Roberto Chuquiano Named Enhancement Project Manager

Roberto Chuquiano, a recent recipient of ELM’s Branch Impact Award, has been promoted to Enhancement Project Manager, reporting to Scott DiStasio, Stamford, Connecticut branch manager.

“Roberto’s experience is second-to-none,” said company president, Bruce Moore Jr. “Not only is his promotion well-deserved, but it speaks to our commitment to grow career opportunities within our organization and build a clear path for advancement. Roberto’s a role model – his passion for the job, his knowledge and integrity, and the high-trust he has with our clients, is an inspiration to the whole team.”

A native of Peru, Roberto joined ELM in 2006. He holds multiple certifications in landscape, arboriculture, equipment operations, and snow/ice.

When he’s not creating harmony in the landscape, he pursues his passion for music. An avid collector of vinyl, Roberto DJs on weekends to bring people together, and says that music and outdoor spaces both have the power to make people happy.

Roberto says his best advice for customers is not to give up on plants. The cycle of life – whether in a home garden or in a commercial landscape – is about renewal and patience, and respect for the opportunities each season brings.

Please join us in congratulating Roberto on his leadership and next chapter at ELM.

Landscape Staging is an Investment with Multiple Returns. Let’s start with flowers.

From high school seniors seeking an academic environment that supports campus life to parents looking for proof that their tuition dollars are well spent, nothing says ‘welcome’ and ‘value’ faster than a first impression.

Whether it’s campus tours, commencement, first day of school, or a photo shoot for marketing, landscape upgrades are the first line of defense when it comes to putting your campus’ best face forward.

ELM is an experienced partner at creating and sustaining exceptional outdoor spaces, and for nearly 50 years, has built a portfolio of expertise relied on to make your campus feel less like an institution and more like home.

10 ways to improve ROI:

    • Detailed flowers and beds
    • Annual / seasonal flowering plant combinations in school colors
    • Fresh mulch and compost
    • Shrub and small tree pruning
    • Recontouring dated and worn-out areas to freshen and revitalize
    • Infrastructure upgrades, stormwater and groundwater filtration improvements to reduce puddling, erosion and mud, and improve pedestrian safety.
    • Environmental improvements to meet master plan sustainability goals
    • Water management and conservation performance improvements
    • Revitalize athletic fields, donor-named buildings, theater courtyards, academic halls and common areas
    • Outdoor learning centers, classrooms, and event space

A well-maintained college campus helps raise enrollment. But it takes a dedicated commitment and skilled teams to keep grounds and landscape amenities at the highest standards.

For educational facilities looking to supplement inhouse landscape efforts or looking at outsourcing, ELM has flexible options.  These include contracting for need-specific assignments, supplementing and supporting in-house efforts, providing additional services for special events, or taking over the work.

ELM is specialized is serving New England campus environments. From landscape enhancements and amenities to full-service grounds support, water management and snow and ice removal, we are a strong commercial landscaping program for colleges and universities seeking cost-efficient and sustainable performance improvements.

For more information, contact Bruce Moore Jr, at 203-316-5433.

Photo: College of Health Professions, Center for Healthcare Education, Sacred Heart University, Fairfield, Connecticut.

 

Cool Boules! It’s Game-On for Bocce Ball

Outdoor game courts are going in faster than we can say “baci”. And whether you play French-style pétanque, British bowls or Italian bocce, the simple bowling game that some say dates back to 5,200 B.C. is a hip, hot and happening trend for corporate campuses with outdoor space to spare.

Lucky for us, ELM has a growing game court niche, having built more than a few over the last few years, with more bocce projects in the pipeline. Enhancement Project Manager Bobby Papotto, who oversees our game court portfolio, says that a bocce court is easy to set up and there are different design features to take into consideration.

A recent example is ELM’s installation of a landscaped bocce court at a global headquarters in Fairfield County, Connecticut—a two-part campus renovation project that included drainage and grading, boundary construction and material installation, plus tree-shaded seating space, and border plantings to encourage employee team-building, as well as provide an upscale amenity area for corporate events.

