Tag: job seekers

Transforming Public Spaces: Inside European Pavers Southwest’s Award-Winning Hardscape at Scottsdale Civic Center Plaza

The Scottsdale Civic Center Plaza, a nine-acre public gathering space in downtown Scottsdale, Arizona, has been a community cornerstone for over 50 years. As part of a $27.5 million bond-funded renovation, the plaza underwent a complete overhaul to modernize its infrastructure and aesthetics while enhancing its year-round usability.

European Pavers Southwest played a crucial role in transforming this urban oasis, earning national recognition for their work. Their efforts were celebrated at the 2024 Hardscape North America (HNA) Awards, where they took home the top prize in the Segmental Concrete Pavement – Commercial (less than 15,000 sf) category. The event recognized outstanding hardscape projects from 215 submissions across 19 categories.

European Pavers has built up a reputation for municipal work, especially in Arizona, and she was thrilled when they were selected to take on this Scottsdale project.

“It was a huge project,” Kimberly Miller, President of European Pavers Southwest, said. “It’s our reputation. We’ve been here for so long in Arizona and throughout the Southwest. People know our workmanship. They know that we return our phone calls. They know we show up for punch lists. They know we’re honest,” Miller said.

Reimagining an Iconic Public Space

Scottsdale Civic Center Plaza consists of nine acres of pristine open public space constructed over 50 years ago in the heart of downtown Scottsdale, Arizona. With a bond-funded $27.5 million budget, the Civic Center Plaza Renovation Project included upgraded utilities, regraded and drained landscapes, and newly installed hardscapes. Key additions include two multi-functional stages, restroom facilities, a children’s play area with a mist-fog system, and expansive pedestrian walkways designed with eye-catching pavers.

European Pavers Southwest worked on four distinct areas of the revamped plaza. Their award-winning section spans 4,800 square feet and showcases an intricate series of concentric and patterned circles crafted with various types of stones and permeable pavers.

The project took about four weeks to complete. The visually striking design required technical precision, expert craftsmanship, and honest feedback. These are the qualities that have built the company’s impressive reputation throughout Arizona and the Southwest.

Crafting for Community Impact

Miller finds deep satisfaction in contributing to public works that the entire community can enjoy.

“I love those jobs because they’re so high profile,” she said. “It’s something that somebody’s going to see.”

The plaza’s pavers, supplied by Ackerstone, perfectly complemented the design vision crafted by the City of Scottsdale. This collaborative effort highlights how hardscaping goes beyond construction—it’s an art form that can redefine public spaces.

With a complete overhaul, the site’s new layout is designed so that all nine acres of the plaza can be utilized throughout the year. The existing hardscape was removed, and an extensive grading operation lowered the grade by as much as six feet in some areas. Several hills were moved to enhance the view of the park. New decorative hardscape and pedestrian walkways—a combination of concrete and pavers—made this linear civic space more inviting to users and visitors.

A Surprising Win

With 215 project submissions across 19 categories, the 2024 Hardscape North America (HNA) Awards showcased hardscaping excellence in materials such as concrete pavers, clay bricks, retaining walls, adhered thin veneers, porcelain, natural stone, and vintage installations.

European Pavers Southwest took home the top prize in the Segmental Concrete Pavement – Commercial (less than 15,000 sf) category for its work on the Scottsdale Civic Center Plaza.

Despite their stellar work, the European Pavers team was genuinely surprised when their project was announced as the first-place winner.

Because of the way they saw the boards displayed at HNA, they thought they had gotten fourth place and the photos were just being shown as additional project examples.

“Needless to say, we were all shocked!” European Pavers posted on Facebook with the announcement of their win.

Inspiring the Next Generation of Hardscapers

European Pavers Southwest’s success at the HNA Awards proves that hardscaping is more than laying stones—it’s about shaping environments, telling stories through design, and leaving lasting legacies.

For aspiring hardscapers, projects like Scottsdale Civic Center Plaza show how creativity and craftsmanship can blend into something truly remarkable.

As Miller summed up, “We take pride in what we do. Saying I’m proud of my team is an understatement.”

Seasonal vs. Year-Round – What to Know When Applying for Hardscaping Jobs

The hardscaping industry offers rewarding career opportunities, but working year-round can be sometimes be tough due to seasonal slowdowns. However, longtime hardscaping experts and business owners say that aspiring hardscape professionals can find full-time work in the industry if they are able to show initiative, be flexible, and adapt to changing needs.

Starting with Initiative

Frank Gandora, President of Creative Hardscape Company in Lakewood, Colorado, has been in the industry since the early 1980s. He recalled that he took a construction trades class in high school and he wanted to immediately put it into action.

“I drove up to this job site, just got my license, 16 years old. I had a 4-foot level in one hand, my tool bag in the other. I saw this guy chomping on a cigar, looking on at the job site. I figured he was the boss and I went up to him with the tools in my hand as I walked up. I didn’t just hop out saying, ‘You guys hiring?’ I walked with the tools in my hand,” Gandora said.

