Ike Boatwright, EIT, LEED AP Honored by USGBC-SC

STAFF ACCOMPLISHMENT: The South Carolina chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council has awarded Ike Boatwright, E.I.T., LEED^® AP a Fellowship grant to attend the 2009 Greenbuild convention and exposition. Ike was chosen for this honor due to his commitment to sustainable design practices and his leadership in the organization and community. He is a Team Leader with the SeamonWhiteside + Associates’ civil engineering department where he has worked on projects such as Sandhill Research and Education Center in Richland County for Clemson University and the new Governor’s Park Recreation Area on Daniel Island. Greenbuild will be held November 11-13, 2009 in Phoenix, AZ.

Landscape Architect Chris Campeau – Leadership Dorchester 2009

STAFF ACCOMPLISHMENT: SeamonWhiteside + Associates’ Landscape Architect Chris Campeau is a member of the 2009 Class of Leadership Dorchester, a public service development program hosted by the Greater Summerville/Dorchester County Chamber of Commerce. The program provides education and training to individuals interested in becoming more knowledgeable about their community and its resources and teaches the leadership skills needed to help improve the area.

As a class project the group recently donated their time, skills, and resources to provide a much needed boost to the Dorchester Children’s Center (DCC) by updating the entrance landscaping and the interior of the conference room. DCC, which is connected to the non-profit Children in Crisis, works with abused and neglected children and their families. The group provides counseling, parenting classes, and other resources to affected families.

Having completed 12 months of service education, Leadership Dorchester’s Class of 2009 will graduate in November 2009. Chris Campeau has been with SW+A since 1995. He has worked on a variety of projects including the Summerville Town Hall Annex, new parking garage and plaza, the Family Circle Cup Tennis Center on Daniel Island, and Mount Pleasant’s popular shopping mall, Towne Centre. Chris has a background of public service and has formerly served as a member of  Summerville’s Downtown Restoration Enhancement & Management Corporation (DREAM) and is currently an active member of the Town’s Commercial Design Review Board. In addition to his activities with Leadership Dorchester, he is on the board of the Summerville Miracle League (SML) and was instramental in organizing the non-profit’s first annual Barbeque Cook-Off fundraiser.

An Engineer’s Perspective

SARA JOYCE, EIT
PROJECT COORDINATOR/CIVIL ENGINEERING

The New Mount Pleasant Academy Elementary School is Open for Business!

For me, the greatest reward of working in the construction industry is to see a completed project appreciated by those who use it every day.  Recently, the design team for the new Mount Pleasant Academy, headed up by local architects (SMHa), received a letter from a student expressing her excitement about the prospect of attending the new facility this school year. After three years of the ups and downs that go along with bringing any project of this magnitude to fruition, this simple letter thanking us made it worthwhile.

In many respects, I understand this student’s enthusiasm for the new facility.  The site design for MPA has been one of the most thought-provoking projects I have worked on since my start at SW+A and as cliché as it sounds, I do enjoy a challenge!  Due to the constraints of the shape of the existing property, the proximity of the adjacent residential area, the Town of Mount Pleasant’s baseball fields, and approximately 8’ of fill that was required to meet flood zone elevations, we needed to come up with some creative grading solutions…especially for here in the Lowcountry. In the end, two major design elements were chosen to tie the new school back into the existing lay of the land.

The first design element is the hill that overlooks the Town’s baseball fields.  The area not only adds a sense of connectivity and flow between the two properties, but also provides additional seating for the parents watching athletic games.  It has also been noted that this area may bring endless entertainment for any kid with a cardboard box.  The second element is the use of the stepped retaining walls to create the amphitheater at the rear of the school.  The walls were designed with kid friendly heights in mind and a stage at the base so the area may be utilized as an outdoor classroom.  Although, with unobstructed views to the marsh and out to the Sullivan’s Island lighthouse, it may be hard to keep the students’ attention!

The amphitheater and the hill to the playing fields are just two of the many aspects of MPA that make it unique.  It is my hope that they will be used and appreciated for many years to come.

School is Back in Session!

