About 30 students in the landscape architecture program at North Dakota State University helped to build a home as part of “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition,” the ABC television show that creates new houses in a week for chosen homeowners. In October, the show came to Moorhead, Minn., to build a home for the family of Bill and Adair Grommesh.
Two students, Zach Swanson of Maple Grove, Minn., and Shawn Kummet of Eden Valley, Minn., both 4th-year students in the program, helped to design the landscapes around the house. Both students work at Pro Landscapers of Fargo, which was tasked with the design for the house.
“We started designing, doing research,” Swanson said. “Once we found out who the family was, it’s just been a fun ride. We’re taking things that we’ve learned over the last four years and actually applying them in a real-world setting.”
The project had two sites to design – one for the original house, which was moved to another location, and a second where the show built a new house. Swanson and Kummet designed landscapes for both sites with an eye for handicap accessibility. The production company made changes to their drafts.
Kummet said he was excited and nervous to be chosen to help design the site.
“It’s a big opportunity, and you don’t want to mess it up,” he said. “Landscaping is key to a house, it can drag people in and say ‘Wow, this was well done.’ ”
He also enjoyed seeing the community come together to help build for a good cause. Kummet plans to spend as much time as possible on the site.
“As many [hours] as I can before I pass out,” he said. “As long as I’m up, I’d like to be out here and meet a bunch of new people.”
Not content to keep the experience to themselves, Swanson and Kummet called their fellow NDSU students to get them involved in the project.
Christa Pojanowski of Lindstrom, Minn., and Ashley Hansen of Welcome, Minn., both 4th-year landscape architecture students, were enjoying the nice weather and meeting new people as they attached shutters to the house at the second site on Thursday.
“I love helping out, being outside working. It’s going to a good cause,” Pojanowski said.
While as landscape architects, they may not actually install on site in the future, Pojanowski said it is helpful to know what happens to their designs and to know how much work is involved.
“This helps me by seeing how everything is installed,” Hansen said. “You don’t really know how much work is put into the landscape until you actually go and do it.”
More than 35 landscape architecture students were expected to volunteer time at the site through the student chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects. The group helps improve the community through outreach projects. Ryan Hyllested of Circle Pines, Minn., a 4th-year landscape architecture student and president of the student chapter, wanted to create more excitement and interest in community service projects in the group through the “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” project.
“My hope is that this energy would continue and further build in our department and in ASLA,” he said.