“He looked at my level, chomped on a cigar. He looked at my tool bag. He didn’t say a word. He pointed to the scaffold. I knew what that meant, young, ambitious person I was. I literally ran to the scaffold.”

While the hiring practices might look a little different today, initiative like Gandora’s is exactly what employers are looking for.

Qualities Employers Value

Bob Goossens, President of Precise Paving, Inc. in West Palm Beach, Florida, said he is always looking to hire full-time employees that are “enthusiastic, hungry for employment, and punctual.” He tries not to hire seasonal employees as training is an ongoing effort.

“We always offer our employees a minimum 40-hour work week even if a project has scheduling or material delays. We use this time to service equipment or do odds and ends around our yard and warehouse,” Goossens said.

Renee Redding, the owner of Logan’s Landscaping in Scarborough, Maine, echoed the importance of being proactive and reliable.

“If you’re looking to jump into our industry, you better be somebody that’s looking to jump hard. You need to be a leader on your crews. You need to be a leader to your boss and absorbing, taking it in, understanding, doing exactly what they’re asking you to do so that you have that place 12 months a year. They won’t get rid of you if you’re making them money. That’s a fact,” Redding said.

Adapting to the Seasons

Redding has been a business owner for almost 10 years, but has been in the industry since high school. When she first started, there was a time when hardscaping was seasonal, but now improvements in technology and tools have changed the environment. She doesn’t consider it a “slow season,” as much as it is a time to shift gears or to prepare for the future.

“When I talk to people about it, they’re like, ‘Oh, you must get many months off.’ We switch. We go into masonry. We can tent something. We will heat it. We will accelerate it. There are other things that we do work on in the wintertime. There’s a lot of equipment to work on. There’s a lot of things to get ready for the following season. You just have to make yourself useful and you can manage to have a business 12 months a year, even as far up here as Maine,” Redding said, noting that last year she did a patio project in February.

“There are a lot of companies that their seasonal change will allow them to keep employees on. They don’t want to lose good guys because it’s seasonal work, so they will dip into snow. That’s a natural progression for a lot of companies,” Redding said. “If you’ve got some really good skills that will allow you to stay on in most cases.”

The Value of Long-Term Commitment

Redding also stressed the importance of retaining skilled workers.

“It’s really crucial that when you train those people and you train those people to do something the way you want it done, or way that it should be done, that you maintain those people. If not, they’re going to be your competitors down the road. We have a big incentive to keep them full time,” she said.

Gandora said his work is focused primarily on commercial projects, which allows for year-round operations. He is always looking for a full-time workforce that can be flexible.

“When I was doing residential, I wasn’t working for three months a year because of snow in the backyard and the ground being frozen. I switched over to my commercial work and home builder work. We’re doing much bigger projects with big machines. You’re not worried about frost,” Gandora said. “Instead, we ask, ‘Can you work out of state? Can you work a hundred miles from here in a ski resort application for two weeks at a time?’” Gandora said.

Exploring Industry Roles Beyond the Job Site

Gandora also noted that there are so many different ways to work in hardscaping beyond physical labor, which expands the options for full-time employment.

“It’s not just about backbreaking hard work laying pavers. You have the marketing side of it – developing brochures, developing marketing and advertising campaigns. You have the management side of it, developing and managing crews and coordinating projects. You have the business side of it, you know, negotiating with your suppliers, trying to figure out the best products to use, the most economical products to use, and so on. You have the accounting side of it. You could spend your whole life just doing the accounting side, no different than any other industry,” Gandora said.

“When people look at hardscaping they think of it, ‘Oh, I see a brick paver. It’s heavy and I’ll go home with a sore back.’ That’s 5% of the industry. There’s so much more. And the sore backs are going away because of the tools and innovative equipment and technologies coming in to help make our job easier.”

From fieldwork to management, marketing, and beyond, there are numerous paths to explore. Showing initiative, being flexible, and staying committed can help aspiring professionals build a rewarding, year-round career in the hardscaping industry.

Check out some of the career paths.

Making a Great Impression: Interview Tips for Hardscaping Job Seekers

Your resume has caught the eye of the recruiter and you’ve made it to the interview round!

But like any field, landing a hardscaping job means nailing the interview.

If you’re preparing for an interview in hardscaping, you want to make sure you’re not just another candidate but someone who stands out as prepared, passionate, and capable. Here are some tips from a few industry veterans to help you make a great impression.

Do Your Research

Before stepping into your interview, take time to research the company. Show that you’ve taken an interest in their work and operations. This doesn’t mean just skimming through their website; dig a little deeper. Follow the company on social media platforms, check out their recent projects, and familiarize yourself with the types of work they do.

“Knowing a little bit about the company is so important because it shows that you take initiative…It’s always a compliment for an employer to hear that someone is following the company online or on social media, but in a subtle way. Saying, ‘Hey, you know I’ve been following you guys and some of the things I love that you do that really draws me to your company is this,’” said Frank Bourque, a Landscape and Hardscape Business Consultant and the founder and host of the Landscape & Hardscape Business Success Summit.

