NJDEP posts latest revision of New Jersey Stormwater Best Management Practices Manual Chapter 9.1:
Bioretention Systems March 2009

Landscape architects that provide stormwater management services should be aware of the latest revision to the BMP Manual giving guidance and recommendations for the construction and maintenance of bioretention systems. Just released this month, this new information can be found on the NJDEP Stormwater and NonPoint Source Pollution website: www.njstormwater.org  or at http://www.njstormwater.org/tier_A/
pdf/NJ_SWBMP_9.1%20print.pdf

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CALL FOR EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OFFICER NOMINATIONS

All members are encouraged to nominate potential candidates for the NJASLA Executive Committee. Please send your nominations to David Lustberg, NJASLA Secretary by Email or through contact with the NJASLA Headquarters, 414 River View Plaza, Trenton, NJ 08611 609-393-7500. The deadline for nominations is May 1, 2009.

The following Executive Committee positions terms are open for the Fall 2009 Elections:

 All positions require a strong commitment to the profession and involvement in NJASLA programs and events.  
Executive Committee meetings often include free pizza.

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ASLA Resources for Now and Beyond the Current Economic Crisis

ASLA has created a new page within asla.org as a resource for those members negatively affected by the current economic downturn. Two member-only e-networks are also being tested to offer platforms for networking and information exchange among Established Professionals (Full, Fellow, and International members) and Emerging Professionals (Associate and Student Members, plus members associated with landscape architecture schools) who have been hit by hiring freezes, layoffs, and severe business downturns.

Recent updates to the business tools section of the professional practice resource center section of the ASLA website include the 2009 Edition of the ASLA Standard Form Contract for Professional Services and the Business Development Program for Small Firms. The ongoing collaborative work of the Professional Practice Committee with staff makes this possible.

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Begin Planning for Landscape Architecture Month Activities

ASLA Staff sent out a second reminder email to Chapter and Student Chapter leadership to begin planning activities for National Landscape Architecture Month. In addition to pointing them to our activities guide, ASLA posted a new public relations guide to help chapters with NLAM and all future outreach at the local level and updated a general Powerpoint for member use.

When you schedule your activity, please let NJASLA know about it so we can add your efforts to our planned Landscape Architecture Month activities press releases. We want to publicize your work, so plan to have opening ceremonies and other promotional events in April. Get us the information by Email to the Executive Committee or call our Headquarters at 609 393 7500.


NJASLA Student Chapter Book Sale Set for April 25th

The first event announced for Landscape Architecture Month 2009 is a book sale and donation drive for discipline related books by our Student Chapter. The sale will take place at Rutgers University’s School of Environmental and Biological Sciences (SEBS) Cook Campus  as part of the School’s Ag Field Day celebrations on April 25th. A booth will be set up in front of Blake Hall for the sale.

All members and friends are encouraged to peruse the available collection of their favorite titles. Donations of books and magazines will also be gratefully accepted.

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Rutgers University, School of Environmental & Biological Sciences
Landscape Architecture March Lectures

March 4, 2009
Richard Garber, NJIT, Dept. of Architecture & GRO Architects NYC
Simulate, then Make
Wednesday 4:00-4:55 PM
Cook Douglass Lecture Hall 110

March 11, 2009
Annette Voigt, Technische Universität München Dept. of Landscape Ecology
Nature Conversation in Germany – Problems and Perspectives
Wednesday 4:00-4:55 PM
Cook Douglass Lecture Hall 110

March 25, 2009
Robert Melvin, GROUP DESGIN
Environmental Planning Lecture
Wednesday 4:00-4:55 PM
Cook Douglass Lecture Hall 110

NJASLA/ RU SEBS Landscape Architecture Month Event

April 1, 2009
Johannes Böttger, Universität Hannover, Dept. of Landscape Architecture
Hush Out Loud! Communicative Features of Urban Landscape Architecture
Wednesday 4:00-4:55 PM
Cook Douglass Lecture Hall 110

April 8, 2009
Henry Arnold, Arnold Associates
A Modern Role for the Landscape Architect
Wednesday 4:00-4:55 PM
Cook Douglass Lecture Hall 110

