April 15, 2014
Accepting their awards from the Waterdown BIA, from left, Nathan Helder, Gelderman Landscaping; Paul Lammers, Garden Grove Landscaping; Lee Rozon; Judi Partridge,Ward 15 Councillor; Tim Rivard, accepting for Meadowbrook Landscaping; David Lammers, Garden Grove Landscaping.
LO members compete in program to beautify Waterdown
A program that provides an opportunity to beautify a community, promote local landscaping companies and create some friendly competition took place in Waterdown.
Seven Landscape Ontario members took part in the Waterdown Blooms competition through that community’s Business Improvement Association (BIA). The contest began last summer and the winners were announced this year.
Wilf Arndt, executive director of the BIA of Waterdown, says, “Response from the community was tremendous. Residents repeatedly asked me to thank the landscapers for taking part.”
The landscapers in the competition included Gelderman Landscape Services, Garden Grove Landscaping, Lynden Lawn Care, Meadowbrook Landscape Contracting, CR Lawns, Carruthers Landscaping and The Gardener Landscape Maintenance.
The Golden Horseshoe Chapter was heavily involved in the project, with Chapter president Jeff Smith, instrumental in helping bring the competition to fruition, and Chapter coordinator Lee Rozon, arranging for RBG staff to independently judge the projects.
Winning the gold medal is Garden Grove Landscaping, along with the Judges’ Award and People’s Choice Award. Meadowbrook Landscaping won the silver medal and the Judges’ Award, while Lynden Lawn Care also received the silver medal and the People’s Choice Award. Gelderman Landscape Services received the bronze and People’s Choice Award and The Gardener Landscape Maintenance received the bronze medal and Judges’ Award.
Wilf Arndt said the program began after admiring the floral beauty of historic Niagara-on-the-Lake. “The number of visitors that flock to the community, in my view, is an indication of the appreciation that people have for its historic values as well the beauty of the varied and colourful plantings in the village,” he says.
Arndt says that the village of Waterdown and the designated Waterdown downtown area, now part of the city of Hamilton, has its own historically designated area, and a number of wide boulevards that were drab and underutilized. “Over several years, the Waterdown BIA had made an effort to beautify the BIA area. We installed annual hanging floral baskets, initiated a program, with the help of Gelderman Landscaping to install a number of street median floral containers. We worked with Garden Grove Landscaping to plant floral beds at our Village Gateway Signs. We created a small parkette at a particularly ugly corner on one of our main roads.”
The BIA executive director says he approached Hank Gelderman with the idea of finding a number local landscapers, with community spirit, who would be willing to participate in an annual planting competition to help beautify these spaces. “Hank thought it was a doable idea and helped me kick off the project. I had spoken earlier with Jeff Smith from Lynden Lawn Care and he became an ardent backer of the idea. I think Jeff arm-twisted an number of the landscapers who came on board.”
Seven Landscape Ontario members took part in the Waterdown Blooms competition through that community’s Business Improvement Association (BIA). The contest began last summer and the winners were announced this year.
Wilf Arndt, executive director of the BIA of Waterdown, says, “Response from the community was tremendous. Residents repeatedly asked me to thank the landscapers for taking part.”
The landscapers in the competition included Gelderman Landscape Services, Garden Grove Landscaping, Lynden Lawn Care, Meadowbrook Landscape Contracting, CR Lawns, Carruthers Landscaping and The Gardener Landscape Maintenance.
The Golden Horseshoe Chapter was heavily involved in the project, with Chapter president Jeff Smith, instrumental in helping bring the competition to fruition, and Chapter coordinator Lee Rozon, arranging for RBG staff to independently judge the projects.
Winning the gold medal is Garden Grove Landscaping, along with the Judges’ Award and People’s Choice Award. Meadowbrook Landscaping won the silver medal and the Judges’ Award, while Lynden Lawn Care also received the silver medal and the People’s Choice Award. Gelderman Landscape Services received the bronze and People’s Choice Award and The Gardener Landscape Maintenance received the bronze medal and Judges’ Award.
Wilf Arndt said the program began after admiring the floral beauty of historic Niagara-on-the-Lake. “The number of visitors that flock to the community, in my view, is an indication of the appreciation that people have for its historic values as well the beauty of the varied and colourful plantings in the village,” he says.
Arndt says that the village of Waterdown and the designated Waterdown downtown area, now part of the city of Hamilton, has its own historically designated area, and a number of wide boulevards that were drab and underutilized. “Over several years, the Waterdown BIA had made an effort to beautify the BIA area. We installed annual hanging floral baskets, initiated a program, with the help of Gelderman Landscaping to install a number of street median floral containers. We worked with Garden Grove Landscaping to plant floral beds at our Village Gateway Signs. We created a small parkette at a particularly ugly corner on one of our main roads.”
The BIA executive director says he approached Hank Gelderman with the idea of finding a number local landscapers, with community spirit, who would be willing to participate in an annual planting competition to help beautify these spaces. “Hank thought it was a doable idea and helped me kick off the project. I had spoken earlier with Jeff Smith from Lynden Lawn Care and he became an ardent backer of the idea. I think Jeff arm-twisted an number of the landscapers who came on board.”