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Local landscape architects win top national honour.

Two Whistler landscape architects have been awarded top honours in their field for their work on the Vancouver 2010 Bid Corporation’s plan to host the Winter Olympics.

Two Whistler landscape architects have been awarded top honours in their field for their work on the Vancouver 2010 Bid Corporation’s plan to host the Winter Olympics.

Jan Jansen, Manager of Bid Development Whistler, and Tom Barratt, President of Tom Barratt Ltd., were awarded top place in the Canadian Society of Landscape Architects Professional Awards Program New Directions category.

"It is very rewarding to have participated in the bid process on behalf of Whistler and Vancouver as the project allowed us to apply everything that we have learned over the years working in the area and in our profession," said Barratt.

"It will be even more rewarding if the bid is successful to have world-class athletes using the venues."

Both Jansen and Barratt served distinct roles in the development of Vancouver’s bid, which outlines all aspects of hosting the 2010 Olympic Winter Games and Paralympic Winter Games as required by the International Olympic Committee.

Jansen, who is also the Manager of Parks Planning Services for the Resort Municipality of Whistler, was responsible for overseeing the development of the plans and budgets for the competition and non-competition venues in Whistler.

That included the development of facility plans and budgets for proposed capital infrastructure associated with the Whistler Sliding Centre, Whistler Athlete’s Village, Whistler Nordic Centre, and Paralympic Sledge Hockey facility with an estimated value in excess of $200 million.

Barratt played a key role in the development of competition venue plans in the Callaghan Valley and the bid book’s mapping and graphical content.

This work included the development of detailed plans for the Whistler Nordic Centre (cross-country skiing, biathlon, ski jumping, and Nordic combined) as well as the development of snow based venue plans illustrated in Sport Federation documents and the bid book.

The bid corporation used Barratt’s graphics throughout the course of the project and included them in the bid book.

As part of the process Barratt and Jansen had to: develop facility/venue programs based on the interpretation of IOC and International Sport Federation guidelines, do site assessment and selection, participate in Theme Work Groups, co-ordinate/lead consultant teams, liaise with sport Work Groups, international sport federations and government agencies in the development of venue plans, oversee the development of venue budgets, participate in the development of venue fit-out plans, and develop legacy plans and bid book content and illustrations.

The purpose of the CSLA Professional Awards Program is to recognize and encourage excellence in all aspects of the profession and to promote a strong awareness of landscape architecture as a profession amongst related professions, clients and the general public.

Vancouver and Whistler are competing against Salzburg, Austria and Pyeonchang, Korea for the right to host the 2010 Games.

The host city will be chosen July 2 in Prague, Czech.