New Parkland Hospital wins Distinguished Greenscape Project of the Year
North Texas Recycling Awards recognize sustainable landscaping
The new Parkland Memorial Hospital campus has received recognition for its LEED Gold® certified buildings and now the hospital’s grounds and landscaping also have been honored, this time as the Distinguished Greenscape Project of the Year by the North Texas Recycling Awards.
The awards, presented by STAR North Texas and the North Texas Corporate Recycling Association, honor efforts of North Texas businesses, governments and individuals for outstanding contributions and forward thinking that impacts meaningful waste reduction.
“We are very proud that the design and construction of the gardens, which were designed to put the ‘park’ back in Parkland and bring nature to patients, visitors and employees, have been recognized for their sustainability as well,” said Miranda Skaaning, Parkland's Sustainability Coordinator for Parkland Health & Hospital System. “Parkland took advantage of the opportunity to design and build a landscape incorporating drought-tolerant plants, responsible use of irrigation and native materials adapted to the environment.”
The landscaping throughout the entire campus was designed to reduce water usage by approximately 60 percent over a typical landscape of the same size. One hundred percent of the plants are native or adaptive species, while the irrigation system uses rain sensors, a weather station, drip irrigation and very few spray heads and/or rotors to reduce water usage.
The plants throughout the campus are designed to minimize the need to prune or clip, allowing them to grow naturally, which reduces plant waste.
“This landscaping project shows that sustainable greenscaping can be done across an entire campus,” Skaaning said. “The goal was to create a project using as many native species as possible, including restoring a prairie within a stone planter wall. Parkland wanted a high performance landscape that offers year-round interest, but does not require too much maintenance.”
Parkland estimates it will save 17 million gallons of water per year compared to what it would have used in a typical landscaping of the same size.
The centerpiece of the project is the Moody Foundation Wellness Park, a one-acre garden located at the front of the main hospital building and adjacent to the cafeteria, enhanced with benches and seating areas where people can enjoy the healing influence of nature. A water fountain at the center of the wellness park is designed to minimize water loss by gently spilling water over the edge rather than spraying it into the wind.
The Distinguished Greenscape Project of the Year award is the latest sustainability recognition for the new Parkland campus. Earlier this summer, new Parkland hospital was awarded the LEED Gold Certification from the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program. And in 2013, Parkland received LEED Gold for its Tower Garage located at the corner of Harry Hines Boulevard and Medical District Drive.
For more information about the new Parkland hospital, visit www.parklandhospital.com/newparkland.
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