Garden and Associates Ltd., engineers and surveyors, an Iowa-based company, announces the acquisition of Mid-State Surveying and Consulting in Creston from Jim Norman and Greg Shawler. Mid-State was established in 2002 by Norman and Shawler, both long-time Creston residents.
During their 15 years meeting the surveying needs of land owners, cities, counties, rural water districts, construction companies and other businesses in southern and central Iowa, Norman and Shawler worked to maintain high standards for quality, responsiveness and efficiency. They believe expending the extra effort needed to make sure their work met the needs of their clients, and maintaining good communications with their clients and others, were integral to the success of Mid-State Surveying and Consulting.
“We have greatly enjoyed the opportunities we have been given to work with our clients and associates,” Norman said. “We feel very comfortable turning our business over to Garden and Associates. They share our values and are committed to contributing to the city of Creston and the surrounding area. Greg and I both plan to retire at the end of the year, but we plan to assist Garden and Associates on an as-needed, and as-available, basis and we plan to continue to be active in the community.”
Garden and Associates and Mid-State have shared office space at 500 E. Taylor St. in Creston since 2007. Along with the acquisition of Mid-State, and in response to an increased workload, Garden and Associates will add four full-time staff to the Creston office. Staff additions include a surveyor, surveyor technician, administrative assistant and engineering technician. There are also plans to add a design engineer position in the next six months.
Austin Smith, who is a licensed professional engineer and stockholder in the company, will head up the expanded office. Smith, a 2002 graduate of Creston High School, 2004 graduate of Southwestern Community College and 2008 graduate of Iowa State University with a Bachelor’s degree in civil engineering, has worked at Garden and Associates since 2011, focusing primarily on water distribution, wastewater collection and treatment and street improvement projects.
Garden and Associates Ltd. is located at 500 E. Taylor St., Suite C, in Creston. They can be contacted by phone at 641-782-4004 (Mid-State phone), 641-782-4005 (Garden &and Associates phone) or 800-491-2524.