Happy Holidays!

As we wrap up the year in our North American offices for a holiday break, we thought we would share this holiday story from John Reddick, an associate in our Butler, Pennsylvania office. John's local newspaper, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, published this story in their December 7 "Holiday Herald" column. Happy holidays to everyone and see you in 2012!

Pope John XXIII once wrote: "I have looked into your eyes with my eyes. I have put my heart near your heart."

At age 6 I tried to stand still as my mother helped button my coat and prepare my younger brothers and sister to venture out on a cold December evening in 1966. We were headed for the local fire hall where, once a year just prior to Christmas, the entire Herman community in Butler County was given the privilege of meeting Santa Claus.

My father was not at home that evening. I wondered where he could have been. Santa was taking time off from his busy schedule to meet with us -- why wouldn't my dad want to see this?

My older teenage sisters were assigned to be our chaperones, holding our hands and guiding us through the process. Each child would receive a special gift from Santa -- a brown paper bag filled with fruit, candy and, best of all, a coloring book and a box of crayons.

We arrived at the hall where a large group of children and parents had already gathered in anticipation of Santa's arrival. Once settled in our seats we were led in a prelude of Christmas carols, the last ending with the traditional "You better watch out. You better not cry. You better not pout, I'm telling you why. Santa Claus is coming to town."

Suddenly, the double doors at the back of the hall swung open and Santa magically appeared. He was full of energy, shaking a series of jingle bells attached to a leather strap that he must have removed from one of his reindeer on the way in. The only words he spoke were the familiar "Ho, ho, ho."

All eyes were on him as he worked his triumphant way through the crowd. I thought he might say something to the group, but my sister assured me that he was very busy during this season and could not take the time.

Without a word he went straight to his work, taking a position behind the long rows of tables lined with brown paper bags as far as my eyes could see. I waited in a long, curvy line of children that had formed to receive their gifts.

I wondered what I might say if Santa were to ask me a question. Had I really been good the past year? Did I deserve this gift and the other presents that he would surely deliver to my brothers, sisters and me in a few weeks?

The line moved quickly -- too quickly as I struggled to organize my thoughts. Then, all too soon, I was standing before him with an up-close view of the heart of this efficient process.

There were helpers nearby, but Santa himself was totally in charge. As he hastily turned with my gift in hand, our eyes met, and for a moment -- one brief moment -- time seemed to stop for me. My mind was working overtime to process what I saw.

I can remember thinking as my gaze passed beyond the large white beard and red rosy cheeks, "I know those eyes."

Santa then did something that broke the routine of his well-oiled assembly line. With a smile, he paused and reached his large, white-gloved hand across the table and gently placed it on my head. He then, very deliberately, handed me the gift.

I was unable to utter a sound so my sister said thank you for me, took my hand, and guided me from the table. As we walked away I looked back over my shoulder one last time to catch a glimpse.

Santa had immediately returned to the task at hand, but he glanced my way and our eyes met once again. He nodded his head and winked, as if to say: "Everything will be OK -- have a merry Christmas."

Time moved on. My siblings and I became adults with children of our own. My father passed away. I overheard someone say that my dad, for good or bad, often spent more time helping other people than his own family.

I believe that was true on occasion. My father was a conscientious, community-minded person. He had eyes that expressed kindness and often, when I had doubts about this world, gave me hope that as long as people cared for each other everything would be OK.

It was a simple truth played out before my eyes in 1966, and still true today.

Stantec Q&A: Deb Michener, Designing Sacred Sites

With the holiday season in full swing, many people are perhaps spending a little more time in their places of worship. Stantec’s Deb Michener, a senior associate and landscape architect in the Boston office, has worked with several religious congregations to design new facilities. Here she reflects on what’s unique about designing sacred sites.

