Georgia Southern landscape architect wins statewide awards

March 12, 2007

Chuck Taylor, landscape architect at Georgia Southern University for 10 years, was honored recently by the Georgia Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) for projects in two separate categories.

He received an award of merit in the Parks and Public Works category for ‘Creating a Pedestrian-friendly Campus,” a project that was implemented at Georgia Southern. He also received an award in the Pro Bono category for design work he donated to Ogeechee Area Hospice.

‘Chuck’s pedestrian-friendly campus project has really improved the look and flow of Georgia Southern,” said Ron Dennis, head of Physical Plant, ‘We’re proud of his contributions to the improvement of the University, and I commend him on this honor.”

‘Creating a pedestrian-friendly campus at Georgia Southern was important for the safety of the students, faculty and staff,” said Taylor, ‘but it carried the added benefit of encouraging walking and bicycling, two activities that are instrumental in improving health and well-being.”

Taylor took the lead in developing a master plan that eliminated dangerous cross traffic and moved parking and vehicular traffic to the perimeter of the campus. As the master plan was implemented, it was necessary to

• Start a bus system (Southern Express) to shuttle students from off-campus sites and perimeter parking lots;
• identify bus stops
• maintain emergency and service access;
• preserve an protect the live oak and cedar trees along the routes; and
•  add lamp posts, standard site furnishings, and border gardens to achieve a unified look for the campus.

These are Taylor’s third and fourth GA ASLA awards. In 2002 he won a tri-state award for the design of the Center for Wildlife Education, and another award for Triangle Park in downtown Statesboro in 2004.