Walk Like They Talk: Helix Water District’s New Water Wise Garden
Helix Water District, La Mesa
Our designers just completed an interactive garden located at the administrative offices of the Helix Water District. After a decade-long process, our collaboration with the District has created a beautiful and “wise” garden.
The Water District offices are located in a highly visible corner on University Avenue in La Mesa, California. This project transformed the District’s landscape into an inspirational garden to showcase the best ways to have a water-wise garden.
LeAd by Example
The District is an industry supplier in delivering high-quality water throughout their communities, and they are a progressive leader dedicated to sustainability. One of the main objectives of the project was to give customers a resource that demonstrates practical design elements of water conservation for their own landscapes.
Through our years of experience and knowledge of water-wise systems, four pillars informed our design in the early concept stage. They were:
Limit turf to areas needed for practical purposes / programmed spaces
Rainwater as a resource. Consider rainwater harvesting and biofiltration
Climate-appropriate plant selection. Use native and low-water-use plants
Hydro zones. Group plants according to their water needs
McCullough’s Sustainable Garden Design
After the team established the project’s goals, our designers curated the design to incorporate an educational experience for employees and visitors to enjoy and learn from the garden’s design and beauty.
The project comprised of four garden typologies, with an interwoven ribbon of stone that visually transitions the color and texture palettes from one to the next. The first, a Mediterranean garden on University Avenue, exhibits a collection of agaves, salvias and aloe specimens. The eye-catching plant material dances along the hillside, layering varied textures and color highlights to achieve a long-lasting impact at the property’s most visible area. A freestanding stone wall wraps around the corner that seamlessly introduces a desert garden on the adjacent street of Lee Avenue. Our vision presented something beyond the traditional concept of a desert planting, which is commonly associated with Xeriscaping, often just a large bed of crushed stone mulch with very sparse plantings. We drew inspiration from compositions found in the desert region of Anza Borrego. Large boulders and sculptural Palo Verde trees frame the bold display of striking desert specimens in contrasting colors and shapes.
On the corner of Lee Avenue and Quince, the palette then transitions to vibrant California natives. Specimens were selected in combinations to balance the natural character and contrast with a lush and more manicured layout for a more appealing native option. Fragrant Salvias, Verbena and Mallows support essential wildlife like hummingbirds, butterflies, bees, insects and local birds. Lastly, the rain garden on Quince Street is reminiscent of Riparian dry creek beds. It displays low water use-ornamental grasses, crushed stone formations and groupings of London Plane trees.
A Community Educational Experience
The McCullough team also helped develop an educational experience for the garden’s visitors. Interactive plant signage features QR codes which easily lead the visitor to a website for detailed specimen information. Additionally, printed brochures and other materials are available for people to refer to, for self-guided tours of the gardens. We provided further information on relevant technologies and practices to help customers apply the water-wise applications in their own homes.
Design is at the very heart of our passion, but having the opportunity to bring our experience to a wide audience for sustainable garden practices made this project a double winner. It is through education and the district showcasing a sustainable garden, that gives people the opportunity to learn, experience and embrace water conservation practices.
Naby Miller, ASLA
Studio Design Leader
Client of Month: ALEXANDRIA REAL ESTATE Equities
Vertex Pharmaceuticals
McCullough is honored to announce Alexandria as the July client of the month. Alexandria is a real estate developer, with a mission to “create clusters that ignite and accelerate the world’s leading innovators in their noble pursuit to advance human health by curing disease and improving nutrition.”
The company first began 25 years ago as a garage startup, with a unique vision of owning, operating and developing collaborative and dynamic life science, technology, and agtech campuses in key urban innovation areas in North America. In fact, the company’s name Alexandria comes from Alexandria, Egypt, the scientific capital of ancient world.
Alexandria is regarded as a leader in the life sciences sector, earning prestigious awards and recognition, including:
GRESB Five-Star rating
Navy SEAL Foundation Patriot Award
Fitwel Impact Award (All-Time Highest-Scoring Project)
The first REIT to be named a Fitwel Champion
Founding member of Leadership Advisory Board
#1 global company for Final GRESB Health and Well-being Module, 2018
Created the world's first WELL Certified Laboratory.
The secret to Alexandria’s success is its effective use of the cluster model. Cluster models “…unite cutting-edge science and technology with scientific and managerial talent and strategic investment capital in best-in-class locations immediately adjacent to the world’s top academic institutions.”
Alexandria identifies locations with the necessary talent, capital and innovation and takes their scientific development efforts to the highest level of success. Moreover, each project embodies Alexandria’s commitment to:
Create sustainable and vibrant environments which reduce energy consumption, greenhouse gas pollution, water use and waste
Implement safe and healthy cleaning and recycling practice
Transportation programs that reduce traffic
Obtain green building certifications.
Community Involvement Supports Their Mission
Additionally, Alexandria is dedicated to making a lasting, positive impression in the communities in which they live and work through philanthropy and volunteerism. Alexandria’s philanthropy and volunteerism program, Operation Care, leverages the company’s resources, people and expertise to provide mission-critical support to leading nonprofit organizations doing groundbreaking work in medical research, STEM education and military support services. In 2019, Alexandria team members volunteered over 4,500 hours and supported in over 250 non-profit organizations. Currently, Alexandria is working with key partners across their global life science network to locate and donate mission-critical supplies for medical professionals working on the front lines in the fight against COVID-19.
Inspirated Landscape Design for the World’s Top Scientists
McCullough has had the honor of working with Alexandria on numerous projects, but none more rewarding and breathtaking than the Vertex Pharmaceuticals corporate campus.
The project won the 2018 AIA San Diego Merit Design Award.
Alexandria and Vertex Pharmaceuticals Torrey Pines campus takes full advantage of panoramic views and the natural environment. McCullough’s vision was to maximize the unique characteristics of the Torrey Pines Mesa and surrounding canyons. As landscape architects, it’s our job to tie in the built environment with the exterior landscape. We made thoughtful connections to the interior laboratories, offices and common areas with the beautiful views of the landscape. We designed inspiring outdoor conference and communal spaces that function like their interior equivalents. In every opportunity, natural features and views were preserved and enhanced, deliberately utilizing contextual materials.
“We’re really proud of this project as we believe Vertex will make great things happen for science in part due to the spaces we created.”
—David McCullough
To learn more about Alexandria and their projects, visit their website at www.are.com.
Nicole Hensch
Marketing and Administrative Assistant
Don’t Miss This: Learn from David McCullough and Experts About San Diego’s State of the Market
On July 16, Bisnow San Diego is hosting an informative online presentation on our city’s State of the Market. How has San Diego’s multifamily been affected by the coronavirus? What’s happening with office development? How are we going to support the growing life sciences industry with enough space?
Industry leaders, including David McCullough, will address these and other questions in an informative virtual panel discussion.