If you need an outdoor walkway, plaza or retaining wall built, check out this year’s HNA winners

by Brianna Crandall — December 5, 2018 — The top hardscape projects in the United States and Canada were honored during an awards ceremony at the recent 2018 Hardscape North America (HNA) trade show in Louisville, Kentucky.

The 2018 HNA Awards recognize residential and commercial walkways, patios, pool decks, outdoor kitchens, driveways, commercial plazas, streets, and other applications built using concrete pavers, segmental retaining walls, clay brick, porcelain, natural stone, outdoor living features, and combinations of hardscape products. Projects built between November 1, 2014, and June 30, 2018, were eligible for the competition. In addition, vintage projects installed before 2008 were eligible to receive HNA Awards for the first time.

Concrete paver hardscape area in front of mall

Winner: Concrete Paver, Commercial More than 15,000 square feet: Southlands Mall, Aurora, CO. Image courtesy HNA

Produced by the Interlocking Concrete Pavement Institute (ICPI), the awards are endorsed by the National Concrete Masonry Association (NCMA) and the Brick Industry Association (BIA). The HNA Awards program is sponsored by Belgard and Keystone Hardscapes.

Winners were recognized in 18 categories, while 18 honorable mentions were also named in 17 categories. A record number of awards entries (155) was received this year.

Kendall Anderegg, ICPI Chair, commented:

It’s great to see that so many contractors are building really terrific hardscape projects. Every year, the judging for this competition becomes more difficult. The winning projects showcase the industries’ best-of-the-best in hardscape design and construction. As an industry, we cannot be prouder of the contractors who are driving our industry forward with these creative, well-installed projects.

Colorado and Illinois tied for the highest number of winning projects with three each, followed by California and Wisconsin with two each. Eight other states had winnings projects. GoldGlo Landscapes in Millersburg, Pennsylvania, took home the most awards, with one winning project and two honorable mentions. C.R. Schmidt Inc. of Warrenville, Illinois, had one winning project and one honorable mention.

The 2018 commercial winners are:

Concrete Paver — Commercial Less than 15,000 sq. ft.

  • 16th Street Connector Park and Pump Station; Virginia Beach, VA; Contractor: Paver Designs LLC, Omaha, NE; Manufacturers: Techniseal & Eagle Bay Hardscapes

Concrete Paver — Commercial More than 15,000 sq. ft.

  • Southlands Mall; Aurora, CO; Contractor: Continental Hardscape Systems LLC, Thornton, CO; Manufacturer: Keystone Hardscapes; Designer: Chris Sutterfield, Studio Insite

Concrete Paver — Permeable Residential / Commercial

  • Community First; Neenah, WI; Contractor: Aqua-Paving, Yorkville, IL; Manufacturer: County Materials Corporation; Designer: Ryan Bakke

Combination of Hardscape Products — Commercial

  • Vanderwende’s Event Venue; Seaford, DE; Contractor: C Vargas Construction, LLC, Seaford, DE; Manufacturers: Belgard and Techo-Bloc; Designer: C Vargas Construction, LLC

Segmental Retaining Walls — Commercial

  • Alta Pinehurst; Lakewood, CO; Contractor: Slaton Bros., Denver, CO; Manufacturer: Keystone Hardscapes;Designer: Wood Partners

Porcelain — Commercial

  • Optima Chicago Center; Chicago, IL; Contractor: C.R. Schmidt, Inc, Warrenville, IL; Manufacturer: Tile Tech Pavers; Designer: Optima, Inc.

Clay Brick — Commercial

  • Freedom Walkway; Rock Hill, SC; Contractor: Unit Paving Inc., Charlotte, NC; Manufacturer: Pine Hall Brick Company; Designers: Juan Logan and Laurel Holtzapple, groundworks studio

Clay Brick — Permeable Residential / Commercial

  • Flats East Bank; Cleveland, OH; Contractor: Royal Landscape-Gardening, Garfield Heights, OH; Manufacturer: Pine Hall Brick Company; Designer: Jeff Knopp, RLA, Behnke Landscape Architecture

Natural Stone — Residential / Commercial

  • Great Lake Terrace; Sheboygan, WI; Contractor: Landmark Landscapes Inc, Sheboygan Falls, WI; Manufacturer: Eden Stone; Designer: Joe Majerus, Landmark Landscapes Inc

Outdoor Living Features — Residential / Commercial

  • Schiller Street Oasis; Elmhurst, IL; Contractor: Premier Outdoor Environments, Inc., Elmhurst, IL; Manufacturer: Unilock; Designer: Kevin Barnes and Nathan Filip

Vintage Installation — Residential / Commercial

  • Fourteen Years and Going Strong; Salinas, CA; Contractor: Stowe Contracting, Marina, CA; Manufacturers: Calstone and Pacific Interlock; Designer: Walt Combs

For photos and a detailed list of the winners and honorable mentions, see the HNA announcement, or for multiple detailed photos of award winners, see the 2018 HNA Awards page on the event website.