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Overview

Pashek + MTR is an award-winning landscape architecture and community planning studio. Our mission is to improve the environment and the communities we serve by connecting people with the natural world, and each other, through sustainable and equitable planning and design practices.

We present our clients with an expansive skill set that includes play spaces, parks and recreation, community planning, sustainable site design, and public and private gardens. We are a small business and a woman-owned business.

Approach

Our clients can expect a collaborative approach based on communication, respect, knowledge and creativity.

Communication

  • We listen attentively and follow through conscientiously to create exceptional places.
  • We have a reputation for responsiveness and client service.
  • We use a unique facilitation process that helps build consensus and engage stakeholders.
  • Our Implementable Comprehensive Planning process shifts the emphasis from data gathering to public engagement, developing practical solutions for real community issues.

Respect

  • Our practice is built on respect for our clients, for the communities in which we work, for the natural and built environment, and for the people who use the spaces we plan and design.
  • We strive to create positive change through our work.
  • We apply principles of sustainability, resilience, equity, and wellness in all that we do.
  • Our deep commitment to improving the world around us enables us to create exceptional places that connect people with the natural world and with each other.

Knowledge

  • Every project is different and requires us to understand the history, context, environment, and people involved.
  • We draw on decades of experience to provide our clients with expert advice.
  • With strategic thinking and a team of talented professionals, we provide our clients with the tools needed to achieve their vision.

Creativity

  • We tailor the specific steps of the design process to each client’s needs.
  • We push ourselves to explore all options and learn new techniques and technologies in order to cultivate creative design solutions.
  • We use our graphics toolbox to help our clients envision positive change.

Sustainability

Our philosophy of sustainable design is to conserve resources, promote human well-being, design for durability and efficiency and preserve and restore natural systems. This philosophy informs our design work and our daily lives. Our sustainable design strengths include:
  • Design – Studies show that contact with natural environments measurably improves people’s health and well-being. Our approach is human-centered, connecting people with nature and with each other. Through elements such as native plantings, natural materials, and artful rainwater design, we create beautiful outdoor spaces that promote wellness and improve the environment.
  • Experience – Our years of experience successfully implementing sustainable site design strategies helps us choose the best solutions for each project. We offer particular expertise in the design of rain gardens, green roofs, porous paving, native plants and habitat gardens, nature based play, and bicycle and pedestrian transportation. We approach each project with low-impact solutions in mind, such as preserving existing trees and using sustainably sourced materials.
  • Innovation – Our staff stays up to date with new technologies to assist clients with meeting or exceeding regulatory requirements, achieving green building certification, and demonstrating environmental best practices. Our staff have sustainable design credentials including LEED Accredited Professional, LEED Green Associate, and SITES Accredited Professionals.
  • Practice – We practice what we preach. We have taken steps to reduce the environmental impact of our office and have achieved top honors in the Pittsburgh Green Workplace Challenge. Implementing projects such as our office green roof, our fleet of shared office bikes, office energy efficiency projects, and ZIP Gold Certification for waste reduction, have given us hands on experience with some of the sustainable site design techniques we offer our clients.
  • Outreach – Our staff give back to our community with volunteer work that ranges from picking up trash, planting trees, and constructing trails to serving on the boards of non-profit and municipal conservation organizations.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Pashek+MTR, Ltd. is committed to fostering, cultivating and preserving a culture of diversity, equity, and inclusion.  We recognize that diversity is a driver of creativity and innovation in our practice that helps us serve our clients and communities better.  By creating a diverse and inclusive workplace we can better attract and retain talented professionals, contributing to our company’s success.
PMTR volunteer day

Pashek + MTR Workforce Diversity Policy

Pashek+MTR, Ltd. is committed to fostering, cultivating and preserving a culture of diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Our human capital is the most valuable asset we have. The collective sum of the individual differences, life experiences, knowledge, inventiveness, innovation, self-expression, unique capabilities and talent that our employees invest in their work represents a significant part of not only our culture, but our reputation and company’s achievement as well.  As creative professionals, we draw inspiration and insights from exposure to a wide variety of ideas and lived experiences.

We embrace and encourage our employees’ differences in age, color, disability, ethnicity, family or marital status, gender identity or expression, language, national origin, physical and mental ability, political affiliation, race, religion, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, veteran status, and other characteristics that make our employees unique.

Pashek + MTR Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Vision

  • Pashek+MTR is an inclusive and welcoming environment.
  • We are mindful of issues of inclusion, equity and representation in our design and planning work.
  • We contribute to building a diverse, equitable and inclusive design profession.

