PERMEABILITY & Patience

from SYNKD West Spring 2024

by SYNKD—Landscape design, build and maintain all on the same page

REWRITING THE CLIENT’S CHECKLIST

LeAnn Ostheimer Reminiscences on Melding

French Inspiration With Location-Specific Needs

In 2013, an unreal flash flood hit Boulder, Colorado, damaging properties beyond repair and forever changing public perception of the danger posed by natural disasters across the state. LeAnn Ostheimer, Lifescape Colorado’s revered chief operating officer, remembers watching a correlated downpour from her northern Denver home. Well-versed in landscape design, LeAnn could not help but envision ways strategic land planning might have mitigated the impact of the 100-year rainstorm. A few years later, adhering to the mandates set in response to the event, LeAnn and her team would find themselves in the heart of Boulder, embedding sophistication into the land surrounding this modern château and protecting it from destruction at the hands of rushing water.

“As this site resided in the flood path running through the neighborhood, we had to create a landscape design that could handle another 100-year flood,” says LeAnn. “We consulted with and worked with a project engineer for a design that would redirect excess water in the event of a flood. In the back third of their property, we designed a 10-foot wide natural stream bed. To make the space look natural and blend with the Boulder environment, we added meandering paths and layers of xeric perennials, shrubs and trees.”

Checking off boxes for the romantic, old-world aesthetic requested by the homeowner—while supporting the architect’s objectives and earning green building points—would add another layer of complexity to the project scope. By the end, Lifescape tells us, the 34,000-squarefoot property is an 84 percent permeable landscape with only 18 percent of the lot being irrigated turf.

“Going with a permeable driveway, complete with a stormwater lift station and pump, helped us offset our impact and meet those green points from the county,” says LeAnn. “At the front of the house, there is a maple tree that we knew we wanted to preserve. Aged trees give such a great look to a home, and due to the constraints of the lot and layout of the home, we had to come very close to the base of that tree. The permeability of the driveway protected that root system. We had our arborist out there to ensure no harm occurred during construction. I’m happy to report that the maple is still doing well.”

The reason LeAnn can speak to the health of that tree is that the team regularly tends to the land around it. As construction wrapped, the property transitioned to Lifescape’s ongoing property care team. Over the years, Lifescape has been able to monitor and touch up this landscape post-installation. Maintaining the fountains, giving the plantings routine nutrient boosts and updating the irrigation system (with the automated, cloud-based controller Lifescape now recommends) are a few such developments. Even so, observing the spread of the garden foliage over time is where LeAnn’s greatest takeaway stands for this project.

“There’s this soft, naturalistic palette around the stream bed: yellow, blue and lavender colors that contrast with the traditional hydrangeas, red roses, vincas and boxwoods nestled around the courtyard entry,” says LeAnn. “The client requested that we design the gardens for future growth. Instant gratification from a full garden from day one was not the intent. That perspective opened my eyes to the power of patience in landscaping.

It takes a few years for the plants to flourish and to work out the quirks.

Synthetic turf covers the rooftop living space above the garage. Without the extra weight of regular watering sessions, that space became the ideal location for a firepit. One place grass was nonnegotiable, however, was the area designated for the full-sized volleyball court. Addressing the water needs of this area in an eco-friendly way took careful contemplation due to square footage constraints.

“We wanted to design the most waterefficient irrigation zones possible,” says LeAnn. “For us, it meant using a water management system, properly amending the soil and adding water-efficient materials such as pressure-regulated heads. I think these green building initiatives challenge companies to design and build smarter. It does take more of an upfront investment for this more sustainable approach.”

Boulder is not the only city where sustainability and disaster protection initiatives have permeated building standards. Things of beauty— trickling fountains, custom fabricated gates, specialty plantings—are only a portion of what makes a landscape a success anymore. Wildlife friendly vegetation, light pollution management, best practice water management, proper soil amendments and proactive long-term care practices are ingrained in this landscape to keep it thriving and benefiting the world around it. Learning from the land, pursuing sustainable practices at the start of every project and trusting challenges will give way to resilience. This, as LeAnn has shown, seems to be the most practical and honorable way forward for our industry.