Q: Does designing a spiritual or religious site differ from designing other types of sites?
A: Yes. Every client and every site is unique, but when you’re working with a religious client or someone that has specific beliefs, there’s always that extra layer of attention to special needs and sensitivities. For instance, community is usually very important. The design needs to read in such a way that the focus is on the community and not on outside influences. That makes the transition into and out of different areas very important.

One example is a Jewish temple we recently designed the site plan for in Massachusetts. The connection between the inside of the temple and nature was very important to the congregation. They wanted the interior to have views of the surrounding woods and of the courtyard. At the same time, we had to keep in mind that they could be hosting as many as 1,000 people on the site to as few as a handful, and these spaces needed to accommodate and resonate with users in either situation. So we had to design these spaces to provide enough context and enough flexibility for all types of users and events.

Temple Beth Elohim in Newton, Mass. is nestled
among the trees to connect to nature

Q: Is the design process any different?

A: In some ways it’s exactly like any other project—you still go through schematic design, design development, and so on. But with religious groups, that process often takes on more dimensions. Again, community and stakeholder involvement is very important as the congregation members are often the owners (or at least the donors). But things like timing also come into play. You need to know the religion’s calendar, if certain days have rules of behavior, etc. I’ve heard of some projects where the alignment of celestial bodies had an effect on when certain construction phases could begin.

Q: Are there special considerations for designing these kinds of sites?
A: Every project has different goals. And with worship spaces, there is an even stronger personal connection, which must be considered. But the religious calendar, the beliefs, sustainability—it’s all relevant and important. Where sustainability is concerned, any client who plans to stay in a space for a long time is interested in being sustainable. And many of these clients place importance on stewardship—in the Jewish faith principles like tikkun olam (“fixing what is broken”) and bal taschchit (“do not destroy”) tie back to taking care of each other and the environment. So very often sustainability is a natural fit for these projects.

Stone was specifically chosen for the temple's
courtyard to reflect the look of Israel

Q: Does it matter if the designers’ beliefs are different from those of the client?
A: No, but you have to be a great listener and really immerse yourself in your client’s beliefs and understand how those beliefs should manifest themselves through design. For my projects, I’ve spent time going to services and meeting with members of the congregation and the leaders so I could better understand their values. At the temple, I really enjoyed listening to the liturgy and learning the stories, which were translated into the design. It’s so personal for the client that you get a lot of positive feedback, which is very rewarding.

Who really killed the American Dream?

Submitted by Joseph Viscuso, vice president (West Chester, PA)

What happened to the American Dream of home ownership—a single-family home in the suburbs with the white picket fence and two cats in the yard?

After World War II , home building became a major driver of our economy. With my own baby boomer generation came the desire for larger homes at an affordable price, moving everyone further from the inner cities. As this urban sprawl took hold, so did increasing regulation on the housing industry. This regulation has had a dramatic effect on the cost of housing over the last four decades and, in my opinion, helped lead us to our current collapse. Builders have had no choice but to add the cost of compliance into the cost of a home.

Before the recession, it was possible to keep adding to home costs since the demand was high and inflation continued to cover the increases. With the recession, however, this accelerated housing growth stopped dead in its tracks. Statistics tell us that the need for housing in the US will continue to grow, and to satisfy this need, builders will have to build at affordable prices. The problem is that regulations have not adapted to this new reality. Builders must still buy ground, they must still satisfy all regulations, they must still incorporate public improvements and comply with antiquated zoning regulations, all without the same demand for (and thus investment in) their product.

The current economic and housing slump indicates that the population will return to renting, the housing option of choice prior to World War II. Since the recession began, at least 3 million households have become renters and at least 3 million more are expected to by 2015, according to census data analyzed by Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Studies and The Associated Press. Builders of rental units are still subject to the same regulations that drove the cost of single-family housing up, but the cost of satisfying these regulations can be absorbed in rents and amortized over a longer period of time for payback of the investment. But our outmoded zoning tradition will be slow to react, creating sub-par product, and the NIMBY (Not in My Backyard) crowd will show up at local hearings to protest traffic issues, overcrowded schools, etc., which adds further costs to projects in the form of professional fees, construction requirements, offsite extractions, etc. Rents will move upward, which means, once again, that consumers will pay.

