The Placer County Contractors Association (PCCA) recognized Landmark Construction on January 15, 2016 with the award of Public Works Project of Year.

Landmark Construction built the Martial Cottle Park in San Jose, CA as a Design-Bid-Build  project in collaboration with O.C. Jones & Sons Inc. of Berkeley, CA. Architects Page & Turnbull designed the green building project  to qualify as Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) Silver certified. BFS Landscape Architects designed the park landscaping. The construction for the Santa Clara County Park and Recreation Department included a 3,500 sq. ft. visitor center, entry kiosk, restrooms, maintenance building, historic water tank, raised boardwalk pathway and other structures.

Jeff Henry, Executive Vice President, PCCA, explained that the Public Project of the Year award recognizes members who build unique projects. “It must be some kind of public building such a school, park or agency’s office that is unusual, complicated or stands out in some way,” said Henry.

“Martial Cottle Park was a stunning project,” said Henry. “Landmark Construction nailed all of PCCA’s criteria. The project was aesthetically pleasing, required complex scheduling and involved working in a dense urban area surrounded by development. The final project pulled the surrounding community together. The history behind the park also made it interesting.”

It was an honor to recognized by PCCA according to Joe Bittaker, President, Landmark Construction. “We were flattered that PCCA chose this project,” said Bittaker. “It means a lot to us to be recognized by our peers.”

“I loved the back story on Martial Cottle Park. A family farmed the land for several generations and held off development until it was the largest undeveloped parcel in the San Jose area. Then it was turned it over to local government to establish a park celebrating farming,” said Bittaker.

The urban park, located on 287 acres in the center of Silicon Valley, is dedicated to educating the public about the agricultural heritage of the Santa Clara Valley. After his family had farmed the land continuously for over 150 years, Walter Cottle Lester transferred the land in 2003 to the State of California and Santa Clara County. With the County, Jacob’s Farm will put 180 acres into organic agricultural production and education. Other cooperative partnerships include the City of San Jose Community Gardens, UC Cooperative Extension Master Gardeners, 4H and an urban forestry program.

Bittaker explained that scheduling was complicated for this project due to the usual construction materials. “With the goal of making the exterior of the buildings look rustic as well as being maintenance free, we had to source a unique wood product,” said Bittaker. “The Kebony® southern yellow pine was harvested in the State of Georgia and sent to Norway where it was impregnated with furfuryl alcohol which is a bio-based liquid. Then the wood was heated so that polymerization takes effect to preserve the wood. The cured and dried wood was shipped back to California. The long lead time made scheduling complicated but we were able to meet the deadlines.”

This project is interesting in that it used the latest green building standards and the apprearnce still matched the historic agrarian theme. “The Martial Cottle Park Visitor Center was designed and built to meet the criteria to be qualified as Silver Certified under the LEED system,” said Bittaker. “To make the building sustainable, windows and sky lights provided natural day lighting, the raised wooden walkway created a more natural environment than a cement pathway and specially treated wood was used for the decking and rain screen.” Landmark Construction has extensive experience constructing green buildings for schools, universities, municipalities and the State of California.

Since 1998, Landmark Construction has successfully managed renovation, site-improvement and new construction projects for public agencies, universities and K12 schools in California. Through collaborative project management, Landmark Construction has achieved a track record of 100% on-time project delivery within budget and without problems. The company is currently hiring employees with an adventurous spirit who want to be part of an award winning construction team that successfully collaborates to build unique facilities and enjoys sports, races, barbecues and high country activities after work.