David Paine says people don't understand the difference between a landscaper, a landscaping contractor, a landscape designer, and a landscape architect.
The owner/principal of Plan It Green Landscaping Architects in Westfield told BusinessWest that landscape architects like himself not only have a college degree, they must work for a landscape designer for three years after graduation, then pass a rigorous exam before they are eligible to receive their license and become registered by the state.
Paine has worked in the landscaping field since he was a teenager, is passionate about conservation, and chose the name of his company carefully.
"Plan It Green is a play on words. When you say it quickly, it sounds like planet green," he said. "We depend on planet earth to live, so we must take care of it."
His profession allows him to combine his love of design with caring for the environment in a meaningful way. "I strongly value the service I provide to plants and animals that don't have a voice, as well for as the people who do," he said.
Paine handles green design, community planning, and landscape architecture. Although his projects vary in size and scope, his focus is not only on creating attractive sites, but on preserving natural resources. "Green is the keyword. My values are rooted in environmentally sensitive and respectful land planning. It results in environmental, aesthetic, financial, and ethical benefits," he said.
He adds there is a common misconception that going green is expensive.
"People think it costs more, but that's not true," he said. "Although the initial cost of implementing a green plan may be more, over the long term it can result in tremendous savings."
The type of plants used in a design and the location of a building are important factors. "I use indigenous plants because they require less maintenance and are hardier," Paine said ."A design can also affect energy conservation. You can plant trees to create shade or site buildings or outdoor spaces to capture sun and retain heat."
Not all of his clients see going green as a priority, but Paine says he tries to incorporate at least one green element in every project.
"I provide a balance between quality design and respectful treatment of the earth," he said. "My work is tailored to individual needs and aspirations, with an approach that recognizes existing resources."
Paine has been a steward of the earth since he was in college. "I'm a child of the first environmental movement that took place in the mid- to late '70s. I was thinking green well before green was the buzz," he said.
Every project involves drainage, which impacts the environment, he continued. "When it rains, there will be water, whether it is in someone's backyard, at a commercial building site, or in a park. As humans, we need to manage that water and keep things balanced."
Although most people don't give much thought to the importance of replenishing groundwater, it's vital to survival. "We depend on it for our drinking water, and we need to replenish it with clean water," he explained.
To that end, whenever possible, Plan It Green's designs divert stormwater back into the earth, rather than routing it into conventional storm-drain systems with pipes and underground structures that require maintenance.
"A catch basin can cost $2,500, plus there are excavation costs," Paine said. "The alternative is a rain garden or bioswale that creates a depressed area that collects water and can be filled with beautiful plants. It looks like a garden, and since the plants filter the water and cleanse it, it's a green solution."
Designs on Growth
Residential landscape design accounts for roughly half of Paine's work. His projects range from small jobs, such as planning a deck, patio, retaining wall, outdoor lighting, or fencing, to designing a plan for the entire exterior of someone's property.
He meets with clients several times, which is necessary to determine their needs, budgets, and dreams before completing a design plan. "It's an interactive process. We work together because I may be an expert, but it's their home," he said. "Some people think they know exactly what they want, while others don't have a clue."
The client sees and approves the final plan before any work begins. "They know exactly what they will get. I don't want any surprises," Paine said, adding that one of the elements of good design is that it has to function well.
His company doesn't do landscape construction, but after decades of experience, Paine has a roster of reliable business names he willingly shares with clients who request them.
Paine has also handled green design for municipalities across New England. Such work includes town centers, streetscapes, and municipal planning of projects that range from downtown-sidewalk improvements in Westfield to to a revitalization of Huntington Center and a boulevard development plan in New Haven, Conn.
In the commercial and institutional arena, Paine designed a courtyard within the building confines of Baystate Medical Center as well as sprucing up the entrance to the emergency room and making aesthetic changes to its campus. His numerous accounts include Balise Toyota in West Springfield, St. George's Cathedral in Springfield, the Portugese Club in Hudson, Westfield State College, and the Society for Savings in Simsbury and Hartford, Conn.
Parks are another arena where Paine puts his expertise to work. "I did a master plan five years ago for Chauncey Allen Park in Westfield, and we are starting to implement those plans now," he said.
He also created a master plan for Worthington Park in Somers, Conn. that is owned by Dan Roulier. One element of the plan was designing a landscape sized to scale for a model railroad, which included boulders, bridges, mountains, and plants. "I get to work on all kinds of projects; no two are the same."
Last year, when the economy was sluggish and both residential and commercial work slowed, Paine designed a landscape and did the construction work himself at a client's home in Tiverton, R.I. "I built a 2,000-square-foot circular stone patio with a waterfall, arbor, hot-tub area, and beautiful cedar fencing," he said. "I worked in the capacity of a landscape contractor, which I had done in high school and college."
Planting Roots
Paine's love for landscaping began when he was a teen and worked for a landscaping company. After graduating from Harvard College, he worked in California for 10 years, then moved back to the East Coast and worked in Connecticut for three years before opening his first business. "I started as Paine and Co. Landscape Architects in 1985," he said. "Until the mid-'90s, I had up to five people working for me and was in three different locations in Westfield."
From 1992 to 1998, he lived in Ottawa, Canada and ran his Westfield business as well as another one in that locale. In 1998, he returned to the Pioneer Valley and renamed Paine and Co. to Plan It Green.
Today, he does not have employees, but works in collaboration with other professionals who include landscape architects and engineers.
"I also do bicycle and pedestrian planning and rail-trail improvements," Paine said.
Green ones, that is, which integrate ecological measures with innovative designs.
It's all in a day's work at Plan It Green.
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