So who killed the American Dream? The answer is simple: we have done it to ourselves. We created too many regulations at all levels of government. Don’t get me wrong—consumer protection is undoubtedly important and many of our current regulations are necessary. But many others were reactionary and have since become outdated or misguided standards.

The banking industry, which received the brunt of criticism throughout the housing collapse, certainly bears some of the responsibility for the problem. But we baby boomers have to take a serious look at the role we played. Builders did not create the housing demand—we did. And while we continued to desire larger, more decadent homes, we also showed up at meetings and protested every new development, allowing more and more imprudent regulation to strangle the industry and play a part in its current crisis.

At this point, regulation and zoning need to be overhauled nationally so that the industry returns to a level playing field while maintaining necessary regulatory safeguards. But local governments will be slow to relinquish that control, discouraging any new investment in housing. Renting will satisfy the population’s housing needs, not out of choice but of necessity.

A longer version of this article was originally published in the December residential edition of Scotsman Guide. To read the article, visit http://www.scotsmanguide.com/default.asp?ID=4868.

The Guide to (Wild)Life

Submitted by Terry VanDeWalle, senior biologist (Waterloo, IA)

Many people enjoy the outdoors and watching wildlife. Polls asking people about wildlife have shown that over 80% of respondents said they participated in some form of nonconsumptive use of wildlife, such as wildlife photography or bird feeding. Birds, along with large, easily seen or charismatic species, are the animals most often seen. However, two groups of animals that are often overlooked or avoided out of fear or misconception—amphibians and reptiles (salamanders, frogs, toads, turtles, lizards, and snakes)—are fascinating creatures that can often be seen in your own backyard.

In October, two laminated pocket guides that I authored were published by the University of Iowa Press: “Turtles in Your Pocket” and “Frogs and Toads in Your Pocket.” These guides, along with “Snakes and Lizards in Your Pocket” that came out in 2010, provide complete descriptions of most of the frogs, toads, turtles, lizards, and snakes found in 12 Upper Midwest states along with information about each species’ range, habitat preferences, diet, and breeding. The guides were written for amateurs and professionals alike and were designed to be taken into the field. Each guide contains descriptions of similar species and a comprehensive key for identifying animals that you find. All three guides are illustrated with superb photographs by Suzanne Collins that also aid in identifying animals. A fourth guide, “Salamanders in Your Pocket,” is in the works and scheduled to be out in 2012. You can order the guides here.

My hope is that these guides, and others like them, will inspire people, particularly kids, to get outside, get messy, and enjoy nature. Many kids these days are growing up without the chance to experience nature firsthand, without the chance to hold a frog or a snake, or watch a monarch butterfly emerge from its chrysalis. We need these experiences to keep us connected to the earth and the other creatures that live here with us. As Chief Seattle said, “If all of the animals were to die, man would die from a great loneliness of spirit.”

And as a biologist, I also hope that engaging and educational tools such as these guides may even encourage kids to pursue careers in fields like wildlife biology and environmental science. The biologists and scientists at companies like Stantec regularly get outside in the mud and the muck, working with diverse groups of plants and wildlifesuch as those I described in the guidebooks.

An example: In August 2010, I was one of a team of Stantec biologists who responded to an oil spill on the Kalamazoo River in Michigan to assist with wildlife rescue and recovery. We spent hundreds of hours catching turtles and bringing them into the wildlife center. As of October 2011, more than 40 Stantec biologists have rescued and participated in the cleaning of nearly 5,000 turtles, over 90% of which survived and have been released. I am proud to have been part of the effort and had the chance to work with this dedicated group of individuals. Here’s hoping that more nature enthusiasts grow up to do the same.