ardens |

A few vears ago when I

visited New Zealand I

- was surprised to see the
high level of commercial
.and industrial landscap-
‘ing,

The best example and most
famous site was a cereal com-
pany in Christchurch, South
Island. The factory is jocated
in an industrial park and is sur-
rounded by almost-a hectare
of land that is maintained as a
colorful show garden.

: The company employs
‘four or five full-time gardeners
_ to’ maintain the grounds for
the benefit of employees, cus-
tomers and visitors. This high
profile garden i in an industnal
, area has given the cereal com-

4. FJOME & (GARDEN

0K good for

pany tremendous advertising
exposure over the years.
Looking at our own area
around the North Shore, J] am
somewhat disappointed at the
number of commercial and
industrial establishments that
pay so little attention to their
landscaping. Private home
owners who maintain their

NEWS photo Paul McGrath

north shore news

landscaped boulevards and
property are held up as model
residents and praised for
addiag value to the neighbor-
hood. Business owners are
rarely judged on the look of
their landscaped premises,
even though thousands of citi-
zens may pass by each week.
Fortunately, new building,
sites must have a landscape
plan approved before a build-
ing permit is issued. However,
some architects, landscape
architects and municipal offi-
cials lack imagination when it
comes to design requirements.
Too often it is just more con-
crete, glass and aluminum
added to an already sterile
“main street” environment.
The newly Jandscaped sites
that do contribute to the
“greening” of the environ-
ment must be maintained or
they very quickly deteriorate
into a scruffy weed patch.
Installing three or four
junipers and a load of bark
mulch doesn’t make a garden.
Companies can improve
their image with customers
and the community by making
that little extra effort to
improve the landscaping
around their premises. In
some cases, it may only be a
couple of hanging baskets or a
seasonal flower box. In other
cases, ¢ onditions may require
planter boxes, shrub beds or
flowering trees and a lawn to
enhance the building and
reduce the “black top” atmos-
phere. The better a site looks,
the higher the market value.
Valt Disney proved the
concept that the better a place
looks the less likely it is to suf-
fer trom garbage, graffiti and
vandalism. The more pride
and responsibility that focal
businesses take in keeping
their facilities attractive and
well maintained, the more
popular the area becomes.
Edgemont Village in North
Van and Dundarave in West

landlords and local businesses
have made an etfort to hang
flower baskets, plant flower
boxes or construct planter
areas. With the assistance of
staff in the municipal parks
departments they have also
been able to plant sidewalk
medians and centre boulevards
with annuals, bulbs and shade
trees. As a result, these areas
have become popular shop-
ping areas and people places
on the North Shore.

There are many other
examples of landscape
improvement in the area.
Highlands United Church
recently re-landscaped their
grounds to make the area
more attractive and accessible
to the Edgemont residents.
Thousands of bus commuters

Wednesday, January 14, 1998 — North Shore News - 19

business

who congregate adjacent to
the gardens surcly appreciate
the improvement also.
Chevron Gas stations on
the North Shore stand out
when it comes to landscaping.
Several have won awards in the

North Shore Gardens Contest
over the years.

The next time you patron-
ize a business, compliment
them on their landscaping job
and tell them you appreciate
their effort.

Northwest
ower &

\/arden
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serving the North Shore for 20 years
988-5621

Van are two good examples of

ENGEMONT. Village's attractive garden landscape
where this has happened. Both

: makes it an inviting place for peopie to do business.

It's your opportunity to méet with
Westcoast representatives,

learn more about the project,
and discuss your concerns with
experts in the field. We look
forward to seeing you there.

. Over the last several weeks,
we have been meeting with
members of the community
and talking about Westcoast’
proposed liquefied natural gas
storage facility at McNab Creek
in the Sunshine Coast Regional
District. It is an important project
for the future of B.C.’s energy
needs and your input is valuable.

For more information please call: - : .
Same Great Staff
Same Great Service

Mbaié
PAINTS

Doug Thorneycroft,
Project Manager
call collect (604) 691-5533
visit our website at:

www.westcoastenergy.com/ing

On January 17, we will be
conducting an Open House
at Gleneagles Golf Club —
6190 Marine Drive, West
Vancouver — from. 10: 00 a.m.
| until 3:00  B. m.”

ra ee an