MEREDITH BEARDEN, LEED® AP
LAND PLANNER

The students and faculty of Moultrie Middle School (MMS) have officially arrived at the new and improved location situated between SW+A’s Town of Mount Pleasant Farmer’s Market and Pocket Park. A project that was designed to LEED® certified standards, MMS is one of four new schools to open in the Charleston County School District for the 2009/2010 school year. While the two-story, 120,000 SF building (GBA) holds many green features, the site contains a variety of sustainable qualities as well.

First bell at the new Moultrie Middle School

With a plant palette containing mostly native plant species, the site includes the use of a central bioswale that catches drainage not only from the school site but also from the adjacent Farmer’s Market site. With the existing sandy soils, the bioswale provides infiltration for stormwater run-off without having to design multiple ponds on site. The bioswale also presents an aesthetic appeal and educational experience to students and faculty and also to parents as they circle it during the drop-off and pick-up of their children.

As a motive for alternative transportation, bike racks were provided, and the result exceeded everyone’s expectations. The racks, filled with several hundred bikes, certainly should be an inspiration to our communities and municipalities to evolve to a biker-friendly lifestyle. And speaking of creative influences, the east and west courtyards at MMS have great potential to be special gathering spaces that expand the children’s learning possibilities through sustainable materials and practices.

As reported by The Post & Courier, Jean Siewicki, Moultrie Middle School principal says that the new school is “the crown jewel of Coleman Boulevard.”

Big Toy, Big Fun!

CAMERON CLEMENTS, LEED® AP
LAND PLANNER/URBAN DESIGN

I recently had the opportunity to be involved with the design team for the new playground at Palmetto Islands County Park. For the first time in my professional career, I was able to hold meetings on a swing set and test out new playground equipment which is not your typical day at the office. The playground was designed with imagination and interaction in mind. The team wanted to create an innovative and exciting new play space that would meet the needs of children’s physical and social growth.

The playground equipment is physically challenging to the new user and also encourages kids to come back time and time again. To help enhance social skills, we provided spaces for children to have more personal talks with their friends and other children.  These spaces are equipped with fun hammock seats that allow children the opportunity to talk face to face and develop valuable communication skills.  There are also shaded picnic areas for parents and families that have become the new hot spot for birthday parties.  We provided seating areas throughout the park and within the play spaces so parents won’t miss any of the action.  There are separate play areas for 2-5 year olds and 5-12 year olds.  The climbing boulder and sand play area is appropriate for all ages and promotes interaction between the younger and older kids. And for those hot summer days, there is a mist pole for cooling off.

Kids of all ages love the Big Toy

Not only is the playground beneficial to its users, it is also environmentally sensitive.  We utilized recycled materials whenever feasible.  The equipment is comprised of recycled aluminum and 30% recycled steel.  The equipment is also PVC and Phthalates free.  The benches are made from recycled plastic and the colorful rubberized surface is made from 100% recycled tires and is 100% pervious. This surface material allowed us to position the playground within the Live Oaks on the site without harming the trees.  We also used only native plant material that doesn’t require irrigation and also provides habitat for the surrounding wildlife.  I hope everyone in their professional career has an opportunity to design for children. This was such a fun and rewarding project.

Innovative Stormwater Solution Helps Maximize Useable Land

IKE BOATWRIGHT, LEED^® AP
CIVIL ENGINEERING TEAM LEADER

pervious paver installation

Today’s stormwater regulations often create a dilemma for smaller projects. Sites between 0.5 – 2 acres have trouble maximizing buildable area with standard stormwater practices.   Once vehicular and pedestrian access, required parking, buffers, setbacks, grand trees, and retention ponds are taken into account many projects are only left with around 25% of the site for vertical construction.   This can render projects economically unfeasible with current land values.   How can developers meet or exceed their bottom line in these situations?  Here is an example where innovative stormwater infrastructure substantially increased usable area for vertical construction.

Brickyard Business Park is a 0.7 acre commercial project being developed by S.L. Shaw and Associates.   In the initial planning stages we studied the projects stormwater options and found that an infiltration system would increase the usable area for vertical construction from 0.25 acres to 0.35 acres which meant significantly more square footage for build-out.   We were able to meet stormwater requirements without a retention pond by utilizing the permeability of existing soils with a pervious paver system in vehicular areas.

