Landscape Architect Charlotte NC
Landscape Architects Charlotte, NC
Evergreen Design Group is a licensed landscape architect Charlotte NC firm providing land planning, landscape architecture, tree disposition plans, and irrigation design services to land developers, civil engineers, architects, and design-build contractors throughout Charlotte, North Carolina and the greater Mecklenburg County market.
Evergreen Design Group of North Carolina, PLLC holds NC License #C-561 and has practiced landscape architecture nationally since 2005.
Our practice is exclusively B2B. We work as a coordinated subconsultant and project partner to development and design teams — not homeowners — and our deliverables are structured for permit submittal, technical review, and direct integration with your civil and architectural scope. We do not subcontract your landscape architecture, land planning Charlotte, or irrigation design Charlotte scope to third parties.
Landscape Architecture Firm Charlotte
Evergreen Design Group is a landscape architecture firm in Charlotte operating at both a local and national scale. We hold active licensure in 43 states, including NC License #C-561 — and our team brings direct project experience navigating Charlotte’s Unified Development Ordinance, the City’s Tree Canopy Preservation Program, Charlotte’s Post-Construction Stormwater Ordinance, and the clay soil and urban heat conditions that shape every project in Mecklenburg County.
As a landscape architecture firm serving Charlotte developers, civil engineers, and architects, we bring jurisdiction-specific knowledge of the UDO’s buffer yard classifications, canopy coverage thresholds, parking lot landscaping standards, and tree disposition documentation requirements — detailed enough to design to them from the initial site planning stage. We know which buffer yard type applies to a given zoning adjacency, what the canopy and shrub coverage thresholds require, and how streetscape standards interact with your site plan before the civil set is substantially developed.
Our Charlotte landscape architecture practice is exclusively B2B. Our clients are architects, civil engineers, land developers, and design-build contractors who need landscape architects in Charlotte who understand entitlement timelines, deliver construction-ready documentation, and integrate cleanly into their project teams.
What Makes Charlotte a Technically Demanding Market for Landscape Architecture
Charlotte has been one of the fastest-growing metros in the Southeast for over a decade, and that growth has pushed the city’s regulatory environment to become progressively more detailed and demanding. For development teams working in Mecklenburg County, landscape architecture scope has expanded well beyond planting plans — and engaging a firm that understands Charlotte’s specific regulatory framework from the front end is increasingly important to keeping projects on schedule.
Charlotte’s Unified Development Ordinance (UDO)
Charlotte consolidated its zoning and development standards under its Unified Development Ordinance, which governs buffer yard classifications, screening requirements, parking lot landscaping standards, streetscape planting, and tree-save minimums. We work within the UDO daily and incorporate its requirements into our design process from the initial site layout — not as an afterthought at the permit submittal stage. Understanding which buffer yard type applies, what the canopy and shrub coverage thresholds are, and how streetscape standards interact with your site plan are all part of what we bring to the project from day one.
Charlotte Tree Canopy Preservation Program
The City of Charlotte has committed to a 50% tree canopy goal by 2050 and enforces that commitment through its Tree Canopy Preservation Program. For development sites, this translates into detailed tree survey requirements, preservation area delineation, mitigation ratios for regulated tree removals, and documentation that supports zoning and building permit review. Tree disposition plans are a standard deliverable on most Charlotte development projects, and the quality and completeness of that documentation directly affects your review timeline.
Our team prepares tree disposition plans that identify trees to preserve, assess canopy condition, calculate mitigation requirements, and specify replacement plantings — including native and adaptive species such as willow oak, American hornbeam, red maple, and sweetbay magnolia that align with Charlotte’s canopy objectives.
Post-Construction Stormwater Ordinance (PCSO)
Charlotte’s Post-Construction Stormwater Ordinance requires runoff volume and quality control on most new development and redevelopment projects. Landscape architecture scope on these sites frequently includes vegetated BMP design, planting plans for bioretention cells and wet ponds, and buffer documentation. We coordinate these deliverables directly with your civil engineer of record to make sure our scope integrates cleanly with the stormwater management plan.
Clay Soils and Urban Heat
Mecklenburg County’s heavy Piedmont clay soils complicate both grading and long-term plant establishment. We design with those soil conditions in mind — selecting species with appropriate rooting tolerance, specifying soil amendments where needed, and designing irrigation systems that account for clay’s slow infiltration rate. Urban heat island conditions in Charlotte’s denser commercial corridors also factor into species selection and hardscape material specifications.
