We have heard stories about Quality Landscape’s generosity. Can you tell me more about this?

The owners, Steven and Jordan, are constantly looking for ways to help in the community. They’ve gone to neighborhoods and done landscaping work free of charge for the elderly and the ill. They have installed holiday lights for several women who lost their husbands to bring a little holiday cheer to a dark time in their lives. They’ve gone to local schools and built garden beds for them at no charge. They sponsor so many local youth and community programs that I have lost count. They don’t seek anything in return for their kindness. It is solely just to be a good “neighbor” and I think that is why our company is so different from the rest. It isn’t just about doing beautiful work… it truly is about helping people. 

I have seen some of the flowerbeds you guys have installed. How do you come up with the ideas for each client?

Every single flowerbed is different. We have some extremely talented, knowledgeable, and creative people working for us. They come up with some of the best ideas and bed plans, tailored to exactly what the client would love.  We also make sure that the beds are sustainable and manageable. We don’t just want it to look beautiful for a week after we put it in. We want it to last. Most of our clients have us do the installation, and then have us maintain the beds so that they stay looking beautiful. 

Let’s talk hardscapes. Tell me about that.

Just in the last week or so, we have installed a huge flagstone patio surrounding a pool, a brick fence, a walkway/sitting area, a paver patio, a stone fire pit, and a permanent, chopped-stone flowerbed border. Our stonework crew is super talented. Outdoor living spaces have become more and more popular over the last few years. Most people don’t just want a concrete slab or just a yard of grass anymore. If you want to add value to your home, or if you just want an outdoor living space that is beautiful and functional, then you should definitely meet with a member of our staff to come up with the perfect plan for your property.

How can a client reach you if they want more information?

They can call 318-507-0152, they can go to our website at www.qualitylandscapela.com or email us at  steven.qualitylandscape@gmail.com

At the turn of the twentieth century, Traditional Neighborhood Developments, now renamed New Urbanism, created some of our most attractive communities. Houses and streetscapes were designed for people, not automobiles. Residents could easily walk through the neighborhood to visit friends or stop at the neighborhood park just around the corner.

Unfortunately, the automobile took priority over pedestrians somewhere along the way—and our neighborhoods have never been the same. Our streetscapes are now dominated by cars. Sidewalks, street trees, and pedestrian lighting are limited, if not eliminated altogether. Our current residential pattern seems to tie us to the automobile for every activity.

“‘New Urbanism’ doesn’t mean neighborhoods that replicate the past in a nostalgic manner,” says Paige Hoffpauir, a real estate broker at Ramsey-Hoffpauir Associates who was instrumental on developing Southern Trace into what it is today. “It’s about choosing the best ideas that have worked well over time and replicating those while simultaneously innovating to meet today’s needs of daily living. Especially when it comes to building community.”

Shared Resources That Foster Community

Most traditional neighborhoods focus on central, shared areas for recreation and socialization designed to help community members build relationships with each other. “The central park at Whispering Path was not an accident,” says Hoffpauir. “It was a priority to create a beautiful, welcoming open public space that could be enjoyed by everyone—not just those who live in the community of Whispering Path, but everyone in Southern Trace as well.”

Other amenities shared by residents include a championship golf course, tennis courts, a fitness center, and a clubhouse with a pool.

An Emphasis on Sustainability

By focusing on walkability, Whispering Path promotes a higher level of sustainability in residents’ daily lives. The ability to walk to amenities within the community decreases residents’ carbon footprint.

“The architecture of these homes was really well thought out and beautifully designed,” Hoffpauir continues. “Although the houses have some modern features, like their clean lines, the architecture and interior design leans classic.”

Constructed by Parrish Ramsey and furnished by Ivan Smith Furniture, their shape fits within the setting, appearing to grow from the ground itself. That means fewer hallways and tiny, wasted rooms. They each have open floor plans that afford more useable space—the kitchen that opens to the den and dining areas. An abundance of glass and doors—designed to open and disappear—bring the outdoors in. Here, efficiency is key.

The bedrooms are spacious with individual ensuites. “You can flip out fixtures and wallpapers, but the house’s more staple features—like the countertops and wide-plank white-oak hardwood floors—are timeless. Those,” she says, “will be beautiful 10, 15, or more years from now.”

So why Whispering Path at Southern Trace? Aside from beauty and charm, Hoffpauir was clear that the neighborhood provided a better quality of life for those seeking a community or, better yet, a sense of place. “My job is to help create a neighborhood that reflects that! It’s like a breath of fresh air and a warm hug all in one.”

Their oldest daughter, Hannah, is a second-year law student. Abbie will graduate from Louisiana Tech and is about to enter law school. Jack is a senior at Benton High School and has applied to the Naval Academy as an aspiring Navy Seal. That leaves 13-year-old Will, who has been described as the family mascot.

