor and symbolic link to the site’s natural history.
community events such as a local farmers' market and other private civic programs.
A central stage with terraced oval seating functions as an amphitheater, surrounded by flexible-use areas for
Designed with topography in mind, the playground area includes nature-themed climbing structures and features as well as embankment slides. Next to this is a compact outdoor fitness zone to support an active lifestyle.
Blooming Jacaranda trees branch out over meandering pathways which connect to a large, open, multifunctional turf. Shade trees, pergolas and walls for seating offer places to linger and relax.
Verve Park has become a vital open space for the community, where ecology, recreation, and social programming intersect to build a stronger sense of place.
ABOUT LANDSCAPE CRAFT STUDIO, INC.
Landscape Craft Studio, Inc., based in Orange County, California, creates nature-driven landscapes guided by the “Wisdom of a Place.” Established in 2024, the firm specializes in area development, planning, construction documents, and project management for parks, hospitality, healthcare, estates, and culturally sensitive projects. Visit landscapecraftstudio.com
Project Details
Location Valencia, California, USA
Size of project 4.5 acres
Completed 2025
On an island in the beautiful state of Bahia, Brazil, these clients—who were experienced in hospitality— requested identical rooms with private pools, all facing the sea, and the use of cast-in-place concrete and masonry due to material transport limitations.
At first, it looked as though a single block cutting across the land, creating a barrier between the front and back, would need to be used. The design team was concerned about
this, though, and—focusing on enhancing guest experience, particularly in the private balcony areas—they proposed diverse balconies while keeping the rooms the same, instead of the identical spaces.
Using locally available materials, they introduced varied architectural elements, such as pergolas, pools of different shapes, built-in benches, loungers, planters, water spouts, hammocks, and cobogós. This diversity not only enriched guest experiences but also
ABOUT FGMF ARQUITETOS
Founded in 1999 by FAU-USP colleagues, FGMF creates contemporary architecture with diverse materials and techniques, emphasizing the relationship between architecture and humankind. With no rigid formulas, each project starts from scratch, using design as a research tool. Its work spans various scales and programs, reinforcing its belief that architecture, like life, should be pluralistic, heterogeneous, and dynamic. fgmf.com.br
transformed the façade, avoiding a monotonous structure.
Additional facilities, including a games room and restaurant, are set within dense landscaping at the rear, creating a natural separation between the forested area and the pool-sea zone. And the dynamic, visually engaging building with unique balconies now creates a jaw-dropping exterior that looks out to the shimmering ocean.
Shortlisted:
Commercial Project
Ibira Work FGMF ARQUITETOS
Project Details
Location
São Paulo, Brazil
Project value N/A
Size of project 1,000m2
Completed 2021
Located beside one of the most vibrant and photographed parks in the world—Ibirapuera Park—the Ibira Work project fosters a strong connection between workspace, nature and views in São Paulo. Intended to redefine the post-pandemic work experience, the building overlooks a landscaped oasis.
In promotion of a balanced work environment, the project prioritizes both workspaces as well as areas of relaxation and interaction. Designed with a steel structure, the building features large spans with slender elements, supporting metal brises, hanging plants and pergolas. From thermal comfort to green visuals, the space creates a satisfying microclimate throughout its levels.
The landscaped area is fit with a front-faced shop, offering a peaceful retreat from the street. Visitors enter
Project
through a walkway surrounded by treetops, leading to its central core and naturally lit offices with cross ventilation and expansive terraces suited to São Paulo’s climate.
Open staircases connect to a rooftop with park views, enhancing outdoor accessibility within the workplace. Fluid with an abundance of greenery, the combination of gentle planting with steel structures reflects the project’s balanced workspace.
ABOUT FGMF ARQUITETOS
Founded in 1999 by FAU-USP colleagues, FGMF creates contemporary architecture with diverse materials and techniques, emphasizing the relationship between architecture and humankind. With no rigid formulas, each project starts from scratch, using design as a research tool. Its work spans various scales and programs, reinforcing its belief that architecture, like life, should be pluralistic, heterogeneous, and dynamic. fgmf.com.br
Landscape designer
Gabriella Ornaghi and Bianca Vasone
Team
City of Hope
LANDSCAPE CRAFT DESIGN INC
Built to support cancer patients and their families, the City of Hope is a destination focusing on environmental solace, resilience and healing. Within Orange County, the project intended to transform the campus into a sanctuary where nature plays an essential role in comfort, hope and emotional wellbeing.
Elements across the landscape include lush shrubs, trees and tall grasses that move gently with the wind to stimulate a calming sense of rhythm. Areas are shaded by large heritage trees ranging from 60” to 72” and even 90” box sizes..
It’s a living garden that engages year-round color and smell; medicinal and healing-themed plants are scattered to provide seasonal hues, texture, fragrance and pollinator value. Near to this, the garden hosts small fountain elements that create a gentle white-noise effect.
Ultimately, the thoughtfully designed garden intends to reduce stress, restore energy and support the emotional journey of every patient and their family who walks the campus. Those looking from behind a window can also enjoy the peaceful aesthetics of the garden.
