New Shareholder Announced at Cole & Associates

Cole & Associates announced the addition of Tom Reynolds as its newest shareholder of the company.

Reynolds began working at Cole in 2006, where he worked as an Instrument Man, an entry level position in our survey department. He soon identified a career path and took the opportunities available to advance his knowledge of the field by completing his degree and licensure, while continuing to work at Cole. As a valuable member of the company, Reynolds now serves as the Survey Manager in our St. Louis office and has completed survey projects across the country in conjunction with Cole’s other offices.

“Tom is a perfect example of the character and work ethic that embodies Cole. It is with great pleasure that we congratulate Tom and welcome him to the shareholder’s circle,” said Kevin Riggs, President/CEO.

Since the late 1990s when the company’s founder Mel Cole put the firm’s shareholder agreement in place, Cole has seen many of its company leaders take part in this incredible opportunity. This speaks volumes for the success and integrity of the firm, its shareholders and its employees, Riggs said.

Current shareholders include Riggs; Lisa Baker, CFO; Jeremy Roach, Director of Planning and Landscape Architecture; Terry Westerman, Survey Manager; and the Cole’s three Vice Presidents of Regional Operations – Jim Roth in Phoenix; John Harshbarger in St. Charles and St. Louis; and Sandy Stephens in Dallas.

Announcing Cole’s Vice President of Engineering for Accessibility

Cole is pleased to announce that Melissa Anderson has joined our staff as the Vice President of Engineering for Accessibility.

Prior to joining Cole, Melissa worked at the US Access Board, serving as their Transportation Engineer, developing accessibility guidelines and assisting Federal, State and Local Agencies in meeting their obligations to provide accessible facilities for people who have disabilities. Her work involved refining the proposed Public Right of Way Accessibility Guidelines, updating the Transportation Vehicle Accessibility Guidelines and leading the Rail Vehicles Access Advisory Committee. Melissa also continues to participate as a subject matter expert on several research panels and remains a member of two committees for the Transportation Research Board.

Prior to her work for the Access Board, she was employed for 10 years with the Missouri Department of Transportation, where she was involved in traffic and safety data collection and analysis, research, standards development, and professional services procurement. Melissa became the statewide non-motorized transportation engineer, where she was responsible for developing pedestrian and bicycle policy, training staff and local agencies, and reviewing plans for accessibility.

Previously, Melissa also worked for two small local agencies on a wide variety of projects including water and waste water design, managing street and sidewalk programs, review of residential and commercial developments, and long range planning and zoning updates.

Cole is excited to have Melissa lead our ADA Team, providing expert guidance and working with our clients to understand their obligation to provide accessible facilities. We look forward to sharing her skills with our partners in the evaluation of their existing infrastructure and development of State and community transition and prioritization plans and accessible pedestrian networks.

Cole Expands Survey Operations in Texas

Cole has recently relocated Terry Westerman, PLS, to our Dallas office to oversee land surveying operations in an effort to support and bolster survey services. Terry is a Principal at Cole who has been with our firm for nearly 15 years. He brings more than 30 years of experience in land surveying and 23 years of project management along with licenses in Texas, Missouri, Illinois, Tennessee, Mississippi, and Kansas.  Our decision to augment our land surveying capabilities with a senior manager further demonstrates a commitment to our continued investment in the Texas market and will allow Cole to better serve our clients in the region. Terry has already been busy in the field and looks forward to growing our Dallas survey team.

Cole continues to offer professional land surveying services in nine states throughout the country. St. Louis survey operations are now in the capable hands of Dan Huck, PLS, Cole’s existing Survey Manager of Field Operations. Dan has been with Cole for 13 years working alongside a field crew and office staff that also has some longevity at Cole. Our entire team has been working together for nearly 10 years; many even longer. We look forward to building just as many years of collaboration in our Dallas office!

The Roxton Grand Opening

Cole is pleased to announce the opening of The Roxton in Denton, Texas. The Grand Opening Celebration will be held on Oct 16 from 5pm-7pm.  The property underwent rehabilitation in late 2012 with the assistance of a HTC (Housing Tax Credit) award from the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs. Cole’s duties included analysis of existing infrastructure and design of replacement infrastructure, project phasing, coordination of platting and permitting, landscape architecture, and construction phase services for the 120 affordable housing unit property.

