Real Estate

Award for Excellence in Store for Water Mill Landscape Architectural Firm

LaGuardia Design Landscape Architects will receive American Society of Landscape Architects in November.

The American Society of Landscape Architects will recognize LaGuardia Design Landscape Architects, a Water Mill based company, with the Award for Excellence in the Residential Category for 2013. 

The award honors the top residential design from across the county and around the world. Christopher LaGuardia, the firm's founder, will accept the honor at an awards ceremony during the ASLA Annual Meeting in Boston on Nov. 18.

"LaGuardia’s winning submission successfully regenerated an oceanfront residential property into a self-sustaining costal environment in Sagaponack," according to information from the firm. 

The Perlbinder house suffered severe erosion and the house was moved 400 feet inland to a flat corn field. "LaGuardia Design recreated an eco-sensitive landscape of undulating grassy sand dunes and meadows to stem the 
aggression of natural elements," the firm said. 

The project required 30,000 cubic yards of fill, which was mined from the property. They then turned the excavation hole into a 60,000-square-foot pond.
"The convoluted shape allowed for pleasing views of the pond from any perspective while concealing its expansive size," the firm said. "This tactic was 
appropriated from the Katsura detached palace in Kyoto, Japan and from Capability Brown’s lake at Blenheim Palace in England. Bentonite and vinyl geo-textile fabric was deployed as a waterproof liner and 12 inches of clean sand placed on top to cultivate aquatic plant growth." 

A naturalized-ecosystem was developed and native fish were placed in the pond. 

Christopher LaGuardia moved to Bridgehampton to work for Norman Jaffe, the late well-known architect, and established his own practice in 1992. 

ASLA, founded in 1899, is the national professional association for landscape architects, representing more than 15,000 members. It hands out awards to honor the top public places, residential designs, campuses, parks  and urban planning projects. This year, the organization will present 33 awards from more than 534 entries.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here