In the current employment landscape, job seekers have the advantage, and we know that you have a choice of firms to join and contribute your skills and talents. It’s a significant decision. There are many reasons that one firm may be a better for for you over another, (so we want to be up front about who we are and what we expect from ourselves and from our employees. Why Work at Garing, Taylor & Associates, Inc.? Well, Values, of Course... Aside from the phenomenal, cutting edge benefits package (for competing firms in our region - see video above) : We truly VALUE our values ( Sounds like a no-brainer, right? It's not!) . We value and develop the right kind of people for the job. We value ( and are VALUED by ) our clients and the communities in which we are so honored to do our very meaningful work! At GTA, we hold the values of being Trustworthy, Helpful, Involved and Remarkable . We work with, and for, people, companies and agencies with visions that align with our own. Be Trustworthy Being Trusted in our community is part of our DNA . Since our beginning in 1962, our founders built trust equity in the community by doing the work at hand in an honest, humble and smart manner. Everything we do is a trust exchange, and our clients buy into us as a team in as much as they trust the whole team. Be Helpful Although some clients do not expect us to Be Helpful beyond providing exactly what they asked for, we prefer our consultant-forward approach, lending our expertise and guidance as technical professionals. We care about our clients’ projects and welcome the chance to provide consultation that may help save a client time, money, head or heartache . This is part of OUR WHY. We love this work because we are afforded the opportunity to surprise people with thoughts, opinions and solutions that would not come out of the typical (unremarkable) engineering firm. Be Involved Our Involvement in the community is a necessary component of trustworthiness. We were founded to be deeply involved in the engineering and surveying projects that have shaped the Central Coast and to help our community grow and flourish. We want to continue our positive legacy, so continuing to show up and be active with our time and money, without expectations, is how we remain core members of our community . We go to City Council meetings, Service District Board meetings, chamber meetings, fundraisers, school functions. We give shout-outs and recognize the community service organizations and other businesses that are doing important work and are giving back to the people in our cities. Be Remarkable Engineering firms are often seen as a boring black box; input a project and out comes a bunch of calculations and drawings. Definitely not Remarkable. However, we at GTA think that it’s important to be remarkable in every project and interaction . We will always seek to exceed expectations and find ways to be more efficient or provide a better solution to the challenges we face. We will hire you because you are, in your own way, quite remarkable as well. In Closing Do you want to work with a company that strives to be trustworthy, helpful, involved and remarkable? If you do, then consider joining the team at GTA. Please understand that we believe our employees are NOT our greatest asset; rather we believe that THE RIGHT EMPLOYEES are our greatest asset. We hire people who we believe will be the right person for a position, and we strive to demonstrate how very valuable our team members are to us. Wherever you choose to start the next chapter in your career story, please remember: The Universe is conspiring for your success. We’re here to help you make it happen. Let’s chat and explore the possibilities to grow together. GTAjobs@garingtaylor.com Or submit your resume and a brief note about your qualifications (and interest) below!

Delivering quality surveys quickly and reliably

AUG 13, 2020 - Thank for your interest in our current job offerings (found at https://garingtaylor.com/careers) . The point of this post is to answer some of the common questions we are receiving about the two jobs for which we are recruiting at this time. Those jobs are: Survey Party Chief; and Seasoned (or Sr.) Public Works Engineer. Survey Party Chief Question 1: How does this position align with your current strategy? Okay, for this job posting, I'll admit that nobody has asked this question. However, I think it is an important question to examine if you are a party chief or potential party chief seeking greener pastures. The reason for this job post is quite simple. Our Vice President of Land Surveying, Mr. James Cooper, PE, LS, has two reliable field hands who are smart and trustworthy, but not quite ready to do much field work on their own. As such, Mr. Cooper finds himself in the field quite a bit, which makes it difficult to perform all of the office work expected of a Vice President. In our strategic vision, the right fit for this job will help train our two up-and-coming surveyors, and handle some jobs on his or her own. This gives Mr. Cooper more time to implement the systems and further develop the business relationships that will enable our land surveying team to grow. Question 2: Am I required to be an LS, or even and LSIT? No, though it is preferred. Question 3: How much travel is expected? In the last five years, there has not been one job that required a surveyor to stay the night away from home. Our work is typically geographically limited to Paso Robles (45 minutes north), and Lompoc (1-hour south). The vast majority of our work is within a 20 minute drive of our Arroyo Grande office. Seasoned (or Sr.) Public Works Engineer Question 1: Is this person to work as a consultant to various public works departments around the Central Coastal California area? Yes and no. This is certainly one of the goals, though it may not be realized right from the get-go. When the Senior Public Works Engineer begins working at our firm, he or she will provide assistance to our private development team and assist our President’s efforts to get more agency work, to productively fill time when there is no public agency work to be done. At one time, our office was indeed THE public works department for several of the local agencies; most notably, Grover Beach. This person’s resume will be a key piece of getting our team shortlisted at more of the local agencies, which will eventually lead to enough agency work to necessitate a Public Works Division. Question 2: He or she will perform this role for GTA, as the cities themselves may not have this person internally, so GTA performs this function for them. Is this correct? Most of the Cities have either a City Engineer, Public Works Director and/or a Capital Improvements Project Manager. Those that don’t have the CIP Manager and several other supplemental engineering staff will need help managing consultants and contractors so they are not in the weeds all day every day. Several of these Cities and the Counties do not have all of these positions filled and need help with project management, as well as design services. In addition to Public Works Design services, we will be working on generating more of a Construction Management resume. GTA plans to grow a Construction Management arm within the next 12-18 months as well. Question 3: Do I understand correctly, from the Overview in the job description, that the main purpose of the role is business development? It is easy to see how the overview may lead to this interpretation. While business development is one of the primary functions of the position, it is certainly not the main purpose of the position . Managing and performing the work that we have comes first. Helping our President and VP of Engineering procure more Public Agency work comes second. Third would be helping our firm develop the 3-5 year business plan for the future of the Public Works Division. The overview is meant to paint the picture, in broad strokes, as to what will be expected of the right person for this position. We don’t get into the weeds with job duties in the overview. The person, their fit, their belief in our purpose and their energy to do excellent work in the community while building a division they can call their own is what truly matters. Well, there you have it. Do you have any additional questions after reading this post? Please feel free to ask in the comments or submit them in the form below!

