Featured News

2011 IASB/IASA/IASBO Joint Annual Conference

2011 IASB/IASA/IASBO Joint Annual Conference Nov 2011

Larson & Darby Group will be exhibiting at the 2011 IASB/IASA/IASBO Joint Annual Conference November 18 and 19 at the Hyatt Regency Chicago. Please stop by and visit us at booth #519. The IASB/IASA/IASBO Joint Annual Conference is one of the largest state gatherings of school board members, administrators, business officials, and staff of state education agencies. With a long history of projects for many of Illinois' leading school districts, we look forward to exhibiting our experience and expertise and hope to see you there!

News Items


	Nov 2011 Old federal courthouse to be used as Juvenile Justice Center It’s just a week after the new federal courthouse was officially dedicated, and Winnebago County is wasting little time preparing to take over the feds’ old digs. It has hired Larson & Darby to design a plan to remodel the old courthouse, 211 S. Court St., into the county’s new Juvenile Justice Center. (more)

Nov 2011
New CEO & President Named at Larson & Darby Group

Larson & Darby Group and its Board of Directors are pleased to announce that William J. Waldorf, SE, has been appointed Chief Executive Officer and Dan J. Roszkowski, AIA, NCARB, has been appointed President of the firm. Mr. Waldorf, both a licensed structural engineer and architect, joined Larson & Darby Group in 1984. A graduate of the University of Illinois, he most recently served as one of its Vice Presidents and as Secretary of the Board of Directors. Mr. Roszkowski, a licensed architect in over 30 states and also a graduate of the University of Illinois, has been with Larson & Darby Group since 1985. He most recently served as one of its Vice Presidents, the Director of Design, and the Vice President of the Board of Directors.

Jul 2011
Plans for a New Production Center at Jhoole are Underway
Designed pro-bono by Mike Olson of Rockford's Larson and Darby Group, the center will be as beautiful as it is functional. Fund-raising for the center is underway and we hope to start building by this time next year. The new facility will employ 500 women below the poverty line allowing them to send their children to school and achieve upward mobility for their families and communities. (more) (images)

Jul 2011
Will BIM Make CAD Irrelevant? At Larson & Darby, the Answer Is 'No'
Building information modeling (BIM) seemingly is ubiquitous in design firms today. Large, medium, and small firms are using it. Clients increasingly are asking for it. There's no doubt that its rendering and integration capabilities are unsurpassed, and its life-cycle planning potential as of yet isn't fully realized. So, then, with all that power, should we assume that traditional 2D programs such as AutoCAD eventually will go the way of the dodo? (more)


	Jul 2011 Rock River Water Reclamation wins ALA Merit Award The ALA held its 12th annual Design Awards and recognized excellent use of architecture. Among the many awards given out, Larson & Darby Group received a Merit Award in the Commercial category for its design of the Rock River Water Reclamation District’s administration facility. (more)

Jul 2011
LDG’s Rock River Water Reclamation District project featured in Illinois Municipal League Magazine
"We begin each project with a blank slate," says Dan Roszkowski, vice president of Larson & Darby Group. "This particular project presented a couple of new, interesting challenges, in that the facility not only had to be functional for staff and fulfill day-to-day operations, but also serve as an education tool for the community." (more)


	Jul 2011 Colonial Café in St. Charles, IL set to open "The challenge for us was to give the store a new identity without veering too far away from the familiar," said Tom Mahaffey, lead architect/designer on the project. "Colonial Cafes are an icon in the Tri-Cities business community, and enjoy a long and loyal relationship with its customers." (more)


	Jul 2011 Larson & Darby Group hires Jamie Mershon Jamie Mershon joined Larson & Darby Group as senior accountant. Mershon, a graduate of Rockford College, is a certified public accountant. She also is a part-time accounting instructor at Rockford College. (more)

Jul 2011
Woodward breaks ground on turbine testing laboratory
Almost two years to the day that Woodward Governor first announced a $50 million plan to expand its landmark plant, the company announced — once again — its plans to break ground on the project’s centerpiece. Woodward is investing $21.2 million in a 47,700-square-foot engine systems test facility, company officials announced Wednesday. The building will have 12 environmental testing cells and a vibration lab so engineers can simulate flight conditions. (more)


	Jul 2011 Larson & Darby Group wins AIA Northern Illinois Chapter "Award of Excellence" At a ceremony on June 19, 2010, Larson & Darby Group received four major awards from the Northern Illinois Chapter of the American Institute of Architects. Judged by a jury of distinguished peers, the awards are among the most prestigious offered by a chapter of the American Institute of Architects.


	Jul 2011 Kahler joins Larson & Darby Group Casey Kahler joined architectural, engineering and planning firm Larson & Darby Group as director of business development. He will direct the firm’s business development efforts for all three Illinois offices (Rockford, St. Charles and Peoria). (more)

Jul 2011
Larson & Darby part of design team for Mitsubishi plant in Georgia
The joint venture of H.J. High Construction Co. of Orlando and Batson-Cook Co. of Atlanta was recently awarded the contract to build what will be known as Mitsubishi Power Systems Savannah Machinery Works….Those firms, along with Hussey, Gay, Bell & DeYoung of Savannah and Larson & Darby Group of Rockford, Ill., will work together on the new plant, which will manufacture gas and steam turbines and refurbish rotors and other power generation equipment. (more)


	Jul 2011 LDG’s FHN project wins Midwest Construction Award of Merit FHN’s Burchard Family Healthcare Center in Freeport, Ill., received Midwest Construction magazine’s Best of 2008 Award of Merit in the small healthcare project category. The winners, including FHN, will be featured in the December issue of Midwest Construction and honored at an award luncheon that same month in Chicago.


	Jul 2011 Larson & Darby honored for Excellence in Architecture Larson & Darby Group, a full-service architectural, engineering, planning and technology firm with offices in Rockford, Peoria and St. Charles, received two American Institute of Architects awards for excellence in architecture. (more)

Jul 2011
LDG’s Rock River Water Reclamation District Project Featured in Illinois Municipal League Magazine
“We begin each project with a blank slate,” says Dan Roszkowski, vice president of Larson & Darby Group. “This particular project presented a couple of new, interesting challenges, in that the facility not only had to be functional for staff and fulfill day-to-day operations, but also serve as an education tool for the community.” (more)