Capabilities

Pashek + MTR presents our clients with an expansive skill set and expertise in all phases of project development, from master planning to fundraising and construction documentation. Our network of professional contacts allows us to custom build a team of experts to suit each specific project.

We serve many different types of clients and markets:

  • Non Profit Organizations
  • Public Gardens
  • Municipalities
  • State and Federal Government Agencies
  • Health Care and Educational Institutions

Our landscape architecture and site design practice spans many different project types:

  • Botanical Gardens and Arboreta
  • Children’s Gardens
  • Cemetery Design
  • Demonstration Gardens
  • Historic Landscapes
  • Housing Communities
  • Nature Centers
  • Play Spaces
  • Private Gardens
  • Public Garden Planning
  • Streetscapes
  • Therapeutic & Sensory Gardens
  • Urban Spaces & Civic Design
  • Water Features

Our parks and recreation studio has extensive experience, including:

  • Athletic Fields
  • Comprehensive Park, Recreation and Open Space Plans
  • Park and Recreation Planning and Design
  • Playgrounds
  • Pool Feasibility Studies
  • Recreation Facilities
  • Splash Pad and Spray Parks
  • Trail Planning and Design
  • Dog Parks

Planning is one of our specialties:

  • Active Transportation Plans
  • Campus & Institutional Planning
  • Charette Facilitation
  • Community Engagement
  • Corridor, Elm Street and Main Street Planning and Design
  • Implementable Comprehensive Planning
  • Land Planning
  • Land and Water Trail Studies
  • Zoning Audits
  • Zoning Ordinance Updates
  • Targeted Regulatory Amendments
  • Transit-Oriented Community Design
  • Complete Streets
  • Resilience Planning

Stewardship and sustainability inform our work:

  • Artful Rainwater Design
  • Ecological Restoration
  • Edible Landscapes
  • Green Infrastructure
  • Green Roofs
  • Green Walls
  • LEED & Sustainable SITES
  • Native Plants & Habitat Gardens
  • Nature Based Play
  • Permaculture Design
  • Stormwater Management
  • Sustainable Materials
  • Tree Preservation
  • Waste Reduction

We provide our clients with expert tools to aid in communicating and implementing their vision:

  • 3D Rendering
  • Bidding & Phasing Strategies
  • Cost Estimating
  • Feasibility Studies
  • Fundraising Materials
  • GIS Mapping
  • Grant Writing
  • Graphic Reports and Presentations
  • Maintenance Plans
  • Photosimulations

Recognition

Ford Nature Center | AIA Cleveland 2023 Compatible Addition to an Historic Structure Award

Wightman Park | PRPS 2023 Green and Sustainable Parks Award

Fourmile Creek Trail at Wintergreen Gorge | APA-PA 2022 Great Places in PA – Great Greenway/Trail Category

Wightman Park | PA/DE ASLA 2022 Merit Award

Smith Environmental Courtyard Cleveland Museum of Natural History | PA/DE ASLA 2022 Merit Award

NASD Franklin Elementary School Additions and Alterations |
Pittsburgh Chapter of the American Institute of Architects, People’s Choice Award, 2021

Allegheny Commons Northeast Fountain |
Preservation Pennsylvania Special Focus Award – Preservation Planning, 2020
APA PA Great Places Award , 2020
Pittsburgh ULI Placemaking Awards for Excellence, 2019

Mario Lemieux Center for Blood Cancers 4th Floor Terrace Garden | PA/DE ASLA 2018 Merit Award

Township of Pine Performance Workbook | PA APA 2017 Certificate of Merit, Daniel Burnham Award

The Child Care Center at Hort Woods | PA/DE ASLA 2017 Merit Award

Deadman’s Hollow Conservation Area | Management Plan 2016 Governor’s Award for Environmental Excellence

The Orchid Conservatory at Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden | PA/DE ASLA 2014 Honor Award

David L. Lawrence Convention Center Green Roof | PA/DE ASLA 2014 Honor Award

Mario Lemieux Center for Blood Cancers 4th Floor Terrace Garden | Center for Health Design and The Society for the Advancement of Gerontological Environments 2013 Landscape Architecture Awards for Healthcare Environments, Silver Winner – Acute Care

Chautauqua County Greenway Plan | Upstate New York APA 2013 Award for Planning Excellence in Comprehensive Planning

Chautauqua County Greenway Plan | Western New York Section APA 2013 Outstanding Planning Award

The Dam Park at Austin: Master Plan and Economic Development Strategies | Pennsylvania Chapter APA 2012 Planning Excellence Best Practice Award

