our philosophy
“Landscape architecture is not brain surgery,” says Paul Freeman. “Absolutely not,” chimes in Bill Maneri with a grin, “it’s meant to be fun.” As a boutique landscape architecture firm consisting of two peer-colleagues, Maneri + Freeman is uniquely positioned to bring that sense of fun and creativity to every project they undertake. To determine what each garden will uniquely convey, Maneri + Freeman interviews clients to assess their likes (and dislikes), their dreams, and their realities to ensure the outcome suits both the homeowner’s personality and lifestyle. The team’s sound design experience, vast plant knowledge, and combined stellar work histories, unite to deliver premium gardens to clients—clients who are invited to enjoy the process as much as the end result.
bill maneri, asla
Bill Maneri has always loved bringing order to chaos. For the Poughkeepsie, New York, native that played out in his teen years across the lawns he tended for neighbors, each swath of green cut in precise, detailed patterns that had homeowners clamoring after his look.
After earning a preliminary landscaping degree at the State University of New York in Cobleskill, he went on to earn a simultaneous bachelors in arts and fine arts (concentrating in landscape architecture) in a dual-degree program offered by Brown University and the Rhode Island School of Design.
In 1991, he moved to Charleston and was soon hired by T. Hunter McEaddy Associates, where he cut his design teeth creating the notable firm’s classic look traditional Southern gardens that complemented historic downtown homes while completing his landscape architecture internship. While there, Maneri was named one of three males listed as a lifetime member of the Charleston Garden Club thanks to his integral role in restoring the Gateway Walk through a handful of churchyards in the Holy City.
In 1995, he became the youngest licensed landscape architect in South Carolina’s history and struck out on his own, fast becoming known especially for his work on Kiawah Island, where he had vacationed with family since 1977.
Today, Maneri—who sits on the Board of Directors for the Charleston Horticultural Society and has long since lost his New York accent—revels in bringing his sense of order to the wild landscapes on Kiawah and throughout the greater Lowcountry with designs that marry contemporary concepts with classic design edicts.
click here to view Bill's resume.
paul freeman, asla
Through a lifelong love of plants, gardening and design, Paul Freeman was drawn to landscape architecture. While other high school students were consumed with being teenagers, he was busy leaving his imprint on his neighbors’ yards thanks to the pruning—and overhauling—he exacted on unruly tree silhouettes or worse, boxy, squared off azaleas.
His innate sense of how to bring a natural look to an inherently sculpted setting and his experience tending a vegetable garden (“There still is nothing better than planting a seed, watching it sprout out of the earth, harvesting it, and eating what you’ve grown,” he says) led him to pursue an undergraduate degree from the renowned Penn State University landscape architectural program, from which he graduated in 1992. He went on to earn his masters in the field with coursework at the University of Oregon that was finished at Virginia Tech in 1995.
After working with Christian Busk in Naples, Florida, he moved to Charleston where he was soon hired at Hoffman Lester Associates and focused on large-scale developments. After a year there, he moved on to become Sheila Wertimer’s first full-time employee. Over the next 13 years he worked by her side as the firm grew to become one of the premier design groups in Charleston, thanks in part to its mastery of downtown gardens fashioned from traditional Southern plants. There, Freeman not only oversaw construction timelines and managed projects, but also amassed an encyclopedic knowledge of what plants thrive in the Lowcountry’s array of oft-tempermental microclimates.
Upon partnering with Bill Maneri to form Maneri + Freeman in 2010, he’s put his energies toward utilizing native plants in modern ways while bringing fresh pairings to traditional Southern favorites.
Away from work, Paul is honored to serve on the Board of Directors for the Charleston Horticultural Society.
click here to view Paul's resume