“If someone shows up and they’ve never been on the website, they’ve never looked at what we do, and they don’t really know if we do landscaping or hardscaping or planting flowers, it’s not necessarily a turnoff, but then you’re just like anybody else that shows up at the door.”

Bourque recommends preparing some examples specific to the company you are interviewing with and being prepared to talk about how you relate to that type of work.

Be Ready with Real-World Examples

If you have prior experience, definitely bring it up in the interview. But even if you don’t have direct experience in hardscaping, you can relate your past work or activities to the demands of the industry.

“Even if you’ve never been in the industry, maybe having some examples of where you’ve brushed against the industry. I don’t care if it’s your mother that put in a paver driveway one day, right? But at least that shows me that they understand what we’re doing and what the industry is about,” said Travis Hilldore, Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Pathfinder Systems.

“If you have no experience in hardscaping, make it relatable to something else. Like, ‘Hey, I’ve worked outside. I love that type of work. I know it’s tough. I know long hours outside means having to get ready for your day and to bring lunch,’” Bourque said. “They sound so basic, but these things are so important.”

Bourque said this kind of example shows him that a candidate is motivated and prepared. He also noted that sharing experience working with a team can be helpful.

“If working with a team is part of what you like to do then you’re going to be a great fit for a lot of companies just to start with,” Bourque said. “Because if you’re coachable, you have the right attitude, you seem like you’re organized, you seem like you know what you want to do, those are, I would say, at the top of the list of what employers look for in our industry.”

Showcase Your Soft Skills

The hardscaping industry is not just about skills with tools or equipment; it’s also about teamwork, communication, and reliability. You can prepare concrete examples that highlight your ability to collaborate, problem-solve, and adapt to changing conditions.

“Describe some challenges that you faced in the past, and how you overcame these. It could be having a problem and problem solving with the team and then reaching out to the owner to make sure that it’s a good solution, instead of just presenting a problem to the employer,” Bourque said.

“Employers love to hear how you’ve solved problems because business owners hear problems all day long. They would much prefer hearing, ‘Hey, here’s the issue. But here’s three examples of how we could probably solve this.’”

According to Bourque, employers appreciate candidates who understand the importance of teamwork and reliability.

“For example, when you don’t show up, it impacts the whole team. It might even change the whole day for everybody else around you. So, when you’re able to demonstrate that you have self-awareness, that you know that your behavior is going to impact others, that says a lot. That shows maturity,” Bourque said.

You can also show examples of when you’ve had to adapt to new roles or challenges quickly.

“Be able to show some examples of how over time you’ve been given more responsibility. It shows how you can show up when you’re needed for these things and be consistent at it. I think these are the soft skills that will stand out,” Bourque said.

Hilldore said he likes to ask questions that stretch a candidate’s knowledge and show him how they approach different situations.

“I like to lead with, ‘Hey, there’s no right or wrong answer on this, however, if you ran into a situation where you’re the only one in the office, because we travel quite a bit, and a customer called you up asking very specific questions about a piece of equipment. How would you handle that?’” Hilldore said.

“That just gives me a good feel for their communication style, how quickly they can pick up on the information that’s on our website, things like that. Whether they would lie or not is a big one…You get to see their thought process.”

Come Prepared and Presentable

While many jobs in the hardscaping industry may not require a suit and tie, first impressions still matter. Dress appropriately for the company culture and bring a notebook to the interview.

“To me, something that’s impressive is somebody who shows they’re fairly organized. A notebook with them to take notes, pre-prepared questions,” Hilldore said. “Showing up a little bit early. Looking somebody in the eye while talking to them.”

Pre-preparing questions is a huge plus and demonstrates that you’re serious about the opportunity. Ask about the company’s current projects, what they’re looking for in a team member, or how you can grow within the company.

“If they’re asking about the culture and they’re asking about opportunities for growth. I think that shows some motivation,” Hilldore said.

“I always joke around about that. Everybody talks about their business being a family. Well, frankly speaking, I’d rather be with my actual family on Christmas and Thanksgiving. But we are a close-knit team, and we rely on each other. So, if they’re asking questions about how they can integrate within a group, it shows somebody who is looking to fit in somewhere,” Hilldore said.

After the Interview

The top candidates know the impression they leave doesn’t end when the interview does and they follow up with their interviewer afterward.

A simple email to thank the interviewer for their time and consideration can help keep you top of mind.

“I’d say it’s 50-50 that people even email you and say, ‘Hey, thanks for the interview.’ That used to happen a lot more,” said Trevor Fearn, the VP Operations at CornerStone Wall Solutions Inc. “Now it really makes you stand out.”

Preparing for a hardscaping job interview is all about demonstrating your readiness for the job. If you follow these tips, you’ll shine as a candidate.

Still in the job application stage? Check out our tips on crafting a compelling resume.

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