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Newsletter 62 | November 2, 2015           
                 

Call for Nominations for OALA Honours and Awards 2016

The Ontario Association of Landscape Architects (OALA) Honours and Awards are the highest recognition the association can bestow on its members, and non-landscape architectural individuals, groups and organizations.  These honours and awards not only recognize deserving recipients, but is a program that highlights significant accomplishments in advancing the profession to its members and those in the general public.  Each OALA member plays an important part in the success and integrity of the program by identifying and nominating deserving candidates from the various awards.
 
The program culminates as a formal presentation at the 2016 OALA AGM & Conference on Friday, April 1st in Niagara Falls.
 
The honours and awards to be considered are:
 
Pinnacle Award for Landscape Architectural Excellence
The David Erb Memorial Award
Public Practice Award
The OALA Award for Service to the Environment
The OALA Carl Borgstrom Award for Service to the Environment
The OALA Research & Innovation Award
The OALA Jack Copeland Award for Associate Leadership and Contribution
Emeritus Member
Honourary Member
 
The deadline to submit nominations is November 30th.
 
For complete details on award criteria and submission requirements, please view the Call for Submissions page on the OALA website.
 

Designing Toronto’s Parks:
OALA with TSA Urban Affairs Forum & City of Toronto
November 12, 2015, Toronto ON | Emmanuel College, Room 119 University of Toronto

The role of parks in Toronto is rapidly shifting. Historically, Toronto’s parks were designed to serve a smaller, less concentrated population. As such, they traditionally had to perform fewer functions and were less intentionally designed than the landmark spaces commissioned by other North American centres like New York, Boston, Montreal or Chicago.
 
The TSA forum will ask the question: what does excellent design mean in Toronto’s parks? The panel will discuss where opportunities can be found to achieve excellent park design, both geographically and administratively.  Consulting landscape architects and architects as well as staff from the City of Toronto will discuss how community engagement, operations and maintenance, budgets and creative energy can be harnessed to create meaningful places in Toronto’s parks and open spaces.
 
Registration is FREE but space is limited, so you must register online ahead of time.
 
For more information please click here.

OALA Holiday Party
December 9, 2015, Toronto ON | The Duke of Devon


Save the date! The OALA Holiday Party will be on December 9.

Click here for more information on this year’s holiday party.

This event is brought to you by the OALA Social Committee.

OALA Office Move

On October 15, the OALA moved offices. The new address is:
 
3 Church Street, #506
Toronto, ON M5E 1M2
 
Please update your records for the new office location.

In This Issue



Call for Nominations for OALA Honours and Awards

Designing Toronto’s Parks

OALA Holiday Party

OALA Office Move

How to Properly Construct LID Stormwater Management

OALA Curling Bonspiel Follow-Up

OALA Members Invited to IIDEX

OALA Chapter Updates

OTHER NEWS

Volunteer Opportunities with CLARB

TD Green Streets Helping to Grow Canada's Urban Forests

Ontario Strengthens Environmental Protections for Great Lakes

True North Garden Ready to Welcome Patients

EVENTS

Design Excellence in Play

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS

LACF Grants Call for Proposals

Landscape Architecture Services

L.A.R.E. Important Dates and Reminders

November 20 
Registration closes for the December L.A.R.E. administration

November 30 - December 12
December L.A.R.E. administration
 

Newsletter Survery


Which section of the Newsletter do you look forward to reading most?

A) OALA News
B) Member News
C) Other News
D) Events
E) Call for Submissions/Competitions

CEC Workshop: How to Properly Construct LID Stormwater Management

 
Low Impact Development (LID), an innovative stormwater management approach that treats, infiltrates, filters, and retains runoff at the source, is quickly becoming the new norm in Ontario. Construction of LID systems involves techniques and specifications that differ from traditional stormwater management construction practices.
 
Date: November 6, 2015
Time: 8:30 am – 4:30 pm (Registration opens at 8 am)
Location: Novotel Conference Centre, 45 The Esplanade, Toronto, ON M5E 1W2
Member Cost: $110 +HST   OR   $135 + HST (Hard Copy Guide Included – $25 Value)
Non-Member Cost: $130 +HST   OR   $155 + HST (Hard Copy Guide Included – $25 Value)

There is just a limited supply of hard copy guides available. This option will be removed once sold out.
 
