The Mueller Retail Center is a bustling 400,000 square feet along 51st Street in East Austin where shoppers flock to Bed Bath and Beyond, Best Buy, and Home Depot.
Grab some new jeans at Old Navy, sip a Jamba Juice, pick a pizza at Pieology. Get your nails polished, your vision checked, your banking done.
But this place isn’t a concrete jungle.
Lush landscaping invites shoppers to plop down on built-in seating under a cool shade tree or munch that pizza at an outdoor table flanked by pretty planters.
“It’s all about urban living, in an up-and-coming area,” says Jordan Martin, Vice President of North by Northwest, the landscaping company that tends to the green side of this busy retail center.
Here’s a look at how they help make it a go-to shopping destination.
Up First: Get Things Under Control
When North by Northwest took over maintenance on the property in the summer of 2020, the landscaping needed a big boost, Martin says.
“It took a full week of extra work just to get it to what we call ‘up to scope,’” Martin says. “It had kind of fallen through the cracks.”
Commercial properties often give their landscaping companies lots of chances to improve and make things right, Martin says.
“The last thing they want to do is to keep changing landscaping providers, explaining everything over and over again year after year,” he says. Property managers have enough on their plates without that extra hassle.
But meanwhile, continuing poor service means a property’s landscaping goes downhill.
Next Up: Meticulous Maintenance
Landscaping at a bustling retail center like this one makes a big impact, Martin says.
- Healthy, weed-free turf shows the property is well maintained.
- Trees, shrubs, and flowers add pretty appeal.
- Attention to safety means tree limbs aren’t tumbling down on walkways or scratching cars.
“When you go shopping, you want to go where you feel safe, where you feel welcomed,” Martin says.
No dead plants, weeds, overgrown limbs, or litter in the parking lot, please.
That’s where North by Northwest’s weekly maintenance comes in. Crews sweep through with mowers, blowers, trimmers, and weed eaters to keep the place tidy.
Fertilizer and weed treatments keep the turf healthy.
The property uses environmentally friendly reclaimed water for irrigation, Martin says, which means they can water more often than the greater Austin area, where residents can water only on assigned days and times
“It means things grow fast,” Martin says. “Everything needs frequent trimming.”
No Worries for Vinnie
There’s a lot going on here. In charge of it all is Vincenzo “Vinnie” Mandujano, District Manager of Divisions Maintenance Group, the national facilities maintenance company in charge of the Mueller property.
He loves that he doesn’t have to worry about the landscaping maintenance — even when he’s not there.
“It’s having people who will really take ownership and accountability of the property in the same way I would,” Mandujano says. “North by Northwest, they’re my eyes and ears on the property.”
Their attention to detail is especially important when he’s expecting extra eyes on the property, he says.
“We have VIP pop-up visits at any given time, sometimes with 24-hour notice,” Mandujano says. “Ensuring we have the right crews on the property from the start is very important.”
Water Works
A big part of keeping the turf, shrubs, and plants lush and healthy is top-notch irrigation.
North by Northwest emphasizes on-going irrigation maintenance, including monthly walkthroughs by irrigation technicians to stay ahead of any problems.
An irrigation tech checks the Mueller irrigation system for small issues like broken spray heads and leaky nozzles before they turn into big, costly problems.
They check all the system’s run times to make sure it isn’t watering the landscaping too much or too little.
Regular inspections keep everything running smoothly — and keep the client’s costs down.
Tree Trimming on the Night Shift
“Tree trimming is a difficult task at a shopping center,” Martin says. “You have to do it at night, when there aren’t any customers or vehicles. So we had crews there from 9 p.m. to 4 a.m. That was a big accomplishment.”
The tree work made a huge difference in the retail center’s courtyard, he says.
Crews lifted the canopies of several big, mature trees and thinned them out.
Then they added permanent holiday-style lighting to make the gathering spot sparkle.
“Now the courtyard is this romantic place with lights in Century Oak trees,” Martin says. “It looks pretty cool.”
“One Shot, All In-House”
Tree trimming is just one of the many services North by Northwest has handled for Mandujano outside the scope of what many landscaping companies offer.
Crews installed an iron hand railing; added river rock with steel edging; replaced electric box covers; and installed permanent holiday-style lighting — all tasks that saved Mandujano the hassle of hiring other companies.
“It’s having a reputable, reliable company that you can turn to that can handle even other trade aspects of a job that can all be done in one shot, all in-house,” Mandujano says.
Safety from the Treetops Down
“Safety is a big thing,” Martin says. Crews wear bright safety vests and high-visibility shirts, so shoppers and drivers see them as they work.
Lots of parking lot islands present additional challenges. They all need trimming and edging. Meanwhile, there are typically about 500 cars in the expansive lots.
“There are usually vehicles parked right by them, so you have to be careful not to scratch cars or break windows,” Martin says.
Those parking lot islands are anchored by mature trees. Shoppers don’t want debris falling on their cars, so that’s another item for crews’ checklists.
Up Close with the Plants
Built-in seating invites shoppers to rest along walkways lined with Mexican sycamores and shrubs.
Outdoor tables and chairs are flanked by built-in planters packed with pretty plants.
It all means shoppers are up close and personal with the landscaping.
If plants are messy, dead, or choked by weeds, they’ll notice. Everything has to be trimmed and tidy.
Plentiful red oaks drop lots of leaves in the fall, which means leaf removal is crucial.
Huge, impressive Pride of Barbados shrubs explode with show-stopping orange and red blooms that wow, but crews have to make sure they don’t block drivers’ views. If the branches get too long, they can break off.
Towering ornamental grasses make a big statement but need trimming, so they don’t flop over and look neglected.
Looking Ahead
There’s plenty on North by Northwest’s to-do list for the Mueller Retail Center. Coming up:
- A courtyard redo with modern steel planters and lighting.
- Replacing worn-out plants.
- Replacing annuals with perennials and evergreens. Annuals aren’t the most budget-conscious commercial landscaping enhancements. You have to replace them throughout the year. But perennials come back year after year. Plant them once, then wait for their dependable show.
Communication Counts
Martin knows Mandujano has high expectations. When he texts, emails, or calls, he gets right on it.
“I’m very available,” Martin says.
Mandujano has noticed.
“Working with Jordan and getting to know him was great,” Mandujano says. “He’s very personable. If you’re a business owner and need someone you can rely on to get you results within an urgent period of time, he’s definitely that guy.
“With Jordan and North by Northwest as a whole, I definitely feel comfortable that things are being taken care of.”
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If you’re a busy property manager like Mandujano, you don’t have time to babysit your landscaping service.
You need to hire expert professionals, then trust them to get the job done.
If you can count on them to handle multiple property needs, even better.
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Our services include landscape maintenance, landscape design, commercial irrigation management, and landscape construction in Austin, Cedar Park, Leander, and Georgetown, Texas.
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