Landscape Architecture Services We Provide in Charlotte
Every service is performed in-house by our licensed professionals with no subcontracting of scope.
Site layout and open space planning for residential subdivisions, multi-family communities, commercial developments, and mixed-use projects. Our land planning Charlotte services integrate directly with your civil engineer’s site layout, addressing UDO buffer yard requirements, tree-save area integration, stormwater BMP siting, and amenity placement — all coordinated from the initial layout stage rather than overlaid after the civil plans are substantially complete.
Early land planning coordination is critical in Charlotte because UDO buffer yard compliance, Tree Canopy Preservation Program documentation requirements, and PCSO BMP siting create interdependencies between landscape architecture and civil engineering decisions that must be resolved at the site planning stage, not after the civil plan set is locked in.
Code-compliant planting plans developed for Charlotte’s UDO buffer yard classifications, streetscape standards, and parking lot landscaping requirements. We select species appropriate to Piedmont climate conditions — accounting for heat, humidity, clay soils, and seasonal drought tolerance — and prepare plans with plant counts, spacing, and canopy coverage calculations needed for permit review.
Comprehensive tree survey and disposition documentation prepared to support review under Charlotte’s Tree Canopy Preservation Program. Our plans identify regulated trees, delineate critical root zones, assess tree condition, calculate mitigation ratios for proposed removals, and specify replacement plantings. We format these plans to align with Charlotte’s submittal requirements and coordinate with your arborist or surveyor as needed throughout the entitlement process.
Pool complexes, clubhouses, dog parks, walking trails, pocket parks, and structured outdoor recreation areas for master-planned communities and multi-family developments across the Charlotte market. Designs are developed to HOA standards, Charlotte building codes, ADA accessibility requirements, and long-term operational maintenance requirements.
Pedestrian plazas, walkway systems, seat walls, site furnishings, and structured outdoor spaces for commercial, mixed-use, and institutional sites. Material and paving specifications account for Charlotte’s PCSO impervious surface requirements, freeze-thaw exposure, summer heat loading, and long-term maintenance parameters.
Engineered irrigation systems designed for Charlotte’s variable rainfall patterns, clay soil infiltration characteristics, and project-specific water source conditions. Our irrigation design Charlotte team produces zoned system layouts, controller specifications, flow calculations, backflow prevention documentation, and point-of-connection details formatted for permit submittal and contractor installation.
Project Types We Support in the Charlotte Market
Evergreen Design Group supports landscape architecture and land planning scope across a wide range of development types in the Charlotte metro. All project work is B2B — performed for developers, civil engineers, architects, and design-build contractors. Our active project types include:
- Single-family residential subdivisions in Mecklenburg, Union, Cabarrus, and Iredell counties
- Multi-family and build-to-rent communities throughout the Charlotte metro
- Mixed-use and town center developments in urbanizing corridors
- Retail centers, pad sites, and commercial outparcels
- Office and corporate campus projects
- Industrial parks, logistics facilities, and flex-industrial sites
- Institutional and educational campuses
- Senior living and continuing care communities
- Municipal parks and civic facilities
We are equally comfortable working in established urban submarkets — Uptown, South End, NoDa, Plaza Midwood, SouthPark — and in Charlotte’s outer growth corridors where large-scale subdivision and commercial development is concentrated.
Development teams choose Evergreen Design Group as their landscape architects in Charlotte NC for the following reasons:
Licensed in North Carolina — In-House, No Subcontracting
All landscape architectural services are provided by Evergreen Design Group of North Carolina, PLLC, NC License #C-561. Every deliverable we produce in North Carolina is covered under a properly licensed entity, performed in-house by our licensed professionals. We do not subcontract your scope to third parties.
UDO and Tree Canopy Program Fluency
We know Charlotte’s regulatory framework well enough to design to it from day one — which means fewer revision cycles and more predictable permit timelines for your team. Our familiarity with the Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) buffer yard classification system, the Tree Canopy Preservation Program’s documentation requirements, and Post-Construction Stormwater Ordinance (PCSO) BMP integration is what keeps Charlotte projects moving through review.
Subconsultant Structure Across the Mecklenburg Market
The majority of our Charlotte engagements are structured as subconsultant relationships with civil engineering or architecture firms. We operate within your project structure — responding to your schedule, attending coordination calls, and delivering in your preferred format throughout the design and entitlement process.
