Landscape Architects Receive Professional Awards for Outstanding Design and Planning

American Society of Landscape Architects Honor Exceptional Work by Hawaii Landscape Architects

HONOLULU—The Hawaii Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) presented the 2009 Professional Awards at the Waikiki Yacht Club on August 25. The awards, given every three years, recognize the best in landscape architecture for design, planning and analysis, and communications.

Recipients of the 2009 ASLA Excellence Awards are:

• Walters, Kimura, Motoda, Inc., General Design Award for Waikiki Beach Walk “What a great direction Waikiki has taken; a heartfully done project,” the judges said. “Tourists as well as local residents should be proud of this accomplishment and development.”
• Loriann Gordon, ASLA, Residential Design Award for the Knudson Residence at Hualalai, which was cited for integrating architecture, landscape architecture, and art into several spaces within the whole.
• Umemoto Cassandro Design Corporation, Planning & Analysis Award for the East-West Center Campus Landscape Improvements Master Plan, a viable and comprehensive master plan that was developed by working with a wide variety of constituents.

Recipients of the 2009 ASLA Honor Awards are:

• PBR HAWAII & Associates, Inc., Planning & Analysis Award for the Kahanu Garden Master Plan for the remote National Tropical Botanical Garden in Hana, Maui that preserves important cultural and natural landscapes to “exemplify the strength and importance landscape architecture and planning play in making our environment livable and enjoyable,” said jury members.
• Helber Hastert & Fee, General Design Award for the Shidler College of Business, which transformed once dingy and unused spaces into vibrant spaces. “The school is a model that other public buildings should follow,” the judges said.
• Umemoto Cassandro Design Corporation, with Leland Miyano, Residential Design Award for the Aliomanu Residence, Kauai. The landscape design incorporated both the intimate, charming spaces and the expansive grounds of the residence.
• PBR HAWAII & Associates, Inc., Communication Award for the Ho’opili Community Task Force Vision Statement for this Ewa community.

Recipients of the 2009 ASLA Merit Awards are:

• Helber Hastert & Fee, General Design Award for the Waikoloa Performance and Cultural Gardens
• Lester H. Inouye & Associates, General Design Award for the Pu‘ukani water feature at the Sacred Hearts Academy
• PBR HAWAII & Associates, Inc., Planning & Analysis Award for the Lihu‘e Civic Center Master Plan
• Umemoto Cassandro Design Corporation General Design Award for the Hualalai Canoe Club
• Walters, Kimura, Motoda, Inc., with EDAW, Inc. of Irvine, California, General Design Award for the Royal Hawaiian Center Revitalization
• Dana Anne Yee, General Design Award for the Hokulani Elementary School Peace Garden and Hawaiian Garden

ASLA Hawaii also presented its Malama Aina Award for environmental stewardship to Charles “Chipper” Wichman, CEO of the National Tropical Botanical Garden on Kauai, and Stan Oka of the City & County of Honolulu’s Urban Forestry Division. Also honored with the Pookela Award for lifetime achievements in the landscape architectural field were Juli Kimura Walters and Paul Weissech, and posthumously Ray Cain, Tom Papandrew, and George Walters.

The 2009 ASLA Hawaii Professional Awards Program awardees were chosen from 24 entries by a juried panel. “The jury was drawn to honor projects that had transformational qualities; landscapes and plans that changed the community not just through design but by providing sensitive, creative and sustainable environmental design solutions,” said Chris Dacus, ASLA Hawaii president.

Jury members were Allison Holland, president of The Garden Club of Honolulu; Clark Llewellyn, dean of the University of Hawai‘i School of Architecture; Jeffrey Nishi, president of the Honolulu chapter of the American Institute of Architects; Boyd Ready, president of the Landscape Industry Council of Hawaii; David Kumasaka, landscape architect with the Urban Forestry Department of the City & County of Honolulu; and Matt Flach, landscape architect with of the United States Navy.

With more than 14,000 members nationwide, ASLA is committed to advancing the understanding and awareness of the role of landscape architects in developing environments that are creative, inspiring, functional and enjoyable. For more information, go to www.hawaiiasla.org .