Foundation

Patriot Design & Consulting (DBA for Tolman Engineering, Architecture & Surveying, PLLC) was founded in 2002 in Jamestown, NY, by US Army veteran Rex Tolman. The firm built it’s reputation on delivering quality design and performance for local municipalities and the Veterans Administration, working efficiently in partnership with many specialized firms and general contractors throughout the region.

Growth

In 2017, a merger expanded staff size and capabilities in land surveying, as the firm continued to develop building engineering services. With two office locations in Jamestown and Rochester, NY, PDC offers responsive project management and expertise to both new and repeat clients and partners across New York, Pennsylvania and the entire Northeast.

Meet the team

Working with a commitment to professional quality, each of PDC’s team leaders has been recognized for excellence in their fields. Whether awarded for design, efficiency, or green technology, PDC applies forward thinking and solid principle to every project.

Dan MacDonald

PLS | Managing Partner

Mr. MacDonald, a veteran of the United States Marine Corps, served our country as an artillery field surveyor and mapping specialist. Upon separating from service, he continued his education in this discipline and earned degrees in Civil Engineering Technology and Surveying Land Technology. Dan went on to teach as an adjunct professor at his alma mater, Alfred State College, the #4th ranked school nationally for studying surveying technology.* His contributions to the only ABET accredited degree program in NYS was to author the course curriculum for Land Development.
As a licensed Professional Land Surveyor in New York, he has acted as Principal Surveyor on almost 200-miles of steam survey for the Federal Emergency Management Agency and completed projects for multiple Federal and State governmental agencies.

Branden Farnsworth-Weinblatt

Partner | PE, Director of Building Engineering

As Director of Building Engineering, Mr. Farnsworth-Weinblatt represents the firm with industry specific training and certification in the specialization of HVAC and plumbing design. He has led several multidisciplinary project teams simultaneously on complex projects, through planning, design, and construction phases.  As a participant in these Design-Build project matrixes, Branden has consistently been recommended for his timely delivery and thorough communication in all stages of preparation and execution. His collaborative approach to design is crucial to the firm’s high approval and successive inclusion in high-value project proposals.
Branden’s portfolio also represents extensive experience in higher education and Energy Efficient/Sustainability projects, each of which present significant considerations to incorporate value engineering and are subject to ‘delivery at risk’ terms.

Rex Tolman

PE | Retired

Licensed as a Professional Civil Engineer in states up and down the eastern seaboard (NY, PA, VA, WV, NC, FL), Rex’s career has in fact covered even more ground- leading him to the Middle East, Africa, and Asia, where he contributed to many international water resource engineering and environmental projects while under the employ of a Top 500 Hydroelectric Engineering Firm. A veteran of the United States Army, Rex has continued to serve our local communities and his fellow military veterans with focused service on projects for the Department of Veterans Affairs. Additional project awards have been won as subcontractors supporting federal prime contractors on projects including environmental and water resources evaluations for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, site improvements evaluation for the Federal Building and Court at Hato Ray, Puerto Rico for the GSA.

Mark Vanderstouw

PLS | Principal Land Surveyor

Mark is an experienced land surveyor having been in the field for over 20 years. He is the Principal Land Surveyor at Patriot Design & Consulting. Mark received his Associates Degree in AAS surveying from Paul Smith’s College. Mark has experience in acquisition, ROW, topographic, and hydrographic mapping. Mark is a specialist in the field to finish process. Mark is proficient in Inroads and Carlson software. 

Francine Schwartz-Wallace

AIA | Principal Architect

Ms. Schwartz-Wallace has over 20 years of experience as a project manager and architect. She works closely with the client through schematic, design development, and the construction document phases. Her responsibilities include space planning, programming, creating conceptual architectural sketches and converting this information into construction documents and detailing.

 

Lorinne Johnson

AIA | Director, Architecture

Ms. Johnson is a registered architect, licensed in New York and Pennsylvania. She has a broad range of experience on many types of projects, including educational, institutional, governmental, commercial and residential.
Ms. Johnson has built her career in the field of architecture providing architectural expertise and excellence in all projects from early programming stage, to existing conditions investigations and documentation, schematic design, design development, construction documents and construction administration. She joined the firm of Tolman Engineering, Architecture & Survey (dba Patriot Design & Consulting) to build the architecture team in 2013 where she has built a strong reputation for excellence in the arena of historical preservation, façade rehabilitation and through her work with agencies such as NYSED, SHPO, OGS and the United States Department of Veterans Affairs.