For more information and to register, please visit the website here.

OALA Curling Bonspiel Follow Up

October 24, 2015

With team names like "Curl Jam," ”Sweeping Beauties," "Sheet Disturbers" and the cheekily named " I Swept with your Wife," over 50 registrants attended this the 2015 OALA Curling Bonspiel  at the Guelph Curling Club on the evening of Saturday, October 24th.

The afternoon began with a Learn to Curl, hosted by the Curling Club President and OALA member Amanda Gebhart and two members of the University of Guelph's Varsity Curling Team. Then things got off to a "rockin" start and several ends were played before everyone came in to warm up and fuel up with a buffet dinner and a beverage.

With the event being Halloween themed once again, prizes were given out for best team costume: first prize went to the “Bloodied and Battered Blue Jays" followed by the "Cool Runners" (remember the Jamaican Bobsled Team?) and finally the "House of Commons" representing all four official political parties.  There were many notable mentions and people really got into the theme--thanks for your enthusiasm!

The actual tournament was hotly contested with the "Killer Butterflies" (Amanda Gebhart, Patrick Rees, Ben Vander Veen and Jason Parks) pulling ahead at the end with a winning 15 points (Congrats!). Two teams "House of Commons" and "TBD"  finished second tied at 14 points!

Thanks to Aaron Hachey (BLA 2017) for his help behind the scenes, including taking photos and to Kathy Brown (Manager of the Club) and Rod Pollock (caterer.)
 
Next year’s date is on Saturday, October 29th, same location. Images from this year can be found in the Member’s section of the OALA website, here.
 

OALA Members are invited to Present at IIDEXCanada

December 2 - 3, 2015

The OALA is pleased to participate at IIDEXCanada annually with an exhibit, display of award winners, volunteer appreciation reception and seminars on landscape architecture in the conference program. 
 
OALA members are invited to submit a seminar of interest to landscape architects as well as architects, interior designers, builders, developers, property managers and real estate executives.  The most popular topics include case studies, trends and issues such as sustainability, inclusive design and wellness but IIDEX is also looking for creative ideas and concepts. IIDEX is accepting submissions and OALA members are encouraged to participate.
 
For additional information and to submit your seminar, please follow the link for the IIDEXCanada call for presentation
 
Visit the website for more information on exhibiting or attending at www.iidexcanada.com or call Johane Deignan, Director of Marketing, Conference & Sponsorship at 416-960-4517 or jdeignan@iidexcanada.com
 

Chapters Updates

OALA Ottawa Chapter
In October, the LAO leadership team worked to develop an Action Plan and Budget for 2016; we are looking forward to a full complement of activities next year, including regular business meetings, continuing education opportunities, and socials. Upcoming activities of interest to our group include:
  • November 3rd - LAO Business Meeting, 7:00pm at the BAJA Grill Dow’s Lake
  • November 4th – Open Forum Lecture: Making and Remaking Memorials, A Contested Process, 6:00pm Architecture Building at Carleton University
  • November 18th - Capital Urbanism Lab: A Retrospective on Capital Planning
  • November 19th – Design Excellence in Play, 6:00pm Novotel
  • December 3rd - Capital Urbanism Lab: Archaeology in the Capital Region
  • December 16th - Holiday Social, 6:30pm at the Albion Rooms
Also, we wish to congratulate Welwyn Wong, who received DynaSCAPE Award for Landscape Design from the Canadian Nursery Landscape Association at the National Awards of Landscape Excellence gala in Winnipeg. The National Awards of Landscape Excellence is an annual event dedicated to showcasing the highest level of professionalism in Canada's landscape sector. Lastly, at least two of our Chapter members will be heading to the ASLA Annual Meeting and Expo in Chicago next week. You are welcome to contact Erin Pietersma pietersma@fotenn.com or Greg Velis velis@fotenn.com if you would like to meet up during the event.   
 
