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Last week, colleagues Valerie Ahyong and Lia Delucchi spent some time training out in the Arizona sun! While touring various park and recreational projects and trailheads in the Phoenix metro area, it was a great opportunity to observe how each design was curated into the area with specific user needs. The balance between conservation and preservation was prevalent, especially through many historic design references. For example, at Granite Mountain Trailhead in Scottsdale, custom signage was designed to educate visitors on the history of the surrounding views, native saguaro growth patterns, and, of course, how to make your way through each of the trails. Another example, Pioneer Park, in Mesa provides visitors with various options with its multi-use grass fields, splash pad, basketball courts, shaded picnic tables, historic train monument, and unique treehouse play structures. Many of these elements can be seen from the suspension bridge that flows throughout the play structures, allowing visitors to experience the park within the canopy of the park’s historic trees. In addition, Valerie and Lia also checked out a few of Lloyd’s past projects as well. They took a quick look at Arizona State University’s Beach Volleyball Facility and Legacy Sports Complex. Lloyd Principal, Anthony Stevenson, also joined them for a tour of Salt River Fields at Talking Stick in Scottsdale, spring training facilities to the Arizona Diamondbacks and Colorado Rockies! To top off the end of a great trip, Valerie and Lia visited the Desert Botanical Garden. Being from California, Lia was able to learn about Arizona native/ adaptive plants and observe the differentiating design styles throughout each garden/ trail. They also took advantage of the landscape design for some sketch training exercises, focusing on perspectives, scaling tricks, shading techniques, and portraying people accurately! A huge thank you to Valerie for planning and organizing a great trip for Lia and the AZ team members who participated in the training! During their recent excursion to East Coast, the LLOYD team had the privilege of visiting Allianz Field in St Paul Minesota. During their visit, the team engaged in some insightful discussions with the facility’s groundskeeping team, delving into the multifaceted challenges associated with growing turf in cold climates. Within the confines of the stadium environment the conditions for growing and sustaining turf are frequently far from ideal. Micro-climates develop at pitch level and the ground staff work to counteract both the effects of nature and the built environment on the turf. 🏟️ These challenges can include aspects of:
To address these complex challenges, stadium design elements such as the bowl layout, utilization of specialized grow lights, field level fans and undersoil heating are all essential components and innovations that architects, engineers, and grounds crew continue to finetune in pursuit of an improved stadium field outcome. Collectively, these ideas all contribute to the playability and presentation of natural grass fields at the highest level all year round. The pitch looked great! Congratulations to the hard-working crew at Allianz Field. 🏅 Our spotlight this week is one of our designers, Jake Ireland. Through previous posts, we have highlighted Jake’s personal passion for mountain biking and trail running! Recently, Jake attempted his first 100-mile run! 🚵♂️ 🏃♂️ “I entered the Saddles100 Ultra Marathon Trail Run in Prescott, Arizona. For it being my first 100-mile race, I felt great. Once I hit mile 76, I decided to take a short break to help me to the finish line. Unfortunately, I cut my race short at 76 miles due to nutrition and stomach issues. Although a bit bummed, I will attempt another 100-mile trail run and make it to the finish line with the experience I have gained!” Jake exemplifies the importance of learning and listening to your body. 💪 Good luck on your next race, Jake! Throwing it back in the day for National Boss Day to highlight Lloyd’s two wonderful leaders, Anthony Stevenson and Bob Milano, Jr.! 🏈⚾ Before his days at Lloyd, Anthony kicked off his career as a linebacker for Arizona State University. He has never been afraid to tackle the hard challenges on and off the field and that is one of the many qualities we appreciate in Anthony! Next up to bat is Bob, playing catcher for the University of California, Davis. What a great catch he was when joining Lloyd 9 years ago! We appreciate Bob’s passion and the guidance he provides for the Lloyd team to learn from. The Lloyd team thanks you for all that you do! 💼🏅 Bob, Zach & Patrick were in Cincinnati last week, undertaking field tours and on-the-ground (literally) educational sessions ⚽ The best learning experiences are gained by witnessing field practices firsthand and talking directly with the crews that do a fantastic job maintaining and preparing pitches for match day. After visiting the stadium earlier in the day, the team were fortunate enough to see how the pitch held up to the rigors of an MLS match.🏟️ FC Cincinnati are kicking goals all round! 🥅 |
