Groundcubed PC's downtown Coeur d'Alene studio is seeking to capitalize on the high-growth environment of the Inland Northwest as it brings its expertise in pedestrian-oriented design and cold-climate landscapes to projects across Idaho and Washington.

Led by landscape architect Mike Light, the Coeur d'Alene studio has spent the last two years building up experience here and is now eyeing workforce expansion within the year.

Calgary, Alberta-based landscape architecture company Ground3 Inc., which does business as Groundcubed PC, offers commercial, municipal, and residential landscape architectural services. Light is the sole employee at the company's North Idaho office, located at 118 N. Seventh, in Coeur d'Alene.

“I am hoping to bring someone on here right away as we grow work down here,” says Light. “We work across the border pretty easily, and offices can support each other on certain projects, but obviously the goal is to build a physical location here with staff here that can work on these projects.”

The studio designs projects primarily in the cities of Coeur d’Alene and Spokane, but has the experience and portfolio to pursue work in larger cities including Seattle or Boise, Light says.

Groundcubed maintains four studios: in Calgary, Alberta; Edmonton, Alberta; Bow Valley, Alberta; and its newest office in Coeur d'Alene. The company employs 51 landscape architects, planners, and project managers in all. Light declines to disclose the firm's revenue.

The company specializes in low-impact development and pedestrian-oriented designs. Previous and ongoing projects include the RiverWalk West development, located on the south bank of Calgary’s Bow River, and a parking lot improvement project that created a pocket park in Calgary’s Culture + Entertainment District, called Pixel Park, says Light.

Groundcubed also designs for greenfield and suburban planning and landscaping, zoo landscape design projects, golf course architecture, and revitalization projects. 

“We like a good range of project sizes between schools, institutional projects, recreational facilities, and parks, and smaller community level spaces,” Light says. “You give to us, we’ll do it. We love a good challenge.”

Currently, the Coeur d’Alene studio is 60% complete with a design development report to improve 15 miles of the 130-mile Columbia Plateau State Park Trail, in Eastern Washington. The project is designed to improve safety and accessibility along the stretch of trail for families, children, senior citizens, and people with disabilities. The final design is targeted for completion in fall 2026, he adds.

The Canadian company's expansion to Coeur d'Alene was prompted by Light, who has ties to the area, he says. 

Light earned a degree in landscape architecture from the University of Idaho, where he met his wife, Abby, a Coeur d’Alene native. He worked at Groundcubed in Calgary for six years through 2019, followed by a stint working for the city of Calgary, before moving to Coeur d'Alene for family reasons, he says. His industry experience also includes working for Coeur d'Alene-based Architects West Inc. and the city of Spokane Parks and Recreation as an architect before rejoining Groundcubed in 2024.

The Coeur d’Alene office first opened its doors in fall 2024 and has since focused on a steady accumulation of work and visibility. This period of incremental growth culminated in the firm's official launch earlier this month.  

“We’ve been trying to build up our portfolio and our exposure here, and now we’re excited to see what we can do,” he says.

Employees at the company's four offices collaborate on projects across southwest Canada, Idaho, and Washington, following a “long hallway” strategy, Light explains.

“It’s a theory that says, at the end of the day, we have physical locations (hours or days away), but we are really one company with long hallways,” he explains. “With today’s technology, it helps you to be able to work remotely.”

Additionally, Groundcubed’s experience creating landscapes and public spaces that can stand up to Alberta’s cold climate means the firm has the capacity to creatively design for winter conditions, Light contends.

“It's a little bit warmer, you have a little less frost to deal with, and you have a little bit more plant selection, and so coming from more limited landscape and terrain (in Calgary) has really given us the ability to design spaces here for a four-season use,” he says of the Inland Northwest climate.

While Groundcubed is focused on high-level municipal and commercial projects, the firm maintains a grounded, "work hard, play hard" atmosphere, he explains. Across its three Canadian offices, the staff is joined by about a dozen dogs, creating an environment that Light says resonates with clients. 

“That’s what we hope people get, and that’s how we get work sometimes — (clients say), ‘We like you guys,’” he says, laughing.

Although he has yet to bring a dog into the mix at the Seventh Street studio, he notes that he is being encouraged to do so to maintain the firm’s cultural standard as it grows its presence in the United States.