ELM has a long history of constructing, renovating, resurfacing, re-turfing, and repairing performance and athletic fields, and sport courts are a natural next step, says Bobby.

For this project specifically, materials included constructing 200 linear feet of concrete curb, installing 400 yards of topsoil and over 10,000 square feet of sod; planting maple trees, ornamental grasses, red twig Dogwoods, and designing and installing a high-tech irrigation system.

As Connecticut’s top-performing companies continue their rapid growth, it’s becoming more important than ever for Class A property owners and managers to re-energize workplaces with healthy amenities designed to enhance people’s lives.

Whether the enhancement is a recreation pavilion, a landscaped gathering place, or outdoor conference space, giving executive teams and employees camaraderie and well-time outside the office is not only good for company culture and recruiting—bocce, volleyball, basketball, and walking and biking trails, give employees the next best way to build sweat equity.

To learn more about ways ELM is integrating nature into the future of work, contact ELM President Bruce Moore Jr. at 203-316-5433.

When There’s No Margin for Error, a Quality Audit Can Be Your Best Return on Investment.

ELM’s landscape quality audit program is the gold standard in plant performance management. Because you can’t manage what you can’t measure – in business or in landscaping – we believe that a real-time assessment of plant issues and discrepancies is the best way to measure quality and improve the way your landscape looks, and the way its systems function.

When assessing quality, we consider intangible benefits like green systems efficiency, sustainability metrics, and ways to make the care of your plants, trees and soil structure more environmentally-responsible.

The first step in our program is to estimate total cost and benefits, count everything that is directly associated with your landscape, including hardscape and infrastructure elements, and factor in qualitative benefits such as: does this landscape add asset value, how can we make this site more productive and efficient, and where are missed opportunities for continuous improvement?

When key business objectives are driven by quality, we know that there is no margin for error.

If you’d like to learn more about our landscape quality audit and how we can improve your landscape’s ROI, contact President, Bruce Moore Jr. at 203-316-5433.

Environmental Planning & Design Professional Bobby Papotto Joins ELM

We are pleased to announce that Bobby Papotto, former owner of New Jersey-based landscape firm, Over The Fence Landscaping, joins our Landscape Enhancement Group as project manager. 

In this role, Bobby will partner with commercial real estate organizations to increase and sustain healthy asset value across property segments, and be a resource for improvements that ensure the continued vibrancy of the real estate landscape.

“ELM has a strong team in place, a growing set of enduring relationships and is committed to support our clients’ short and long-term growth objectives,” said Bruce Moore Jr. 

“I’ve always had a tremendous respect for ELM and appreciate what makes them different. I look forward to deepening ELM’s engagement with CRE sector organizations throughout Fairfield and New Haven Counties, and doing what I can to contribute to positive change and a more sustainable future,” said Bobby. 

Bobby earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Planning and Design from Rutgers University. He’s a die-hard lover of all things outdoors, pet- and eco-friendly, and when he’s not solving client problems, you’ll find him in the Connecticut countryside on long hikes with his dog.

Are You Caught in a Tug of War Over Summer Landscape Improvements?

Part of being a successful property manager is making your property more valuable. 

The good news is that landscape improvements can help you do that. Class A properties, retail and mixed-use can all benefit from landscape upgrades that drive asset value – through better watershed and habitat health, pedestrian access, hardscape repairs – and generate income, either through green credits, or increased occupancy and traffic.

If you are looking to boost your property’s ROI, aesthetics or functionality, consider the following:

1. Safety Value – Maintenance care prevents injury. Improved pedestrian walkways, parking lot surfaces, and structural pruning to improve visibility can all prevent trips, falls, accidents, and mitigate liability and risk. Strategic use of plant material can prevent flooding; drainage improvements can improve the absorption of rainwater and runoff; and tree-covered areas can reduce loitering – while also improving air quality. 

