The Interlocking Concrete Pavement Institute along with the Brick Industry Association, and National Concrete Masonry Association honored Poul’s Landscaping and Nursery, Inc., of Long Grove, Ill., with an HNA Hardscape Project Award for 2009. Poul’s is the only Chicago-area firm to win the award this year which recognizes “outstanding hardscape projects by contractors in residential and commercial/industrial applications”. Poul’s winning entry is an 800-square-foot outdoor kitchen and multi-function terrace designed and built for one of their clients in suburban Kildeer, Ill.
The HNA awards program, now in its second year, invited entries from across the United States to compete in both residential and commercial/industrial categories, with projects ranging in size from under 1,000 square feet to more than 50,000 square feet. Winners were announced at the Cobb Galleria Centre in Atlanta during the Hardscape North America trade show in January.
Poul’s winning project is a split-level paver terrace that replaced a tired looking and high-maintenance wooden deck; and now features a built-in outdoor kitchen, hearth-style stone fireplace, an outdoor flat-screen TV in the “lounging” area, a decorative fire bowl on a wall surrounding the dining area, and open views to a private, but low-maintenance back yard. The special TV, gas fireplace, and outdoor ceiling fan all operate via remote, while accent lighting is controlled by timers and sensors. The residential landscape project, completed in 2007, has recently won an Excellence in Landscape Award from the Illinois Landscape Contractors Association (ILCA).
About Poul’s Landscaping and Nursery, Inc.: The business (Poul is the Danish spelling of Paul), is a family-owned and operated landscape design/build firm founded by Paul Kjeldbjerg, a Danish immigrant, in 1966. He and his two sons, Dan and Alan Kjeldbjerg, run the present day operation from their 45-acre nursery and construction headquarters in Long Grove, Illinois. The company is a member of several professional associations including: the Illinois Arborist Association, the International Society of Arboriculture, the Illinois Nursery Professionals Association, the Ornamental Growers Association, and the Illinois Landscape Contractors Association. The firm also participates in Green Care for Troops, a nationwide outreach program initiated by Project EverGreen that connects participating local lawn and landscape firms with families of the men and women away from home serving our country in the armed forces.