Kristina Floor, FASLA and Chris Brown, FASLA, are two of the most prominent landscape architects working in Phoenix today. Their work on the Lost Dog Wash Trailhead and the “Desert Lives” exhibit at the Phoenix Zoo received national recognition from the ASLA. They are also a married couple. In 2008, their Phoenix-based firm, Floor Associates, merged with JJR, a subsidiary of the large multidisciplinary firm SmithGroup. But as of January 1, they are working on their own again. In a brief phone conversation, they explained why. The conversation below has been edited and condensed. Continue reading Why Floor and Brown Left SmithGroup JJR→
As parks the size of postage stamps pop up all over San Francisco and spread to other cities, “tactical” urbanism is taking on a cannily strategic edge.
By John King, Honorary ASLA
SF Planning.
If you’re a tourist who’s visiting San Francisco, you’re unlikely to find yourself on the 4600 block of Noriega Street near the Pacific Ocean, and until recently there’s been little to miss. Continue reading Parklets, Everywhere→
An interview with Gary Hilderbrand and Douglas Reed.
By William S. Saunders
In the culture of landscape architecture, the work of Reed Hilderbrand of Watertown, Massachusetts, stands out by not calling attention to itself in any brash way. Continue reading The Inventions of Reed Hilderbrand→
In sustainability programs and smart growth, some people see a United Nations plot to take over your community.
By Linda McIntyre
The commissioners of Baldwin County, Alabama, are set to decide this month whether to file the comprehensive county plan the commission adopted in July 2009—a plan that cost $280,000—in the garbage can. Continue reading The Utterly Meaningless Agenda 21→
Some brownfields are ripe for producing renewable energy.
By Linda McIntyre
Steel Winds, Lackawanna, New York, Apex Wind Energy
Redeveloping brownfield sites can take a lot of time and money. But sometimes contaminated land can be put to good use during, or even before, the cleanup is finished. Continue reading Juice from Junk Sites→
Disability watchdogs have decided that brick sidewalks are nothing but trouble.
By Elizabeth S. Padjen
Rian K. Long.
Brick, beans, and cod—you know we’re talking about Boston. But nobody bakes beans anymore, and the feds have clamped down on cod fishing. Now, even brick is under siege. In the country’s most famous walking city, the dominance of the venerable paving material has been challenged by the decidedly more pedestrian concrete and asphalt. Continue reading The Trouble with Brick→
As the Occupy movement mushroomed around the country last October, most aspiring activists didn’t agonize over which patch of grass or concrete to take over in solidarity with those who were camping out on Wall Street. Continue reading Your Tent has No First Amendment Rights→
The Magazine of the American Society of Landscape Architects