With two May graduations followed by a June wedding, the Johnson family household is hopping. SB Magazine was fortunate to interview Speaker Johnson for a few moments before the fundraiser reception held at the Petroleum Club on Monday, March 4th. Guests were treated to hors-d’oeuvres and refreshments before Speaker Johnson spoke (without notes) about his family, the state of our country, and what must be done to preserve our nation’s founding principles.

 had about half the staff here in the district and half in Washington, to around 100 employees. The speaker’s responsibility – the scope of it is so broad. It is one of the only offices listed in the Constitution. And so, you’re in charge of everything from the actual grounds of the Capitol itself to obviously the legislative agenda, the policy agenda, and the fundraising for effectively half the party, and it’s a lot to say grace over. It comes with a whole security detail. I mean, your entire life changes in every conceivable way. But I’m happy to report that our family’s adjusted well and are all great sports.

SB: It’s going to make them very successful adults.

SPEAKER JOHNSON: Yeah, if they can endure all this.

SB: Well, my next question- you answered it already-was going to ask how you balance your marriage, your family, and being a public figure.

SPEAKER JOHNSON: Well, they all have to be very forgiving, and they are, and we try to incorporate them in as much of it as possible; I mean, when we’re not in session, I’m on the road just almost constantly. I think I’ve been in 24 States since I’ve been a speaker since early November because you have to go and do events, campaign, and fundraise all around the country. As much as possible, I’ve tried to take one of the kids along with me. My wife Kelly is a saint, and she has been able to come with me on a few of those things and to Washington more often than we thought. We still have our home base here, and that’s always been important to us. It requires a lot of adaptability and flexibility, but so far, it’s worked out okay.

anything under the sun or something like that. And I said, well, I’m pretty simple. Just pick up the Bible off your shelf and read it. That’s what I believe. That’s what I stand for. There’s no mystery about this. That was regarded to be such a controversial statement in Washington. I’ve been reminding people ever since that this is exactly what previous generations of leaders said and did. I quote the founders from Washington to Adams to Lincoln, all the way down. Until very recently, all the leaders of the country believed in these basic principles. Inscribed above the Rostrum in the house is our national motto: In God We Trust. I reminded people in my speech the night I took the oath, and in the nationally televised speech, I said,
“This isn’t on your screen.” But that’s what it says, and it was put there in 1963. Why was it put there? If you look in the guidebook for visitors to the house, it will tell you that it was put there as a rebuke at the beginning of the Cold War to the Soviet’s worldview, which is Marxism, Communism, and Socialism, that begin with the premise that there is no God. I said our country is different and exceptional and extraordinary. We’re the greatest nation in the history of the world because we were founded on an opposite premise. We are founded on the idea, articulated in the Declaration, in the second paragraph, that we hold these truths to be self-evident that all of us are born equal, created equal by our creator, and that God’s the one that gives us her rights and that is the foundational principle of our country. We lose it at our peril.

SB: How did we go off the rails?

SPEAKER JOHNSON: I’ve got a five-hour seminar that explains all that. It was a series of cultural shifts. It was really big in the early 1900s, with the push of the Marxists, frankly, who infiltrated trade unions and universities and tried to sort of change the minds of Americans to think differently. And now that has taken root, and we’re dealing with an open conflict between two different worldviews.
This isn’t even Republicans versus Democrats anymore. It’s two competing visions about who we are as a nation. Our group believes we should hold fast to the founding principles, which I describe as individual Freedom, limited government, the rule of law, peace through strength, fiscal responsibility, free markets, and human dignity. That’s what America is founded upon. There’s another group advocating that we jettison all the founding principles. We traded it in for something else, and they want a European-style sort of Marxist Utopia. Well, that’s a Fool’s errand. That is not who we are as Americans, and we have to stand strongly against that, so every day, we’re advancing policies, events, and legislation, trying to move the ball for our principles. we have in mind that we are fighting to preserve the foundations of this, which is the greatest country in history, the world.

SB: What do you want to be remembered for?

SPEAKER JOHNSON: Adherence to our founding principles, somebody who is faithful and practical. I want to be known as a servant leader. That’s how I try to live my life. It’s sacrificial service at this level. This is not a job I ever aspired to. This was not ever on my bucket list for very practical reasons. Steve Scalise from Louisiana, our small state, was way ahead of me on the totem pole in years of service and every other way. He’s like my brother, and it never occurred to me that it would ever be a scenario where I would leapfrog Steve Scalise. As fate would have it when the speaker’s chair was vacated, he had just gotten his cancer diagnosis, and it just wasn’t his time. And so, I tried to get lots of others – I tried to get Jim Jordan elected speaker and other friends, and it didn’t happen. I knew all along I could get the votes, but I wasn’t trying to; I wasn’t running for it.

Somebody told me when I was in eighth grade at Middle Magnet always to remember that real leadership is recognized and not imposed. I wasn’t trying to impose myself on anybody, but my colleagues ultimately said it was you all along, and I needed to do it. We’re very sober minded about the challenges we face. But I’m very Resolute. I mean, “without vision, the people perish,” is what scripture says. We have a real vision of where we’re supposed to go and how to get there, and it’s grounded in those timeless principles. I want to be remembered for that. I didn’t do this for myself. I did it for my kids – for our country.

SB: For our fellow Americans.

SPEAKER JOHNSON: That’s right. That’s right.