ABOUT
LANDSCAPE CRAFT DESIGN INC
Landscape Craft Studio, Inc., based in Orange County, California, creates nature-driven landscapes guided by the “Wisdom of a Place.”
Established in 2024, the firm specializes in area development, planning, construction documents, and project management for parks, hospitality, healthcare, estates, and culturally sensitive projects. landscapecraftstudio.com
ASU Hayden Library
Reinvention
TRUEFORM LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE STUDIO
Originally opened in 1966, Arizona State University’s Hayden Library and its external spaces were no longer meeting the students’ needs. In turn, the university tasked Trueform Landscape Architecture Studio with a comprehensive reimagining of Hayden Library, one that would take the library from underutilized and uninviting to a vibrant oasis on campus.
Across the development, Trueform created a new library plaza at the main level and added 25,000 sq ft of over-structure open space, featuring lush and colorful greenery offering students shaded areas.
Remaining resilient to Arizona’s climate, the project uses drought-tolerant and native plants and permeable paving to address storm water challenges, repurposing that storm water within the landscaping.
The reinvention of Hayden’s Library and the importance Trueform placed on the interconnectivity
of the outside spaces mirrors the college experience. In the pursuit of creating a fluid relationship for students between education and the environment, the new plaza removes the limitations of knowledge within the classroom, but takes place wherever students come together to learn from each other.
ABOUT TRUEFORM LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE STUDIO
Trueform Landscape Architecture Studio focuses on creating meaningful and memorable places that connect people to nature. Its work exhibits a strong commitment to authenticity, utilizing regionally appropriate and enduring materials. The studio brings decades of experience, working on numerous site-specific campus projects including student life, student services, and various academic specific programs. trueformlas.com
Location Tempe, Arizona, USA
Project value $1.2m
Size of project 2.5 acres (including footprint of building)
Completed 2020
The Oasis Sanctuary Estate
K&D LANDSCAPING
Shortlisted: Conceptual Project
Project Details
Location
Yucaipa, California
Resting within the heights of Yucaipa in California, the project envisions a newly framed life of luxury. Surrounded by an environment shaped by drought, extreme heat and persistent wildfire risk, the design embraces its natural forces by turning them into opportunities for regeneration, resilience and self-sufficiency.
K&D Landscaping has taken a sustainable approach to modern land development. Sat at the core of the estate is a courtyard rain garden, capturing, filtering and celebrating water. Complementing this is a rooftop garden which is linked to a concealed cistern network, enabling efficient rainwater harvesting and long-term water independence. Together, these elements form a closed-loop hydrological system that supports the built space and its natural ecology.
Featuring native and drought-tolerant planting adapted to the region’s climate, the landscape strengthens its home’s resilience. Along the boundaries, a perimeter of fire-resistant plantings is layered over a protective mounded earth form, creating a natural buffer that
reduces wildfire vulnerability while enhancing privacy, acoustics, and visual drama.
Sculptural wind walls punctuate the architecture, functioning as kinetic art pieces while simultaneously contributing to renewable energy generation and passive cooling strategies.
As a luxury model stood in the heart of environmental challenges facing California, this is designed to be a self-sufficient landscape to protect its inhabitants.
ABOUT K&D LANDSCAPING
K&D Landscaping is a trusted, family-owned landscape design and construction firm based in Watsonville, CA, serving residential and commercial clients across Santa Cruz County. Known for its sustainable, water-wise solutions and attention to detail, it specializes in custom outdoor spaces that blend functionality with natural beauty. With a strong reputation, K&D delivers expert craftsmanship, clear communication, and reliable service from concept to completion.
kndlandscaping.com
Scottsdale Ranch
MICHAEL BERNIER DESIGN
Surrounded by the Sonoran Desert, the space is situated within the arid climate of Phoenix.
Landscape designer Michael Bernier themes the garden around a water-conscious, rustic modern ideal. Inspired by the recently installed water-wise landscape enveloping the Pheonix Sky Airport,
Bernier’s client also placed water conservation at the project’s heart.
Design plans for the conceptual project transform a large patch of turf grass into an inviting living space, complete with native desert planting and a dry creek bed to aid drainage. The current landscape features a pool, so
Digital rendering Concepts Conveyed
Project Team
Bernier integrates the existing space with new concepts. What was once a horse corral felt disconnected from the house and everything else. In turn, Bernier was inspired by the looming hills and mountains neighboring the property, to create organic cures around mounded planting areas edged by Corten steel to create fluidity.
ABOUT MICHAEL BERNIER Project Details
Michael Bernier is the founder and lead designer of Michael Bernier Design, a premier landscape and exterior design firm based in Los Angeles, California. After a prolific career as an advertising creative director, Bernier discovered his true passion while studying Landscape Architecture at UCLA, marrying his design expertise with his love for natural environments. For more than a decade, Bernier's designs have brought to life his client’s vision for beautifully inviting and functional outdoor living spaces. michaelbernierdesign.com
In an area often baking underneath the blazing sun, the introduction of several native desert willow and Palo Verde trees was deemed necessary in order to provide shade amongst the heat. Between the campsite-style fire pit area, a raised cedar hot tub, an edible garden and a cozy cabana living room, the concept connects the natural environment with the home and client.
