Mr. Garth Balls received his B.L.A. and B.E.P. degree from Utah State University in 1976, also receiving the ASLA's Certificate of Merit that year. Upon graduation, he accepted an offer to work at Landplan Associates Ltd. in Calgary, became a principal in 1979 and is currently the owner of the 10 to 12 person firm operating in western Canada.
Garth's professional focus has been site planning and design, and he has undertaken many notable projects for both public and private sector clients. Under his direction, Landplan has been honoured with more than 40 awards by the CSLA, ASLA and other institutions; most recently receiving a CSLA National Honor Award for Shaw Millennium Park, a dynamic addition to Calgary's open space system. In 2003 Garth was honoured as a Distinguished Alumni of the Department of Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning at Utah State University. As principal of an award-winning firm, Garth has had the privilege of working with many young landscape architects now scattered across the country, and acknowledges their ongoing contribution to the profession.
In addition to directing an energetic consulting practice, Garth served as the AALA representative on Calgary's River Valleys Committee for two terms. He sat on the Organizing Committee for the 2003 IFLA World Congress and is currently serving for the third time on the AALA Executive Council, this time as President.