21 Years of National Practice, Piedmont-Specific Knowledge
We have been practicing landscape architecture since 2005 across 43 states. The combination of deep local market knowledge and the process discipline that comes from operating nationally is what differentiates us on Charlotte-area projects.
Frequently Asked Questions: Landscape Architects Charlotte
Is Evergreen Design Group licensed to practice landscape architecture in North Carolina?
Yes. All landscape architectural services in North Carolina are provided by Evergreen Design Group of North Carolina, PLLC, under NC License #C-561.
Do you work with homeowners or residential clients?
No. Our practice is exclusively B2B. We serve land developers, civil engineers, architects, and design-build contractors. We do not take on individual homeowner projects.
What does land planning in Charlotte involve for commercial development projects?
Land planning Charlotte scope involves developing site plans, open space configurations, UDO buffer yard layouts, tree-save area integration, stormwater BMP siting, and streetscape frameworks that satisfy Charlotte’s Unified Development Ordinance and development review standards. It must also address Tree Canopy Preservation Program documentation requirements and PCSO BMP coordination — all integrated with your civil engineer from the initial site layout stage. Our land planning Charlotte services are performed in-house with no subcontracting of scope.
What does a tree disposition plan include for Charlotte projects?
For projects subject to Charlotte’s Tree Canopy Preservation Program, our tree disposition plans include a field-verified tree survey, canopy condition assessment, critical root zone delineation, proposed tree-save areas, mitigation calculations for regulated removals, and a replacement planting plan with species, caliper, and placement specifications. Plans are formatted to align with Charlotte’s submittal requirements.
Do you work in counties surrounding Charlotte, such as Union, Cabarrus, or Iredell?
Yes. We regularly work on projects in Mecklenburg’s surrounding counties, each of which has its own landscape and tree ordinance requirements. Union County, Cabarrus County, and Iredell County projects are all within our active service area.
Can you serve as a subconsultant to a civil engineering firm on a Charlotte project?
Yes — that is one of our most common engagement structures. We integrate into your project team and deliver landscape architecture scope as a subconsultant, coordinating directly with your project manager and the other disciplines on your team throughout the design and entitlement process.
How do you handle Charlotte’s Post-Construction Stormwater Ordinance (PCSO) requirements?
We coordinate BMP planting plans, vegetated buffer documentation, and stormwater-related landscape scope directly with your civil engineer of record. Our deliverables are formatted to integrate with the overall stormwater management plan and to support PCSO permit review.
When should landscape architects in Charlotte be engaged on a commercial development project?
As early as possible — ideally at the site planning stage, before the civil plan set is substantially developed. Early engagement allows UDO buffer yard compliance, Tree Canopy Preservation Program documentation, stormwater BMP locations, and parking lot landscape requirements to be integrated into the site layout before those decisions are locked in. Projects that bring landscape architecture in early consistently produce cleaner submittals and fewer revision cycles through Charlotte’s development review process.
What is your typical project delivery timeline for Charlotte landscape architecture scope?
Delivery timelines for Charlotte landscape architecture scope depend on project type and jurisdiction, but most commercial and multi-family projects move through initial site plan review, a comment and revision cycle addressing UDO buffer yard and Tree Canopy Preservation Program documentation, and final approval within the timelines typical of Charlotte’s fast-moving development review process. Projects with incomplete tree survey or PCSO BMP documentation commonly see one or more added revision cycles. We provide a project-specific delivery schedule at the proposal stage and structure our work around your submittal deadline.
How does Charlotte's UDO compare to development ordinances in Raleigh or the Triad market?
Charlotte, Raleigh, and the Piedmont Triad each apply their own unified development ordinances, buffer yard classification systems, and tree protection standards, so landscape architecture documentation built to one municipality’s standard does not automatically satisfy another’s review process. Charlotte’s UDO and Tree Canopy Preservation Program are specific to the City of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County, while Raleigh and Triad municipalities apply their own separate ordinances. Evergreen Design Group maintains jurisdiction-specific familiarity with each North Carolina market rather than applying a single regional template across projects.
Talk to Our Charlotte Landscape Architecture Team
If you’re a civil engineer, land developer, architect, or design-build contractor with a project in Charlotte or the surrounding Mecklenburg County market, Evergreen Design Group’s landscape architects in Charlotte are ready to discuss your project scope, schedule, and team structure.
Bring us in early — the best outcomes happen when landscape architecture is part of the site planning conversation from the start, not after the civil plans are already drawn.
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