Photo by Lisa Mullen
Ryan Westwood (pictured above) along with a group of partners launched Envisioned Environments in April at the site of the former Musmanno's Funeral Home in Stowe Township. By Lisa Mullen
-BUSINESS PROFILE-
Ryan Westwood is the friendly smiling face of Envisioned Environments, a new company launched in April from the site of the former Musmanno Funeral Home complex in Stowe.
Besides landscaping, lawn maintenance and custom-built outdoor projects, the company will be transforming a portion of the company’s home base for use as a community event space.
Envisioned Environments strives to turn each client’s yard into a place where the owner can relax, said Westwood. The group will tackle mundane tasks such as mowing and edging the lawn but also has the chops to design an outdoor space to fit the client’s individual style.
Projects can include flower beds and garden installations as well as larger designs.
Envisioned Environments furthers Westwood’s personal creed of making the world a better place and “turning vision into environment.”
On his daily walks through town, he can be seen working toward that creed by picking up and disposing garbage as he goes. He also can be found cutting grass in vacant lots just to keep his adopted town looking good.
Westwood’s great grandparents were from “The Bottoms” area in McKees Rocks so he loves having “a lot of little real-world connections.” His work with the Gemini Children’s Theater brought him to McKees Rocks when it moved here in 2016. He also works as a program assistant for Positive Parenting, a program of the non-profit Focus on Renewal.
Photo by Lynne Deliman
Aside from plants, the Envisioned Environments facility will also sell creations from local artists.Westwood and several friends are in the process of purchasing the former funeral home site, which he affectionately refers to as “The Castle.” The stone and slate multi-building site will be both a home-base for the landscaping business and a community center available for residents to rent out for their events. Originally built as a doctor’s office in 1920, the building has multiple rooms on the first floor and the basement level will be available to be used by the public.
Westwood envisions the space being used for multiple purposes including offices, conference rooms, open mic nights with live music, a place to host events and fundraisers, and as a place to network, hold meetings and display artwork by local artisans.
Plans are in the works to use the parking lot as a farmer’s market so residents can buy fresh food when it’s available. Along the edge of the parking lot, Westwood plans to build raised bed planters to grow fruits and vegetables that he says the community will be free to pick and use at their homes.
“Food is everything that we need. Something that we all share. I really like that. I like giving back and helping everybody,” he said.
For both Mother’s Day and Memorial Day, open house events featuring live music and local artisans were held at “The Castle.” Vegetables and flowers were available for purchase from the front porch. The public was invited inside to learn more about what Envisioned Environments has planned for the future.
Envisioned Environments is located at 700 Seventh Ave., Stowe. For more information, look for them on Facebook and at www.eepgh.com.