Once the project was bid, we compared the costs for the pervious paver system versus the standard asphalt system and determined that the more innovative pervious paver stormwater management solution was 2.5 times more expensive; however, this only accounted for a $50,000 increase in construction cost.  The client decided to go with the new technology, which  not only enhanced the sustainable design aspect of the project but increased the amount of space available for sale by 40%.

Bragging Rights

Meredith Bearden, LEED® AP
Land Planner

Although I have only been at SeamonWhiteside+Associates for nearly three years now, I stand honored and privileged to be a part of such a reputable firm and what I know as my home away from home.  Since establishment in 1985, SW+A has provided services such as Land Planning, Civil Engineering, Landscape Architecture, Urban Design, Permit Coordination, and Construction Administration.  With projects ranging in size from one acre to 4,500 acres, I have been lucky to have taken part in a number of project types such as residential, planned developments, commercial, parks & recreation, public works, schools, urban design, and due diligence.  It is pretty amazing to have on record that SW+A has not only designed over 25,000 residential units equating to housing over 60,000 people, but in twenty-four years, we have also engineered more than one million linear feet of water and sewer lines! As history continues to be made, even in these trying times, we continue to hunker down, keep our spirits up, and get the job done right.

While we remain encouraged and committed to keeping up with the evolving technologies in our field, we continue to be ambitious in our goals of professional development.  With offices in Mount Pleasant and Greenville totaling to 51 employees, we have a total of 9 Professional Engineers, 12 Registered Landscape Architects, 10 LEED® AP Civil Engineers including three PEs (40% of civil staff), and 9 LEED® AP Landscape Architects including five RLAs (50% of LA staff). This leaves us with 21 registered personnel and 44% LEED Accredited Professional staff! Times are always changing and as this firm evolves with new studios, new designs, and new ideas, we hold true to the people we are and the services we provide.  I am proud to be part a part of this journey, this firm, and this family, and that is something to brag about!

Even a Civil Engineer Can Go Green!

Betty Niermann, P.E.
Group Leader/Civil Engineering

We moved into our new home almost 3 years ago and have been working on our yard ever since. We have relocated mature azaleas and crepe myrtles (with great success), tore out a termite attracting deck and replaced it with a (pervious) cobble pave patio, and added a few additional trees to the landscaping. Our latest project was the addition of a rain barrel and pavers under the boat canopy. It all been a labor of love to achieve a home we can be proud of.

Niermann Place Upgrades

I do have to admit many of these projects we would never of thought of, or attempted to tackle, if I had not first learned of the products (cobble pavers and rain barrels) through work.  Can you name that flower by the rain barrel?

I’ll let you know when we are ready to replace our shed if anyone wants to show off their construction skills. I’ll soon have a challenge for the landscape architects in our office to see if you can help me green up a corner that is barren.

Green Roof: 1 Year and Going Strong

Zach Bearden, RLA, LEED® AP
Landscape Architect

Our SW+A green roof is alive and well.  The LiveRoof® product has survived a full year with absolutely no maintenance.  Actually we forgot about it.  SW+A may have one of the only modular green roof installations in Charleston.  We feel  that the LiveRoof® system is a truly sustainable product for new construction of energy efficient buildings, LEED projects, and suburban retrofits.

Green Roofs are great way to reduce operating expenses, add beauty to otherwise desolate roof space, and reduce storm water run off.  Thanks to Mike Semones of Riverbend Nursery for donating the modules for our test installation.

To learn more about LiveRoof® visit:
www.LiveRoof.com

Keeping Perspective

Zach Bearden, RLA, LEED® AP
Landscape Architect

With the current economy down it’s easy for one to get down on everything else as well. Now is a great time to focus on family, personal goals, and hobbies outside of the office.

I had a great time this past weekend getting out to the beach and on the water with friends. Charleston offers us a great quality of life and we have to keep that in perspective. Check out the pick below of Kenny Seamon leading the pack.   Kenny, Russ Seamon, JR Toribio, and I are all members of the Family Riders Motorcycle Club.

Remember to take some time this summer to appreciate the good things in life.

Kenny Seamon Shows the Way