5 Reasons Why I Should Hire A Landscape Architect
Many homeowners and commercial property owners are often hesitant to hire a Landscape Architect, mostly because they don’t know much about the profession or what they can bring to the table. Did you know that the profession has been around for over 100 years! Have you ever heard of Central Park? Yep, you guessed it, designed by Landscape Architect Frederick Law Olmsted.
Now that you are hopefully more comfortable with the term (Landscape Architect) and the profession, let’s answer the big question, “Why should I hire a Landscape Architect?”
1. This is what they went to school for
Let’s put it this way, if you broke your leg, would you try to reset it yourself, or go see a doctor that specializes in this form of medicine? I hope the answer it the latter! Landscape Architects study horticulture, environmental design, site analysis, layout, grading, and construction detailing, etc. They can help you determine the best circulation route, how to take advantage of a desirable view, how to screen the undesirable view, what hardscape material is appropriate to meet your design objectives, lighting, planting design, and even irrigation. Education includes a 4-5 year degree, a 1-2 year apprenticeship (varies by state), and then a rigorous 5-part 20 hour examination.
2. They can help you establish your construction budget
When I meet with clients for the first time the conversation eventually turns to budget. More often than not, I get the deer in headlights look. Mostly because they either never thought about it or have no idea what exterior improvements cost. A well trained Landscape Architect knows costs and can help you establish a realistic budget to meet your project goals. Knowing this upfront can help guide the Landscape Architect with material selection and ultimately prevent you from spending your entire budget on one area of the overall project.
3. They can prepare a master plan for a cohesive look
Some clients have grandiose ideas but don’t have the capital upfront to support them. This is where a master plan approach can be very effective. A design is prepared for the entire property and then systematically broken into phases of construction. Some people may want to just install a patio this year and down the road install lighting. Well, although this is a fine approach, proper planning is necessary for a successful project. What if the patio is installed and then they go back next year and there is no access to run wires under the patio? In this simplistic example, you start to appreciate what a Landscape Architect can bring to the table as he or she would have known to install conduit under the patio under Phase I. In addition to the construction sequencing making more sense, I can almost guarantee that the overall design will be more cohesive.
4. They help you keep bids on a level playing field
At the beginning of a project you may decide to interview a few different Landscape Contractors. Although Landscape Contractors are extremely knowledgeable with construction and some design too, each one will provide a quote based on what they believe to be appropriate for the project. This makes it very difficult for you to determine if their fees are appropriate for the scope of work because you are comparing apples to oranges. When a Landscape Architect helps you to develop a well thought out design you can submit that same design to 3 contractors and now have them provide you with a quote. See the difference, apples to apples! In addition to that, many times the soft costs (design fees) are recouped within the differential of hard costs (construction fees).
5. They can provide construction management services
No matter how well thought out a plan is, it is not uncommon for unforeseen conditions to pop up during construction. This is where a Landscape Architect can really shine! Since they have a relationship with the owner of the project, have a good understanding of the project goals, understand the overall design intent, and have knowledge of construction, they have the ability to make decisions on the fly on the owners behalf. If the owner is at work and out of reach, and the contractor has thousands of dollars of machinery sitting idle on your lot, waiting for a decision, that can get very costly.
Check back next week where we will be discussing WHEN it makes sense to hire a Landscape Architect and all about the 10k rule.
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