Profile: Donald Bottger, Assistant Facilities Manager, San Diego Convention Center

An Unconventional Convention Center

A large fairway lawnmower mowing the Plaza Park turf bed. Photos courtesy of The San Diego Convention Center.

Donald Bottger has been involved in landscaping for over 30 years. In addition to having owned his own business, he is a certified grounds manager with the PGMS, a certified arborist, and a qualified pesticide applicator for the state of California with an additional segment to his licenses for all common areas inside the building as well, including insects and rodents. He is an OSHA outreach trainer so he?EUR??,,????'???s involved in all safety issues and is the safety chairman. As a past president of the PGMS, he?EUR??,,????'???s on the PGMS Board Of Directors and is their Southwest Regional Director.

Says Bottger. ?EUR??,,????'??We tailor our irrigation to prevent that run-off.?EUR??,,????'??

Donald Bottger, Assistant Facilities Manager, San Diego Convention Center oversees the day-to-day operation of the grounds department, the cleaning services and the building services. He has ten supervisors reporting to him and an employee scheduler plus two department assistants. There?EUR??,,????'???s 175 uniformed staff reporting to the supervisors. Bottger oversees about 180 people.

Donald Bottger designed this park in front of the administration building. The staff uses six large Tennant sweepers, and three large Tennant sweeper / scrubbers. They have three boom lifts with 45 to 60 foot booms, four scissor lifts with 22 to 50 foot lifts, four utility vehicle carts and a large fairway lawnmower. Every staff member has his own Echo backpack blower.

Typically, with an irrigation clock they water in cycles so they don?EUR??,,????'???t saturate the ground too quickly. All dedicated planter beds have drip irrigation systems on the building. Says Bottger, ?EUR??,,????'??The convention center has been a huge engine for economic growth. The volume of conventioneers has been brought a great deal of money into the city, and we all want to make sure they have the best possible convention center.?EUR??,,????'??

Since Donald Bottger started in 1989, the look of the center has completely changed. The initial landscaping plan called for formal shrubbery on the back of the building, Privet and Carissa, which they formally shear. One of the challenges is the whole building and the back terraces have many overhangs and exposed ledges which the grounds crew has to maintain. There is a lot of lift work with boom and scissor lifts to maintain the foliage. Within the grounds care industry there?EUR??,,????'???s a tremendous level of injury. They?EUR??,,????'???ve instituted a fall protection program to make sure the staff is trained and safe when they?EUR??,,????'???re on those ledges.

San Diego red bougainvillea is planted in raised beds on the central terrace overlooking the Marina and Embarcadero Park with its spectacular view of San Diego Bay.

The plaza park entrance has just been redesigned with a combination of perennials, small palms and boulders watered by drip irrigation. The edges of the long planter beds have skate stops. Large King palms line each side of the plaza, mirroring the theme of the other entryways.

Bottger also has a Hazwopper license?EUR??,,????'??+Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response?EUR??,,????'??+which is a certification with the EPA. He is required to take classes once a year to maintain this certification because he?EUR??,,????'???s responsible for hazardous waste response and storage issues at the center.

Their biggest challenge each year is working around the shows. The crew has to be cognizant of sound, and running sound equipment. They look daily at the event activities and schedule their work around them.

This wall has been planted in Ficus repens, a creeping fig, along a 1/4 mile stretch, which is formally trimmed in the signature diamond pattern seen on the rest of the convention center. The plantings have to be constantly trimmed and sheared.

”Pride of place is important and the staff really takes ownership. When you have that instilled in the staff, they believe it and live it and there are no limits to the quality.”

One of the challenges is that the whole building and all the terraces have many overhangs and exposed ledges which the grounds crew has to maintain. The crew has to be cognizant of sound, and running sound equipment. They look daily at the event activities and schedule their work around them.

The crew starts at 6AM and they?EUR??,,????'???re responsible for the clean up of the entire building every day, as well as the trash outside. After that they do the softscaping. They check the daily schedule and if there?EUR??,,????'???s an area with no activity they go to that area first. ?EUR??,,????'??We?EUR??,,????'???ve even gone so far as to note that the activity will take place at 10AM and hurry up and finish up before then.?EUR??,,????'?? It?EUR??,,????'???s a challenge, but it?EUR??,,????'???s a good challenge. Bottger is an incurable optimist, but as he puts it, ?EUR??,,????'??You have to be, and furthermore, it?EUR??,,????'???s the best way to be.?EUR??,,????'??

The California Department of Pest Regulation ensures that all continuing education is appropriate. ?EUR??,,????'??It?EUR??,,????'???s a lot, but it?EUR??,,????'???s worthwhile,?EUR??,,????'?? says Bottger. ?EUR??,,????'??There isn?EUR??,,????'???t one seminar I?EUR??,,????'???ve gone to where I haven?EUR??,,????'???t learned something.?EUR??,,????'?? Bottger is a member of PAPA and they also give Continuing Education Seminars.

This one-acre of hybrid Bermuda turf is used for events such as luncheons. Around the base of the palms trees are seasonal color beds of impatiens, Iceland poppies. The choice of plantings depends on the season, as some color takes the cold better than others.

Since everything is centralized, they just have a couple of pickup trucks to get their supplies. They have, six large Tennant sweepers, and three large Tennant sweeper/scrubbers. They have three boom lifts with 45 to 60 foot booms, four scissor lifts with 22 to 50 foot lifts, four utliity vehicle carts and a large fairway lawnmower. Every staff member has his own Echo backpack blower. All equipment maintenance is done by the grounds staff. The larger equipment is maintained by the engineering department.

?EUR??,,????'??The people are the best part of this,?EUR??,,????'?? says Bottger. He?EUR??,,????'???s developed relationships over the last 18 years and he?EUR??,,????'???ll value them the rest of his life.

The Carissa planters on the Mezzanine Terrace are planted in formal shrubs, which have to kept low to avoid cutting off the view of the Bay. The staff has to trim them back regularly and are tied off on the pipe seen to the left of the picture when they?EUR??,,????'???re doing the trimming work.

They are considered one of the best convention centers in the world, and have won numerous awards. It?EUR??,,????'???s all because of his tremendous staff. ?EUR??,,????'??But it?EUR??,,????'???s because of the people responsible. ?EUR??,,????'??My staff makes the impossible possible.?EUR??,,????'??

The only other thing that needs to be added is the need for Landscape Superintendents to get involved in their industry. PGMS is the best association he?EUR??,,????'???s ever dealt with. The networking and the people have helped to grow him in his profession more than anything he?EUR??,,????'???s ever done. ?EUR??,,????'??As landscape professionals we have to have an association,?EUR??,,????'?? says Bottger. ?EUR??,,????'??Anyone who has ever joined has been given much more than they put in. It?EUR??,,????'???s just tremendous.

The crews go up on the roof trimming the plantings high above the embarcadero. The grounds crew is fantastic and they work in some very dangerous places and understand the protocols for that kind of work. Bottger is the boom lift trainer and he makes sure they?EUR??,,????'???re safe when they deal with those edges. They even had the San Diego fire department come out and train the staff on rope work and tying off training.

Once people understand how deeply involved with education that association is, and how hard they work toward developing the landscape manager, the association will get even better.?EUR??,,????'??

And it appears that Donald Bottger is also getting even better. With ideals like his and a staff who has incorporated them, there is no limit to the miracles they will be able to perform?EUR??,,????'??+and on a daily basis. The conventioneers appreciate him, San Diego appreciates him, and best of all, all those plantings around the Convention Center appreciate him more than any of us will ever know.