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President-Elect

Steven E. Lefton, ASLA, AICP is a Principal with Kimley-Horn and Associates, Inc., where he has worked since 1997 in both Virginia and Florida. While in Florida, Steve’s practice was focused on the redevelopment of Miami and Miami Beach, and also included projects throughout Florida, Raleigh, Bridgeport, Las Vegas and Honduras. In 2007 Steve relocated to the Washington DC area to lead a region of Kimley-Horn that includes 10 offices in 6 states. Today his practice includes parks and recreation projects, transit oriented development and private sector planning.

Steve received his undergraduate degree in landscape architecture and city and regional planning from Cornell University and his MBA from the University of Miami. He is a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects and American Institute of Certified Planners. While in Florida Steve was an active member of the Florida Chapter of ASLA. He received both a Chapter Service award and Award of Recognition for his work with the Florida Chapter. Steve has been a guest lecturer for ASLA, APA, AIA, ULI and IDA. His work has been recognized by numerous design awards.

Secretary

Sarah is a landscape architect with Lardner/Klein Landscape Architects, P.C. in Alexandria, VA. Sarah joined the firm as an intern while pursuing her degree in landscape architecture and accepted a full-time position upon graduating. Since joining the firm, she has worked on several projects throughout the Mid-Atlantic region, among them two natural resources management plans for Fairfax County; multiple scenic byway corridor management plans, including the award-winning Journey Through Hallowed Ground; park master plans; and numerous GIS mapping projects. This work has enabled Sarah to pursue her interest in context sensitive design, watershed management and planning. She is a graduate of Wellesley College and has a MLA from Virginia Tech's Washington Alexandria Architecture Center.

Treasurer

Mr. Mastalerz, Managing Principal of Rhodeside & Harwell, a 25-person landscape architecture and planning firm in Alexandria, also serves as the Technical Director for the firm and is its LEED coordinator. He is a registered landscape architect in Virginia and Maryland and has over 30 years experience on both private and public sector projects including small-scale residential gardens, multi-million dollar commercial developments, institutional and governmental facilities, highway and transportation projects, and public park and recreational areas. He has worked with numerous architects, engineers, developers, owner project managers, and government agencies throughout the metropolitan Washington-Baltimore area and the Mid-Atlantic region. He has a BSLA from Penn State and has been a member of ASLA and the Potomac Chapter since 1982. He is also a member of the Construction Specifications Institute, the US Green Building Council and served on both the Arlington County Neighborhood Conservation Advisory Commission and the City of Alexandria Beautification Commission. He is currently serving on the Potomac Chapter Executive Committee as Treasurer (2008-2009).

Members at Large

Adele Ashkar

Paul Kelsch

Jeanette Ankoma-Sey

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Historic American Landscape Survey (HALS)

Fellow Potomac Chapter members

I am writing to describe the Potomac Chapter’s developing HALS program and invite others to become involved. But first a little background…

The Historic American Landscape Survey (HALS) was established by Congress ten years ago to complement the Historic American Building Survey and the Historic American Engineering Record. Like its siblings, its aim is to record historically important landscapes, especially those with little or no formal documentation. This can be as simple as a few photos and written description, but it also leads to the creation of measured drawings and systematic photo-documentation. Regardless of the level of detail, all materials are filed in the Library of Congress to create an expanding record of significant landscapes.

The National Park Service administers the program, but much of the work of nominating and registering historic landscapes is the responsibility of individual chapters. As Potomac Chapter HALS liaison, I have been gradually developing a HALS program for our chapter (and learning more about the program along the way). With others’ help, thus far I have put together a double-sided info sheet on historic landscapes in our region, lobbied our Congressional representatives for HALS funding, attended national HALS meetings, assisted in the development of a HALS field session at the national convention this past fall, and advised three Virginia Tech graduate students in a documentation of the landscape at Glen Echo Park. (Representing the Potomac Chapter, they won a national HALS competition focused on historic theme parks.)

Having come to a better understanding of the HALS program, I am ready to expand Potomac Chapter’s local initiative. Specifically, I am seeking others who are interested in forming a small cadre of HALS volunteers. Two immediate tasks would include formulating a list of historically important landscapes within our chapter’s region, and documenting a local landscape(s) to be entered in this year’s “Landscapes of Diversity” competition. This doesn’t have to be extensive, but it can be very interesting to learn more about a given landscape.

If you are interested in getting involved, please contact me by email or phone at: pkelsch@vt.edu or 703.706.8139. As we form as a group, we can determine the scope and amount of work that we each wish to pursue. Even small steps are very worthwhile.

Thanks-
Paul Kelsch