April 15, 2009
Stuart Appel , Wells Appel
Greetings from Dubai: Design, Environment, and Impressions of a New Middle East
Wednesday 4:00-4:55 PM
Cook Douglass Lecture Hall 110

April 22, 2009
Steve Martino Steve Martino & Associates

The Margaret Cekada Lecture: Steve Martino, FASLA
April 22, 6:00 pm, Heldrich Hotel, New Brunswick

Steve Martino, an award winning landscape architect of the Southwest, will be the featured speaker of this highlight of the RU SEBS Landscape Architecture lecture series. This event will be held at the Heldrich Hotel and Cristopher’s Restaurant, located at the corner of George Street and Livingston Avenue in New Brunswick. Festivities begin at 6:00 PM and a reception is included. To familiarize yourself with Mr. Martino, see the profile below:

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An interview with Steve Martino, FASLA (excerpted from Planetizen, 2007)

Current Position and Affiliation:
President, Cactus City Design, Phoenix, Arizona
Prior Affiliation:
President, Steve Martino and Associates, Phoenix, Arizona
Education:
Studied art and architecture at Arizona State University, 1969

How did you get into the field?
By Accident: I planned on being an architect. Out of school I took a two-year job with a landscape architect. At the time, I thought architects should also be landscape architects. This was my first critical look at the man-made landscape. I was puzzled why the desert was not appreciated and mostly why desert plant material was not used in landscaping. I thought the desert was more interesting than anything man-made in the city. My quest was to figure out how to use native desert plants in the landscape, and eventually, to develop a design style that was desert derived. My goal was to celebrate the desert rather than make apologies for it, which was the current design field’s approach.

What aspect of landscape architecture are you most passionate about?
I am most passionate about creating outdoor living space and places that people look forward to being in.

What is the most challenging part of your job?
The most challenging part of my job is finding designers who have a passion for design excellence. When I started, I thought getting clients and doing good work would be the challenge. However, these two things were not a problem in my practice. It proved to be that managing a business while also being the sole designer for all my projects would be my greatest challenge.

Brief description of a recent project:
In a current residential project which is under construction we have ventured into industrial design with our design for furniture, outdoor showers, interior skylight baffles, glass work, water features, counters, etc. This project took five separate structural engineering firms to design the specialized elements: We used the house engineer for concrete, masonry, and major steel work; a pool and water feature engineer for the pools; a glass engineer for our drilled and pinned glass walls; a specialty engineer for sculptural fencing; and a composite engineer for the fiberglass structures.

What is the most recent book you read that challenged the way you think about your profession?
"Franklin D. Israel: Buildings and Projects" by Frank O. Gehry

How do you think landscape architecture has changed since you first entered the field?
The quality of design has increased drastically since I started, but I think the basic services are still the same. When I joined the ASLA in 1980, the main market for landscape architects in my area was providing "sprawl" design services for developers. The ASLA had a motto in these days that made me feel good about the profession. It stated that we were "Stewards of the Environment." However, as I looked around, not much of that "stewardship" made it down to the street level. I used to say maybe we were the Martha Stewarts of the environment. The Savings and Loan robber barons were dumping their money into huge projects that displace the natural environment with exotic landscapes that tried to make the desert look like somewhere else. Landscape architects would stand in line to be these developer’s stooges.
Twenty-five years later, most of the firms in my area have grown into rather large firms catering to developers conquering and displacing the natural environment. Unfortunately, I think we are still a profession servicing sprawl.

Do you have any advice for someone entering the field?
Learn a specialty. Have a solid background in design. Learn skills in graphic design, urban design, marketing, lighting design, water feature design, etc.

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ASLA Political Action Works!!!   H.R. 1, The American Economic Recovery and Reinvestment Act,

On February 17, President Obama signed H.R. 1, The American Economic Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which would provide approximately $789 billion in tax cuts and spending to help jumpstart our nation's lagging economy. The White House and Congressional leaders estimate that the package would create or save 3.5 million jobs over next two years.

