Caring for Your New Landscape

Stop press ! new arrival for spring!

In addition to everything else she's up to, Christy is now a proud parent!  March 16th, 2008, Christy gave birth to Oliver Rule Webber, a healthy boy, at 7lbs, and 18". Mother and son are doing well and gearing up for the season.

On March 12, 2008, Christy was inducted into the Chicago Area Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame. Richard Walsh of De Vroomen Holland Garden Products nominated Webber for her “entrepreneurial achievements and the lasting impact she has made on Chicago’s business community” as president of Christy Webber Landscapes.

Since 1985, the University of Illinois at Chicago’s Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame has recognized innovative business leaders in Chicago's seven-county area. Each year, the Hall of Fame inducts distinguished entrepreneurs who have demonstrated entrepreneurial spirit and business talent by founding or growing their respective business. Past inductees include: Robert J. Abt of Abt Electronics; John W. Baird of Baird & Warner; Robert W. Galvin of Motorola; Michael P. Krasny of CDW Computer Centers, Inc.; Gordon Segal of Crate & Barrel; and Charlie Trotter of Charlie Trotter’s.

ILCA Leadership Program tries out Kolbe Index

Both Rusty and Bernie participated in the 2nd session of this leadership program and their photographs were published in “The Landscape Contractor” for the February edition; Rusty is quoted in the article.

See the article if you’re interested in seeing what Rusty had to say about the Kolbe Index--a questionnaire that helps identify a person's natural problem solving ability.

Congratulations to Steve Bernhard

Steve is now a Certified Landscape Technician – Maintenance! The examinations that Steve passed include 4 written exams and 18 field exams that test your practical knowledge while you perform tasks. The exam requires you to be proficient in everything from pesticides to plant sensitivity and identification to pruning to irrigation repair to tree installation. Steve joins the ranks of many other distinguished Christy Webber staff that have proven their skills to our industries best.

Mr. Wirtz and his daughter Karen at Christy Webber Landscape's 10 year anniverisary party

Christy Webber Landscapes would like to express our deepest sympathies to the Wirtz's family.
In 1998 Mr. Wirtz took a chance on Christy's small landscaping company, we have been proudly maintaining the United Center ever since. It was with that chance Christy Webber Landscapes has blossomed into Chicago's largest landscaping company. We are forever grateful to Mr. Wirtz and the entire United Center family.

Christy's thoughts on the passing of Mr. Wirtz

Mr. Wirtz

August 23, 2007

We were just calling it a day on Barry Street when the sky started to get very scary. Underneath all those branches were three men who were loading materials in the bed. No one was hurt but it sure shook them up.

Alex

Photo taken on 6/11

Alex worked for CWL in the construction department, he had been an employee for CWL since 1999. He started cutting grass, quickly he moved up through our company and was our "go to" guy for running the bobcat and taught many of our new guys how to use the machine.

Alex had not been feeling well for about a month and on Tuesday 6/12 he left work early and went into the hospital.

Alex perished on 6/19/07 due to gallblader problems.

 He was 31 years, had a beautiful family, 4 children, his youngest is 1 year old. 

This months issue of BusinessWeek's Small Biz magazine has an article called

"Offices That Work"
Four entrepreneurs create spaces with impact

A GREEN IDENTITY
It's not so easy to find storage space for 75 trucks, plus a whole mess of leaf blowers, trimmers, and other equipment. But that, in addition to work and office space, was exactly what Webber needed for her 50-person landscaping business, Christy Webber Landscapes. She had been leasing space in several locations scattered across Chicago's West Side ever since founding her company in 1990. Eight years later, with 750 clients ranging from suburban homeowners to O'Hare International Airport, she started looking for a more efficient central office and storage area.

In 2003 city officials were seeking proposals to develop a derelict site on the West Side. They let Webber know they'd be interested in selling the site to her if she would take over its development. Webber submitted a plan for an eco-industrial park, with her company as lead tenant. The city agreed, suggesting that Webber put up a green building there as her headquarters. In 2005 Webber bought 12.5 acres from the city for $700,000, with the stipulation that the city will get some of the proceeds from the site's further development. Then she hired Chicago architects Farr Associates, which specializes in sustainable design.

Farr designed a building that meets LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification standards at the Gold or Platinum level. Maple trees, grasses, and juniper bushes are planted on the roof for insulation, stormwater management, and to help extend the life of the roof. Rainwater collects in a central area, where it is pumped into trucks Webber's company uses to water nursery plants. Webber hopes the building will meet a significant percentage of its energy needs with its wind-powered turbine and solar water heater.

The 18,000-square-foot building, completed in December, cost $3.2 million, about 20% more than a traditional structure would have. Webber expects the green features to pay for themselves in energy savings in eight years. And eco-thinking now pervades company planning: Converting trucks to biodiesel is on the agenda, as is a composting facility. The building has become a showpiece for potential clients, government officials, activists, and others interested in becoming tenants of the eco-park. "This was a huge expense, maybe more than what we needed," Webber says. "But it will come back to us tenfold in goodwill."