| "Balboa Park: Open Space in City Building"
November 21, 2009
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Laura Burnett, a landscape architect and principal at Wallace Roberts & Todd LLC (WRT) will be our guest speaker this month. Her topic, Balboa Park: Open Space in City Building, will give us an opportunity to hear more about Balboa Park, one of San Diego's most endearing treasures, and what we need to do to maintain and protect it for present and future enjoyment.
Burnett brings a strong commitment to the principles of sustainability in her projects. As an urban designer, she works closely with other professionals to integrate the landscape, engineering and architecture into a coordinated whole--resulting in rich and exciting environments.
Some WRT local projects include Caltrans District 11 District Headquarters in Old Town; Pawka Green, an outdoor commons area with dramatic ocean views at Scripps Institution of Oceanography; and design for four of the residential colleges on the UCSD campus, each with its own unique personality.
Ms. Burnett graduated from Colorado State with a B.S. in Landscape Architecture and received a Master of Landscape Architecture from Harvard Graduate School of Design. She was president of ASLA, San Diego Chapter in 2001, served on the Historical Resource Board, and a Task Force Member for the 32nd St. Canyon. She recently completed the rehabilitation of a 26 acre portion of New Orleans City Park . Currently she is leading a team of consultants in the preparation of the Torrey Pines City Park General Development Plan.
On a personal note: Laura is married to Martin Poirier, a fellow landscape architect who has entertained FSDA a few times. They live in a row home in downtown San Diego. Limited to a one-car, narrow garage and possessing two cars, they solved their problem by making the garage tall enough to install a lift and hold two cars.
Don't you just admire "urban thinking"?
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