Winner Best Overall Dean Pipito A 23-year veteran of the pond industry, Dean Pipito is the owner of Aquatica, one of the largest waterscape firms in the United States. He and his team have aggregated a wide range of skills and competencies, creating a highly respected reputation among their peers. When they aren’t working together to create aquatic works of art for their clients, Dean and his wife, Angela, enjoy spending their free time on their farm in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin.
Golfing legend Jack Nicklaus once said, “Nobody ever remembers who finished second at anything.” After Aquatica completed the finishing touches on this breathtaking, customdesigned waterfall and river system at The Legend at Merrill Hills golf club in Waukesha, Wisconsin, it was clear that this landscape centerpiece was second to none. Having to mitigate the numerous challenges that come handin-hand with a renowned private golf course, including player accessibility, safety and widely inconsistent topography, Dean Pipito and his team found themselves constantly testing the limits of their expertise during construction, always under the watchful eye of course management. In the end, their deliverable — which included a series of crashing waterfalls, golf cart bridges, 700 tons of blue boulders and a 450-foot river meandering through the course — had become a cornerstone of the property. He incorporated enhanced vistas into an elevated playing experience, complete with elegant new obstacles for golfers to contend with. Even if you’re not a golfer, the major waterfalls create a oneof-a-kind, “surround-sound” dining experience, as club members and wedding attendees alike can dine or sip cocktails within the cascading waters, creating an unforgettable atmosphere that, as the property name suggests, borders on legendary.
March/April 2017
POND Trade Magazine 13