Spokane-area landscape architect follows in fathers footsteps

Dave Nelson leads the way up to a waterfall located in front of his office off of Day Mt. Spokane Road. He points out how the design of the waterfall and water flow in turn changes the sound the water makes as it cascades down over the rocks, dropping into a deep pool before spilling further down into a large Koi sanctuary below.

Listen, Nelson says. This deep drop off deepens the sound.

As he continues to climb the steps beside the waterfall, he focuses on how the design of the water feature shifts the sound at each change in the arrangement of the rocks, how the water gurgles and gets quieter the farther up he climbs.

Nelson, co-owner of Mead-based Land Expressions, a landscape architecture business he started with his wife Kerry Nelson in 1987, says he and the companys designers use sound to mute undesirable noise, as well as soothe the soul, on projects they build. Changing the height, flow, or the surface of the rocks can create desirable sounds screening traffic noise or other intrusive sounds.

Land Expressions employs 13 full-time landscape architects and designers, in its Spokane office located at 5615 E. Day Mt. Spokane Road in Mead, and another 30 to 40 people who work in the field in an on-site nursery and landscape area or as craftsmen and construction managers.

Nelson says the company uses site design and the integration of art and science to create and build water features and applies that mindset on its construction projects.

We embrace sustainability and responsible design. Our award-winning team of landscape architects specializes in the design (and construction) of aquatic environments, aesthetic water amenities, and restoration projects, he says. The company does a lot of work at health care facilities and corporate campuses, and also stays busy with commercial, retail, and residential projects, he says.

Nelson grew up in Spokane around the landscape business. His father, Duane Nelson, owned Nelson Landscape for many years, a company that helped build Riverfront Park and improve Canada Island during Expo 74, he says. The elder Nelson received several national awards for beautification of Northwest highways and parks as the owner of Nelson Landscape.

Dave Nelson is building on that legacy here with projects such as the Spokane City Plaza and Huntington Park, which was a joint project of Avista Corp. and the city of Spokane. Avista paid to develop and build the plaza and park on land the city owns near City Hall and gifted it to the city. Land Expressions was the landscape architect and lead contractor on the project. Nelson says it was necessary to remove a parking lot behind City Hall to make that area a connecting point between Riverfront Park and Huntington Park on the Spokane River.

The park includes a pair of waterfall fountains, a fire feature sculpture, a scenic overlook for both able and disabled visitors, more than three acres of green space, and a series of levels connected by steps, leading down to a close-up view of the falls. The overall effect is modern and very geometric, he says.

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Spokane-area landscape architect follows in fathers footsteps