As many of you are aware by now, Garing, Taylor & Associates, Inc. (GTA) has been pressing hard on business-development in recent months. You may have seen our ad on television, or one of our three radio commercials. It's highly likely you've seen our display ads and search ads as well. We've found it important, especially during these anxiety-filled days of quarantines and protests of all types throughout our region and through the country, to let our community know that we're still here. We are not merely, HERE, however - we are thinking beyond "the curve" in anticipation for what is next. How can we maintain our status as helpers, consultants and leaders in the community and be of better service as the "new normal" becomes established? We believe Central Coast residents want to develop their own properties to their maximum potential, that families want to bring loved ones closer to them with multi-generational housing, and that the region's long-standing practice of planning, designing and building low-density housing will experience a bit of a sea change in the coming years.

Accessory Dwelling Unit, Granny Unit, Casita, In-Law Quarters, Guest House - they go by many names. Today, we most commonly refer to these as ADUs. (Please note that everything in this article and the flier above is true for detached garage buildings and shops as well!) WHAT HAS CHANGED? We have received so many emails and phone calls about utilizing prefabricated ADU buildings, that we had to rethink the low end of our pricing! The REVISED package comes with a shiny new price tag and the same services as our $7,500 package except that OWNER is providing a prefabricated building, which has been inspected during fabrication and has its own approved architectural, plumbing and mechanical plans. That's it! There are so many reasons to build an ADU on your property, including: Providing a space for visiting friends and family to stay while visiting; Potential income opportunities; Providing a place for our parents or grandparents to live on our property; Generating additional parking, storage and/or handy-work space; Creating a separate office space for remote working opportunities; and Some people even move into their ADU and use the primary home for income! No matter your motive, there is more to building an ADU on your property than you might think. That's where we can help! Rather than shop for multiple consultants to take care of all the design and permitting required for your ADU, we are offering a complete package! In fact, we are presently working with various contractors to be able to provide a comprehensive design-build package! The REVISED Complete Package (Starts at $5,000 ) and Includes: Permitting and agency processing; Grading and utility design; and Utility coordination (as applicable). Give us a call or fill out the information below to schedule your free consultation today. We'll talk or visit via Zoom, and work out the path that best fits your needs! These consultations and conversations are free! Never pay a dime until we have a contract and agreed upon path to success!

The day that our new ownership group assumed the operations of Garing, Taylor and Associates, Inc. (GTA), Sam Taylor happened to visit the office. I hadn't seen Sam in quite some time, and there was something a bit surreal, yet reassuring, about speaking with him at our front counter that day. One of the key takeaways from that conversation is that his dad and Jim Garing's dad had worked hard to earn the trust of the community, and that Sam and Jim (2nd generation owners) had worked just as hard to build upon and maintain that trust. Sam wondered out loud as he turned to gaze at the sign outside our front door, "Do you intend to change the name?"

In San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara Counties, Garing, Taylor and Associates (GTA) knows that the name of the game is maximizing the use of your land. Our licensed civil engineers and land surveyors and skilled technical support staff are absolute experts when it comes to important matters such as: zoning setbacks easement issues existing slopes water and sewer connections grading, drainage and stormwater matters Each of the above are considered constraints that make it more difficult and confusing to develop on your land!

"Can I build another dwelling or even a garage on your property?" Whether you're seeking some income, via a Vacation Rental by Owner (VRBO), a place for your guests to stay, a spot for Mom, Dad or your younger brother in college to live in for a bit, there are a million reasons that millions of people ask themselves this very question. Let's examine the top 3 ways you may go about answering this question. We'll use the term ADU below to keep the contact more concise: Option 1: Ask a Pro The Planning and Design Strategy Team at Garing, Taylor & Associates, Inc. (GTA) is built for this kind of question - and we can get you an answer swiftly, with little cost. We offer an initial package to realtors and the general public that starts at only $500. *NOTE: if you're a realtor or agent, this is the only option that can strengthen your listings. Call or send us an email and we'll aide in your understanding of this topic.