OALA Southwestern Chapter
November 2, 2015, London ON, 7-9 P.M.
 
In an effort to make OALA meetings and events more accessible to landscape architects based out of Southwestern Ontario, the OALA is working toward revising the Southwestern Ontario Chapter.  Please join us at a kick-off event to share ideas, reconnect, and have a cocktail.
 
Please RSVP via email to michelle@rkla.ca for details.

OTHER NEWS

Volunteer Opportunities with CLARB

Volunteers play an active and important role in ensuring that the Council of Landscape Architectural Registration Board (CLARB) is dynamic, relevant and effective. CLARB is currently seeking volunteers to serve on two of the three Landscape Architecture Continuing Education System (LA CES) committees.

Background
The LA CES is a program sponsored by key landscape architecture organizations to establish, maintain and enforce standards for evaluating professional development and continuing education (CE) programs for landscape architects. It is a collaboration of CLARB, Canadian Society of Landscape Architects (CSLA), American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA), Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture (CELA), Landscape Architectural Accreditation Board (LAAB) and Landscape Architecture Foundation (LAF).

Opportunity #1
Member, LA CES Monitoring Committee (1 position; three-year term begins on January 1, 2016)
The Monitoring Committee’s mandate is to perform an annual “audit” of 10% of LA CES providers to ensure compliance with LA CES quality guidelines.

Opportunity #2
Member, LA CES Administrative Committee (1 position; two-year term begins on January 1, 2016)
The Administrative Committee’s mandate is to manage and oversee the LA CES program and its committees.
For more information on either opportunity, please click here.
 

TD Green Streets Helping to Grow Canada's Urban Forests 

With the launch of TD Green Streets 2016, Tree Canada and TD Friends of the Environment Foundation invite municipalities and Aboriginal communities nationwide, as well as Business Improvement Associations in Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver, to submit proposals for innovative projects aimed at growing and caring for their urban forests. Twelve qualifying projects will be selected to each receive a grant of $25,000.

Click here to read full article.

Ontario Strengthens Environmental Protections for the Great Lakes

Ontario recently passed the Great Lakes Protection Act, which will strengthen the province's ability to keep the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River clean, as well as to protect and restore the waterways that flow into them. Passing the Act enables the province to address significant environmental challenges to the Great Lakes, including climate change, harmful pollutants and algal blooms.

For full article, please click here.

True North Garden Ready to Welcome Patients at Ajax-Pickering Hospital

Canada is well known as the ‘True North, Strong and Free,’ and Rouge Valley Ajax and Pickering hospital is aligning with that theme for its revamped area for patients and family called True North Garden.

The area that was once a sterile concrete patio is now intended to be a place known as a peaceful setting with fresh air, greenery and patient- and family-friendly access.
Click here to read the rest of the article.
 

EVENTS

Design Excellence in Play

November 18, 2015 – Toronto, and November 19, 2015 - Ottawa

 
What role does good design play in society? How do you know it when you see it? What goes into creating it? Is design excellence ever easy?

ABC Recreation is pleased to welcome Scott Roschi, Director of Design for Landscape Structures, as he discusses these and other relevant questions and topics related to design excellence. Through these questions and examples from around the world, Scott will examine global trends and their impact on designing innovative playground environments today. Discussions will also focus on the opportunities for stronger collaboration between playground designers and Landscape Architects.

Click here for more information.
 

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS

2016 LACF Grants Call for Proposals

It's time to apply! Every fall, LACF sends out a call for proposals to invite individuals or groups to submit funding requests for projects that explore a specific dimension of landscape architecture.

This year, the deadline for your proposal is November 14, 2015.  

RFP 15-06 – Landscape Architecture Services

The Conseil scolaire Catholique Providence is soliciting fee proposals from landscape architects qualified to offer services for six (6) separate and distinct playground development initiatives.

The agreement will be awarded for a period of two years beginning approximately December 4th 2015 and ending approximately December 3rd 2017. To enable the successful completion of the projects identified herein, the agreement may be extended for two (2) additional one (1) year periods.

For more information, please click here.