2. Health Value – Landscapes have direct impact on positive well-being. Healthy landscapes start with healthy soil and the reduction or elimination of toxic chemicals. For tenants, employees, guests, or customers, the quality of your property’s landscape influences how people interact with, and feel good about, your business. An attractive outdoor space, with courtyards and well-designed landscaped areas is advantageous to you as an employer and as an asset manager. We recommend investing in a regular plant health care program that creates a healthy baseline for your plants and trees, nourishes your soil and encourages vigorous bloom and vibrant foliage. 

3. Environmental Value – Conservation helps the earth and your wallet. Eco-friendly investments in green technology will improve your landscape’s water use and your cost through controlled irrigation and water audits; more trees contribute to using less heating or cooling energy; rain garden strategies and bioswales provide filters for stormwater and prevent flooding and puddling; flowering plants provide forage and habitat for pollinator insects, birds and wildlife. 

First things first. Prioritizing improvements is a task made easier by a master landscape maintenance plan.Knowing which improvement will offer sustained ROI depends on a few factors. One is the size of your property, the other is how it is used—where people gather, what types of amenities drive the greatest appreciation, and where fitness and pedestrian areas can be enhanced for greater health, i.e., walking and jogging trails, bike paths, bocce ball courts, green roofs, terrace and outdoor eating and meeting areas.

ELM’s top ten. Repairing walkways and footpaths impacted by winter storms, fencing/retaining walls, signage, water features, park-like amenities, new plantings and installation projects, turf aeration and plant health care, tree and shrub pruning, and power washing.

If you’re ready to take advantage of ELM’s summer landscape improvement and hardscape restoration expertise, perk up your high impact focal areas with bold containers and lots of color; swap out underperforming turf for perennial meadows; try our new and improved plant health program (and its organic option), upgrade your irrigation system with green technology, or partner with us to drive LEED credits, but don’t know where to begin, contact Bruce Moore Jr. at 203-316-5433.

Working smarter, not harder.

Three Incredible Ways ELM is Using Technology to Your Advantage.

From ride-sharing apps to intelligent design, robots and remotes are transforming the speed and efficiency of the way we work. Landscape companies and property management firms are benefiting from technology in ways that dramatically improve both of our industries, inside and out.

Advances in the engineering and design of landscape irrigation systems including remote control water management, weather-based sensors, and applications that manage water consumption (and a plethora of apps for plant disease, tree inventory, and GPS grounds-mapping), time-saving technologies are changing the way landscape companies like ELM are working smarter to achieve infinitely more and better results:

Higher Impact, Lower Cost.
ELM is always seeking ways to improve the way we work. Our commitment to using intelligent systems and advanced technology not only helps us achieve better control over the results but also improves processes, resulting in lower costs to our customers. Case in point: water management. Digital technology is keeping water and money from going down the drain. As life-long area residents, ELM has a stake in the conservation conversation. We are just as conscientious about water in our office as we know you are in yours.

Efficiency, Productivity, Safety.
Outdated equipment can have a considerable impact on efficiency. ELM uses commercial equipment that meets next generation platforms for smarter energy and smarter outcomes—on every landscape site and for every season. Leveraging what’s new and better also means making sure our crews are up to speed on working smarter, not harder, and trained and certified in product and equipment handling and safety.

Service smart, social smart.
ELM recognizes the potential of digital communications and regularly offers its subject matter expertise on the frontlines of social media. We believe the web is a fantastic way to get feedback, and share and exchange information. We use our platforms to post information that we hope simplifies complex issues, while giving our online body a human face.

To learn more about working with ELM to implement high impact efficiencies and create sustainable value for your landscape, go to:
http:// https://www.easternland.com/
Or contact Bruce Moore @ 203.316.5433.

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What do you look for when considering landscape enhancements for your commercial landscape?

Each site has its own unique landscape environment, with various soil and shade conditions. For this reason, your landscape management service provider should give you the best recommendations for your commercial site to utilize native plants, perennials, disease-free and hardy plants to increase the sustainability of your commercial landscape.

Continue reading “What do you look for when considering landscape enhancements for your commercial landscape?”