Andy Straub

PE | Principal Electrical Engineer

Mr. Straub has over 15 years of experience as an engineer. He works closely with clients through schematic, design development, and the construction document phases. His responsibilities include the design of power, lighting, communications, electronic safety and security systems and converting this information into construction documents, details, and specifications. He is a licensed Electrical Engineer in the states of NY and ME. 

Allicia Chudyk

Mechanical Engineer

Mrs. Chudyk joined the PDC team in 2019. She graduated from the University at Buffalo with a Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering in May 2016. After graduating, Mrs. Chudyk worked for the General Motors Engine Plant as a Quality Engineer overseeing the production of Chevrolet engines. In 2017, Mrs. Chudyk joined the Design Build field at Popli Design Group. Over her time in the Design Build field, she has designed and modified HVAC, Plumbing, and Fire Protection systems for commercial and private facilities, such as Universities, Public Schools, Welcome Centers, Hospitals, and VA Campuses. In 2019, she joined PDC in hopes of gaining independence and responsibility of design projects. Mrs. Chudyk’s portfolio includes BIM modeling (CAD and Revit ), specification design, project design reports, onsite field investigation, and client and project coordination. Through networking and outreach programs, she hopes to encourage the young women of future generations to pursue the field of STEM with vigor.

Kevin Wendt

EIT | Mechanical Engineer

Mr. Wendt is experienced in HVAC, Plumbing, and Fire Protection Design for projects at the Buffalo VAMC, Upstate Medical University at Syracuse, and SUNY Buffalo. He is committed to developing professional, state-of-the-art engineering solutions for clients.

Nicholas Myers

EIT | Civil Engineer 

In his professional development with Patriot Design & Consulting, PLLC (PDC), Mr. Myers holds an Engineer in Training Certificate and serves as Civil Engineer on a multitude of current projects. After graduating in 2016 from the University at Buffalo with a B.S. in Civil Engineering, he joined the firm in January of 2017. Over the last four years, he has worked with local municipalities, the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), Environmental Facilities Corporation (EFC) and many privately held companies in designing improvements to facilities.  Mr. Myers experience ranges from stormwater management design, site grading and site utility design. He is a trusted and reliable source for critical asset management and inventory, construction inspection and MS4 inspections as well.

Erica Helmer-Allyn

Civil Designer 

Erica supports internal and external teams with more than 20 years’ experience working with architectural, civil, structural, and environmental engineering scopes. She has been selected to work with municipalities and public works agencies in both Pennsylvania and New York State, Department of Transportation, New York State Thruway Authority, United States Department of Veterans Affairs, numerous educational institutions, and private corporations.

Erica’s advanced program experiences includes the latest versions of AutoCAD, Civil 3D, and Micro Station. She works closely with diverse teams of engineers and clients, communicating clearly to deliver solutions as part of a sustainable planning process.

Mary Scherer

Marketing Manager 

Mrs. Scherer joined the PDC team in 2020 after a year of missionary service in Ohio. She graduated from Ithaca College with a Bachelor of Science in Integrated Marketing Communications in May 2019. Prior to her graduation, Mrs. Scherer completed numerous internships in the Public Relations and Marketing sectors ranging from experiences in nonprofit organizations to a leading agency specializing in analytics-driven, digital healthcare marketing and communications for pharmaceutical companies. Mrs. Scherer is motivated by the great people and work in the engineering and architectural industry and is passionate about bringing her experiences to this role while learning something new every day. At PDC, Mrs. Scherer helps the team establish and cultivate meaningful relationships with new and existing clients through teaming on various projects across a diverse scope of work in the architectural, engineering and land surveying sectors. She is responsible for all creation of marketing deliverables and organization of RFQs (Request for Qualifications) and RFPs (Request for Proposals). She is excited about furthering the development and growth of the company’s online presence through implementing, driving and assisting on all marketing initiatives. 

Want to join the team?

We are always looking for ambitious, enthusiastic and entrepreneurial people to join our team. If this sounds like you, drop us a line with what you can bring to our company that sets you apart from anyone else.

careers@patriot-dc.com