Board approves Continuum monument landscaping; requires crepe-myrtle removal, evergreen backdrop and irrigation planning

Continuum (Southwest Value Partners) received Design Review Board approval on July 18, 2025, for monument signage and associated landscape at two entrances to the Continuum site on Westside Parkway and Windward Parkway, subject to conditions. Brian Dodd of B plus C Studio presented the monument concept and planting palette—boulder outcrops, mixed swaths of prairie and muhly grasses, and pockets of perennials and hydrangeas—designed to tie into the broader campus revitalization. Jake Max of Southwest Value Partners said the sign and landscape work are the “kickoff” of a larger repositioning of the former Hewlett-Packard office campus. Board members and staff emphasized coordination with the traffic and intersection redesign under way by Kimley-Horn; staff said the monument locations were sited with future road realignment in mind but asked the applicant to continue close coordination. The board conditioned approval on removing crepe myrtles and other poor-condition trees shown on the plan, introducing larger evergreens (examples cited included oakleaf holly) as a backdrop, reducing the quantity of muhly grass in large continuous swaths, and preparing irrigation conduit or ensuring hand-watering during the establishment period; developer representatives asked to defer full irrigation installation until coordinated infrastructure work but agreed to prepare for future irrigation and to maintain plantings during establishment. A motion by D. Corkle with second by R. Lacane to approve the landscape package with these conditions passed 6-0. Staff and the applicant said they will return next month with more complete streetscape details and continued coordination with the road realignment and signal improvements.