Carmalt, Weil, Roosevelt School Gardens | Philadelphia Horticultural Society 2012 Community Greening Award

Pioneer Education Center Sensory Garden, West Liberty Elementary School Garden | Philadelphia Horticultural Society 2011 Community Greening Award

H.O. Smith Botanic Gardens in the Arboretum at Penn State | PA/DE ASLA 2011 Honor Award

Missouri Botanical Garden | PA/DE ASLA 2010 Presidential Award

National Cemetery of the Alleghenies | International Masonry Institute 2009 Western Pennsylvania Golden Trowel Award

Sinquefield Lake | PA/DE ASLA 2009 Honor Award, Residential Design

H.O Smith Botanic Gardens | Central PA ABC 2009 Excellence in Construction Award

Expanding the Cultural District: An Interactive, Intergenerational, Cultural Arts Park | Cleveland Competition 2008 Notable Award

Phipps Conservatory Welcome Center | City of Pittsburgh 2006 Historic Preservation Award, with IKM Architects

A Plan for Our Community: City of Greensburg, Hempfield Township, South Greensburg Borough, and Southwest Greensburg Borough Multi-Municipal Comprehensive Plan | 2006 Governor’s Award for Local Government Excellence for Innovative Planning and Sound Land Use Practices

Backyard Playspace at Osborne Elementary | PA/DE ASLA 2005 Award of Merit

A Peaceful Earth Master Plan for Quay Square | PA/DE ASLA 2005 People’s Choice Award

Ford City Riverfront Park and Trail Master Plan | Pennsylvania APA 2005 Outstanding Planning Award

The Barn at Fallingwater | AIA Pittsburgh Design Awards 2005 Silver Medal and Green Design Citation, with Bohlin Cywinski Jackson

Pittsburgh Botanic Garden | AIA Pittsburgh Design Awards, Landscape Architecture Open Plan 2004 Certificate of Merit

Washington State Residence | AIA Pittsburgh Design Awards, Landscape Architectural Category 2004 Honor Award

Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden | Brick Industry Association 2004 Brick Paving Design Award

Fayette Forward: Fayette County | Strategic Plan | Pennsylvania APA 2004 Outstanding Planning Award for Implementation

A Vision for the Brownsville to Uniontown Mon/Fayette Corridor Land Use and Economic Development Analysis | Pennsylvania APA 2004 Outstanding Planning Award for a Plan

A Plan for Our Community: City of Greensburg, Hempfield Township, South Greensburg Borough, and Southwest Greensburg Borough Multi-Municipal Comprehensive Plan | Smart Growth Partnership of Westmoreland County 2004 Municipal Planning Project Award

Brodhead, McMichael and Pocono Creeks Greenways Plan | PA/DE ASLA 2003 Outstanding Professional Achievement Award

Creating Neighborhoods, Naturally: A Design Vision for the City of Altoona KOEZ Sites | PA/DE ASLA 2003 People’s Choice Award

Ewing and Muriel Kauffman Memorial Garden | PA/DE ASLA 2003 Merit Award

Upper Beaver Valley Comprehensive Plan | 2002 Governor’s Award for Innovative Planning and Sound Land Use Practices

Flags Across America, Beaver County Flag Plaza | PA/DE ASLA 2002 Merit Award for Outstanding Professional Design

Beaver Borough Riverfront Park, Master Site Development Plan | PA/DE ASLA 2001 Merit Award for Design Excellence

Chicago Botanic Garden Master Plan | AIA Pittsburgh Design Awards 2001 Landscape Architecture Timeless Award, Certificate of Merit

The Buehler Enabling Garden, Chicago Botanic Garden | AIA Pittsburgh Design Awards 2001 Landscape Architecture Award, Certificate of Merit | American Association of Museums 2000 Accessibility Award

Frick Park Environmental Playground
PA/DE ASLA 2000 People’s Choice Award

Riverview Park Playground
PA/DE ASLA 2000 Design/Built Award

Hermitage Grade School/Middle School Master Plan
Three Rivers Environmental Council Award 2000 Finalist

ANS Research Facility
PA/DE ASLA 1993 Certificate of Recognition

Pittsburgh Zoo Tropical Rain Forest
Florida Nurserymen & Growers Association 1991 Award of Excellence

Pittsburgh Zoo Tropical Rain Forest Interior Plant Design
Associated Landscape Contractors of America 1991 Environmental Improvement Grand Award

Pittsburgh Zoo Concessions Plaza
National Concrete Masonry Association 1986 Award of Excellence