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BUSINESS NEWS SVA ARCHITECTS DELIVERS UNIQUE DESIGN PLAN TO FREMONT UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT FOR HORNER MIDDLE SCHOOL CONVERSION SVA Architects has teamed with Fremont Unified School District to redesign Horner Middle School. Located at 41365 Chapel Way in Fremont, California, the school is converting from a junior high to a middle school serving nearly 2,000 students. What began as a modernization and expansion transformed into a redesign of the entire campus. The Horner Middle School Conversion project demonstrates SVA Architects’ innovation and solutions-driven approach to delivering optimal design to each of its clients. Upon studying the master plan, budget, and constraints of the Horner Middle School Conversion project, the design team realized that a completely new campus could be provided within the budget, using creative site development and design. In the first phase, currently underway, the existing campus operations are continuing as normal while new buildings are being constructed on the playfields. During the second phase, staff and students will relocate to the new buildings, and the existing buildings will be demolished and replaced with new athletic fields. Construction is anticipated to be complete in 2020. Robert Simons, AIA, president of SVA Architects, states, “The opportunity to bring Horner Middle School the latest technology, while accommodating the increase in enrollment as it transitions, was a very

rewarding challenge! Horner is now ready to greet current needs, and is prepared to meet anticipated growth. It was a pleasure working with a solutions-orientated team!” Founded in 2003, SVA Architects has become one of the country’s most innovative and respected design and planning organizations. The award-winning firm specializes in urban planning, architecture, and interior design of public, private, andmixed-use projects. Among the firm’s portfolio are civic, educational, residential, commercial, and mixed-use developments. SVA Architects values institutional and public environments as the foundation of a community and the backdrop against which we live, learn, work, worship, and play. The company is headquartered in Santa Ana with offices in Oakland, San Diego, and Honolulu. OEHME, VAN SWEDEN | OVS WINS INTERNATIONAL LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE AWARD FOR TIPPET RISE ART CENTER The American Society of Landscape Architects’ announces OvS is a 2018 Award Recipient for General Design for work on Tippet Rise Art Center. The award recognizes site specific works of landscape architecture. Entries were juried by peers on “quality of design and execution; design context; environmental sensitivity and sustainability; and the design value to the client and to other designers.” This paramount achievement attracts the best work from ASLA members around the world. Tippet Rise, one of the most ambitious

international sculpture parks and music venues ever conceived, is a collection of large-scale sculpture and intimate music performance venues spread throughout more than 10,000 acres. The sculpture collection includes works by Alexander Calder, Patrick Dougherty, Mark di Suvero, Ensamble Studio, and Stephen Talasnik. OvS’ primary objectives were to make the colossal site visually legible, accessible, and sustainable without diminishing its untamed beauty. The firm interwove a complex series of design solutions to determine the location of major programmatic elements, devise a system of pedestrian and vehicular movement, collaboratively design a largely off-the-grid utility infrastructure, and develop a site-renewal process that re-establishes the native prairie and grassland. The interventions seamlessly integrate into the naturally-occurring landforms, yet are designed to capitalize on its topography, vistas, and ecology. Tippet Rise was made possible by Peter and Cathy Halstead, whose extraordinary vision and philanthropy fostered a coexistence of sculpture, music, and sustainable land stewardship. Throughout its more than 40-year history, OvS has designed and built handcrafted, unique outdoor spaces. The firm has received numerous accolades from ASLA, including the 2014 Landscape Architecture Firm Award and a 2009 award for Excellence in Residential Design.

freedom of speech, which naturally promulgates the airing of different points of view. An effective leader doesn’t stifle differing opinions or alternative solutions but directs and coaches with civility and respect, and expects the same from everyone on the team, leading by example. An effective leader challenges the team to think from the clients’ points-of-view. Clients always want to hear about alternative solutions to solving their problem, but they depend on the firm’s leadership to help them sort through the alternatives, listen to their thoughts on the subject, and then guide them to the best approach. This type of leadership – taught and demanded, with healthy doses of respect and civility – is what I believe is the reason for success for firms both large and small. It’s what I experienced at Gensler and what I hope for you and your firm. EDWARD FRIEDRICHS, FAIA, FIIDA, is the former CEO and president of Gensler. Contact him at efriedrichs@zweiggroup.com. “This type of leadership – taught and demanded, with healthy doses of respect and civility – is what I believe is the reason for success for firms both large and small.”

EDWARD FRIEDRICHS, from page 9

people in the country, fewer laws, and minimal regulation. Today, things are more complex, but the fundamentals remain the same – the need for respectful and responsible leadership that sees as a core responsibility the uniting of people around a common cause. It’s not 1776, but we can all take a lesson from our Founding Fathers. So, ask yourself: How is my firm being led? Am I reaching out to guide our people to find common ground when they differ in their approach to client matters and interpersonal relationships in our enterprise? The last thing your clients want to see is squabbling or differences in the project’s direction within your own staff. The first amendment to the U.S. Constitution declares problem, but they depend on the firm’s leadership to help them sort through the alternatives, listen to their thoughts on the subject, and then guide them to the best approach.” “Clients always want to hear about alternative solutions to solving their

THE ZWEIG LETTER October 29, 2018, ISSUE 1270

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