The Roxton (formerly Singing Oaks) represents just one of several HTC projects designed by Cole. Our experience with Housing Tax Credits includes numerous projects in North Texas and Louisiana.  We’ve helped complete over 2,500 multi-family units in 13 different communities.  Projects have included new construction, phased reconstruction, and over 600 senior assisted living units. Whether our clients are applying for competitive or non-competitive housing tax credits, we can help with pre-application site selection all the way through entitlements, design, and construction.

Cole is providing HTC engineering consultant services for additional projects on the boards in the state of Texas including Amberwood in Longview, a 78 unit property on 6.8 acres slated for completion this year; Saige Meadows in Tyler; Summit Parque in Dallas; and Abbington Meadows in Howe. We wish all of our clients luck in the upcoming TDHCA tax credit selection process for 2014.

Texas Update

As Cole’s market presence continues to strengthen, we’re gearing up for even greater opportunity. We recently found a new home in Frisco. The office is located at the bustling Frisco Square and we’re quite pleased to be part of such a progressive community with sound future growth plans. Keep an eye out for more updates once we get fully settled. Rest assured, this move hasn’t slowed our growth as plans to add to our staff are in the works.

A project we’re quite proud of recently opened in Celina. Turquoise Firefly is a combination boutique and bar that is the first of its kind in Celina. Cole designed the parking, utilities, and landscape, but our most critical role was accelerating the schedule. Once Cole took over the project, we were able to complete the plat, site plan, and construction plans in under two months. We managed the approval process through the City and were able to obtain a certificate of occupancy in just three months.

Our portfolio of multi-family residential projects continues to expand with Singing Oaks, a 120-unit renovation project in Denton which is under construction and 50% complete. Also on the boards is Amberwood in Longview, a 78-unit new construction project. In addition, we recently joined Pinnacle Housing for the grand opening of the first multi-family project in Tyler, TX. This market is hot and we are primed to bring our experience and expertise to formulate success for future projects.

Contact: Sandy Stephens, PE / sstephens@coletx.com (972) 624-6000 or Dana Martin / dmartin@coletx.com (314) 596-6132

Cole Launches New Website

Our 2012 was kicked off with the launch of the new Cole website. We are pleased that you have found your way to it! We have refined the look of colestl.com to support our mission of taking quality to the next level and showing the industry our design-centric side. Among the updates, you’ll find a sophisticated feel and fresh take on our services and design solutions. It was created to provide a unique user experience and demonstrate a continued focus on client communications and partnership building. The new website is meant to have a strong impact and distinguished web presence that sets us apart in the industry and compels our clients to take note.

Cole Celebrates 20 Years

With genuine gratitude toward you, our loyal client base, Cole is celebrating 20 years in the civil engineering and design world. A world that continues to challenge us, bring about opportunities, and enrich our lives with new and existing partnerships. Knowing that relationships are the keys to lasting success, we understand that our success is purely a reflection of our client’s success. From the day Cole was established in 1991 as Cole & Associates, Inc., the relationships we have built, both inside and outside the office, have sustained our mission of providing professional services that exceed the expectations of our clients.

We reflect on our achievements and challenges faced over the last two decades with an eye toward the future. Through positive energy and excitement, we will continue to create our legacy. Our inspiration lies in learning and growing with our clients. We anticipate another 20+ years of great partnerships.

Cole Opens New Office in Dallas, TX

Cole is excited to announce our newest branch office in Dallas, the first in Texas. The Dallas office will play a key role in sustaining history of successful project execution in the commercial, municipal, and residential markets. We have already begun adding to our portfolio of high profile projects with new endeavors in the Dallas area. We look forward to becoming part of the strong and culture rich Dallas community and are eager to collaborate with new players in the industry as we work to become THE FIRM relied upon for quality planning, engineering, surveying, and landscape architecture in DFW and all of Texas. The Dallas office is being led by Sandy H. Stephens, PE.