Over 550 ASLA advocates participated in an advocacy alert to contact their legislators to urge them to pass a final stimulus package that did not include the Coburn Amendment. The Coburn Amendment stated that "no funds in the bill can be used for any casino or other gambling establishment, aquarium, zoo, golf course, swimming pool, stadium, community park, museum, theater, art center, and highway beautification project."  ASLA is pleased to announce that the final stimulus bill does not include language to prohibit stimulus funds from being used for community parks or highway beautification projects.

After hearing from ASLA advocates, ASLA CEO Nancy Somerville, and other allied professional organizations about the job creation associated with and benefits of community parks and highway beautification projects, Congress adopted a final stimulus package that does not include language to prohibit stimulus funds from being used for community parks or highway beautification projects. However, the final bill does prohibit stimulus fund for certain other recreational projects. In particular, the bill states that "None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available in this Act may be used for any casino or other gambling establishment, aquarium, zoo, golf course, or swimming pool."

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Items of the Stimulus Package important for Landscape Architects

The final stimulus package also includes a number of other provisions important to landscape architects:

The National Park Service
The measure provides the National Park Service (NPS) about $750 million to complete infrastructure projects - like roads, bridges, and trails - in national parks. ASLA contacted legislators about concern for their eliminating $200 million for the repair and rehabilitation of the National Mall in the House version of the bill. While this funding for the Mall was not re-instated in the final stimulus package, a portion of NPS infrastructure funding could be used to begin the much-need work on the deteriorating National Mall. The Interior Department estimates that its portion of stimulus funds would generate about 100,000 jobs over the next two years.

Funds for wildfire management, including forest health protection on federal and state lands and private forests would be administered through the Department of Agriculture.

Transportation Infrastructure Programs
The bill appropriates $48 billion for the Department of Transportation (DOT) for transportation and infrastructure improvements, including highway projects and mass transit. Funds include $27.5 billion for "ready to go" highway infrastructure projects under the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), including $1.5 billion in discretionary grants for road, bridge, and rail projects. Of the $27.5 billion, $170 million will be used for park roads and parkways and $20 million will be used for highway surface transportation and technology. A total of $8.4 billion will go towards the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) for mass transit projects, including $6.9 billion in transit capital assistance grants.

The bill would require three percent of funds appropriated under the Federal Highway Administration's Highway Infrastructure Investment program in the bill be set aside for Surface Transportation Programs (STP), including the Transportation Enhancement Program.

Environmental Protection Agency
The bill also provides about $6 billion for the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Funds, which provides grants to states for wastewater treatment and drinking water treatment projects. This provision requires that at least 20% of these funds be used for projects to address green infrastructure, water or energy efficiency improvements or other environmental activities. The EPA also received about $100 million for brownfields restoration projects.

Energy Efficiency
The stimulus package includes $20 billion in tax incentives to spur investment in renewable and alternative energy, aimed at "green" jobs to make wind turbines, solar panels and to improve energy efficiency in schools and federal buildings. The measure also appropriates $5.5 billion for federal building construction and repair projects, with an emphasis on projects that achieve high levels of energy efficiency.

Army Corps of Engineers
The bill also provides about $4.6 billion for the Army Corps of Engineers for construction, operation, and maintenance of the nation's flood control and navigation infrastructure, as well as the construction of environmental restoration projects.

Tax Incentives for Small Business
The final measure contains two major tax incentives for small businesses: accelerated depreciation and increased expensing. Under the accelerated depreciation incentive, small business owners may take a 50% bonus allowance on 2008 capital asset purchases acquired in that year. The remainder of the asset can be deprecated under the regular rules. With the new increased expensing rule, businesses may elect to treat certain assets as an expense (known as Section 179), and deduct it in the year the property was placed in service, instead of depreciating it over several years. Business owners may expense up to $250,000 in Section 179 assets purchased in the tax year beginning in 2008, nearly doubling the previous expensing limit.
The final version of the bill is accessible on the Library of Congress web site (Part 1 and Part 2). Please contact ASLA's Government Affairs staff if you have any further questions.

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