Five Iowa sites honored by architects

The American Society of Landscape Architects is honoring five Iowa locationsas a part of its centennial celebration. The central campus at Iowa StateUniversity, Backbone State Park in Delaware County, Eagle Point Park inDubuque, the Loess Hills and the Neal Smith Wildlife Reserve in PrairieCity have all been named “medallion sites” by the A-S-L-A.Each site is awarded a medallion to signify that it’s an outstanding featurein the landscape of the country. ISU design professor Mark Engelbrecht saysthe award puts the university in select company.ISU is one of only three university central campuses in the U-S selected forthe award. He says it’s a well deserved reward.Engelbrecht says architect’s borrow from natural wonders such as the LoessHills in designing buildings.The A-S-L-A chose 300 sites nationwide for the medallion honor.