Gambling in Las Vegas is a common affair, one that happens every second of every day. The idea of gambling on Las Vegas is one that some companies view with the same confidence a seasoned gambler would: that in Las Vegas it’s almost always a sure thing.
The thing that makes P&D Consultants, a professional planning and engineering consultant firm, different from most professional gamblers is that the company had the opportunity to capitalize on Las Vegas several years ago, but chose to wait for exactly the right time.
“Eight years ago, when the growth boom started in Las Vegas, we were interested in opening an office here but decided we were too busy with other projects at that time and put Nevada on the horizon,” said Cyd Brandvein, vice president of P&D Consultants. “When the opportunity came to bid for the job with the Clark County Building Department to review commercial and residential plans, we found that we had worked with several of the Clark County staff members over the years. We felt confident in coming to Las Vegas at this time.”
“We’re excited to be here,” said John Kinley, P&D president. “We chose to open an office in Southern Nevada because the area’s tremendous growth brings with it an inherent need for our services.”
P&D Consultants opened its Las Vegas office to provide consulting services primarily for state, county and city entities, as well as for local commercial and residential land developers. P&D is a part of a higher, employee-owned parent company comprised of eight different firms called AECOM, which stands for architects, engineers, construction, operations and management. Of the eight companies and 8,000 employees comprising AECOM, P&D Consultants is the smallest, employing roughly 200 workers in seven different offices in California, Texas, Illinois and Nevada.
Classified as a “small boutique firm” by Brandvein, P&D has four divisions, P&D Aviation, P&D Environmental, P&D Land Development and P&D Municipal Services. Each works together or separately depending on what each client needs.
P&D Aviation is internationally recognized for its airport planning, engineering and architectural practices. In Nevada, P&D Aviation is currently working on the Reno/Táhoe Airport to maximize space and plan what the terminal and concession areas will look like in the next 20 years. Prior to setting up an office in Las Vegas, P&D Aviation worked on McCarran International Airport in producing air space studies for both the Stratosphere Hotel and Casino and the New York-New York Hotel and Casino to determine alternate air travel routes for airlines during strong winds.
“P&D Aviation has produced more than 450 airport master plans for every name-brand airport throughout the world,” said Brandvein. ‘We are currently working with the restructuring of the El Torro military installation in Orange County, Calif., producing the master plan and conducting environmental studies for the impact this new facility will have on the community.”
The three remaining divisions of P&D are closely linked to each other. P&D Environmental handles land use planning, regulations, compliance issues with state and federal laws and preparing impact statements. Currently, P&D Environmental clients include the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California and the San Diego County Water Authority. P&D has been meeting with staff and officials locally to provide services for the Southern Nevada Water Authority and hopes to work with them on their upcoming environmental projects.
P&D Land Development is a planning and engineering division working with home and commercial builders. Currently working with Pulte Homes and Del Webb in Illinois and California, the firm is hoping to work with these same companies and others in the near future in Nevada Banks such as First American Bank of Texas and the First Bank of Texas have hired P&D to inspect local properties to make sure the money they have loaned local developers is actually being used to build commercial, residential or retail properties. P&D employs several certified building inspectors to provide these services for their clients.
P&D Municipal Services is involved in roadway and highway designs, traffic engineering and flood control systems. The Clark County Building Department has recently awarded the division the contract to review commercial and residential plans submitted for permit application.
Although a small firm, P&D executives see the company in Las Vegas for the long term, offering multi-discipline planning and engineering services to clients throughout the state and region. P&D officials pride themselves in listening closely to what their clients and community need and helping to make the areas they reside in better places to live in through smart planning. Brandvein hopes to get involved with all areas of planning, development and redevelopment in Las Vegas and expects that the company’s years of expertise throughout the fastest growing communities in the nation will be a benefit to the valley.
