Welcome About Us
With 30 plus years of experience in the architectural and engineering services field, JPR is able to offer clients a very tailored approach to their projects.
For over thirty years, JPR has developed a well respected reputation as a consulting firm that is always willing to go the extra mile to exceed its’ client’s expectations. Ever changing, JPR has developed the staff and experience needed to offer a full selection of professional services to a broad spectrum of clients.
From pre-planning to project completion, we tailor our approach accord-
ing to the specifics of the project at hand. This emphasis on superior client service sets us apart from our competitors and has enabled JPR to experience continuous growth during the company history. We are also fortunate to have both the founding and second generations of leadership still actively involved in the day to day operation of the firm, and have implemented plans and strategies to ensure that JPR continues to grow and adapt along-side our clients for years
Visit our website to learn more www.jpr1source.com.com
and decades to come.
“We’re a service business, focused on the needs of our clients. Our goal is to be their single source for feasible solutions to what are often complex challenges.”
Kenneth Jones Sr.
President/Principal Officer
The JPR team is highly experienced in all aspects of building and site design. Design, planning, utility infrastructure analysis, and public input meetings, our staff has the necessary experience to make your project a reality.
Our Company
Our full range of services, collaborative approach, and more than 30 years of experience allow us to deliver the innovative, sustainable solutions your project needs.
Whether it’s the construction of a new community center or the renovation of a ballpark, we believe that the work we do together has the potential to make a big impact on your community for years-or decades-to come. That’s why we believe project success goes beyond impeccable design, creative solutions, and adherence to timelines and budgets. To the team at JPR, the measure of success includes sustainability, customer satisfaction, community impact, and ongoing performance.
Mission
Provide superior client service, complete your project on time, and on budget, exceeding your expectations. No sales staff, just experienced project managers taking care of you.
Dedication
Our dedicated staff is ready to work for you. With our extensive project experience and extremely qualified team we are able to overcome any challenge your project might have.
Our Team
Our highly experienced team is remarkably qualified to perform the services needed for your project. Our dedicated staff is ready to work for you.
Delivering a tailored solution to our clients’ complex problems is what JPR has focused on for more than 30 years. Exceptional customer service is what drives us and we will always go the extra mile to ensure our clients achieve the best results for their projects. This stems from a culture of ownership and resourcefulness that
echos throughout the company. With more than 52 team members on staff, JPR’s multidisciplinary approach establishes us as leading experts in many areas. These areas include but are not limited to; Architecture, Engineering, Landscape Architecture, Planning, GIS, Environmental, Surveying, Utility Management, Renwable Energy, Wastewater and many more areas. Our team is
comprised of accomplished professionals who use their creativity and ingenuity to craft tailored solutions that often times meets or exceeds our clients expectations. If you are looking for this type of attention and solution, look no further. Contact JPR to see how we can work together.
Our Services
Each project has its own unique strengths and challenges, which often change throughout different phases. We are equipped with the knowledge and ability to deliver a broad cross-section of services to meet your changing needs.
Landscape Architecture Engineering Architecture
From concept through details, our services are tailored to each project with a unique approach to form, function and cost.
JPR has extensive experience in providing quality complex civil, structural, mechanical and municipal systems engineering services.
The nationwide experience of our staff helps provide creative yet sound, innovative, yet realistic solutions for your community planning needs.
Project success begins with a partner who is devoted to making your vision come to life. We build lasting partnerships and projects by: Working with you to define your goals. Building a comprehensive skilled team, tailored to your project. Delivering innovative, sustainable solutions that allow your project and your community to thrive.
From franchise services, sports centers, & institutional structures to steel buildings & historic renovations, our architectural staff is prepared to provide complete & cost effective planning & implementation.
GIS Environmental
This department can help with utility inventory, highway maintenance, transportation, survey data, parks and recreation, and much more.
Renewable Energy Land Surveying
From point-of-use wind solutions to bio-mass generation, JPR is continuously developing ways for our clients to benefit from the advancements.
From boundary surveys to topographic surveys, from mortgage surveys to right-of-way surveys, the firm’s survey history is one of the most impressive in the market.
This department offers services such as environmental engineering, geotechnical engineering, and wetland habitat preservation and mitigation strategies.
Our Planning Experience
Planning Design Management
Comprehensive planning requires a unique set of knowledge, skills and experiences. At JPR our team has been honing those skills and is ready to overcome your challenges. We plan at the beginning to save time later. A good plan means that you don’t have to worry about all of the small details. It sets out the processes that everyone is expected to follow so it avoids a lot of headaches later.
You can’t find a solution until you have a clear idea of what the need is. We use the design process to solve these problems. In this phases we define the steps needed to tackle each project and put our plan into operation.
An idea can only become a reality once it is broken down into organized, actionable elements within a timeline. We mangage this process from the begining. This ensures that your project will stay on time and on budget.
Jones Petrie Rafinski provides professional, accredited planning services to numerous municipal clients and private developers. Our versatility enables us to cover a wide range of applications from public facilitation to detailed implementation strategies.
• Because we are a multi-faceted firm, we are able to provide our clients with the needed expertise on all levels of planning and development.
• We are experts in outreach and facilitation using the latest methods and media.
• We believe in realistic implementation strategies and partnerships that result in cost effective plans and buildable projects for our clients and the communities we serve
• We design our planning documents to be utilized, be easy to read, and be completely functional.
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Provides a brief history of your community, a description of its regional setting, an inventory of its natural features, an analysis of the community’s issues and liabilities, a study of its land use patterns, and an overview of its socioeconomic trends and projections.
A thorough understanding of the existing conditions will ensure plan recommendations are informed and substantiated.
This is based on stakeholder input, key person interviews, and public participation. Engaging the community is a crucial part of the planning process. This portion of the plan will assimilate your concerns and comments into one cohesive vision that will drive the plan’s focus.
This critical process will ensure that the resulting plan is a vision by the community for the community.
• Any viable plan will answer three important questions: Who are we? What do we want? and What can we do?
• The true strength and value of any planning document is in its ability to bring about practical and healthy change.
• All successful planning documents require an implementation strategy that is detailed, achievable, and realistic that answers the most important question, How can we do it?
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This is a series of individual component plans such as Housing, Streetscape Design, Transportation, Economic Development, and Infrastructure. Our expert staff will develop a series of goals and recommendations that will change your visions into realities.
Based on existing conditions and future trends, these policies will reinforce the vision defined by your community.
Outlines various long and short range detailed implementation strategies. A key element to any healthy and viable plan is in its ability to produce tangible results. This component of the plan will identify tasks, responsibilities, budgets, and partnerships.
This chapter will be a valuable reference for planners, city officials, and community stakeholders alike and will provide a road map for project implementation.
Focused on the community engagement methodology.
Community involvement is the power to bring positive, measurable change to the communities in which you operate. JPR regards community involvement as a critical segment of any project. Our team members begin addressing the community as early as possible in order to help garner public support for your project. The community is a valuable resource and it is important to explain the improvements that are being proposed and how they will benefit them. In order to this, JPR uses a focused community engagement methodology. We utilize a number of tools to help us engage with the public. We have had great success by using these tools and methodology to gain the support of the community.
KEYLEADERINTERVIEWS
Case Studies
This is our passion. This is what we do. We work with a diverse range of clients to create outcomes that will influence communities for generations.
Focused on Results
JPR’s diverse background in public and private develoment, redevelopment and revitalization has allowed us to develop an action-centric focus. Planning for the sake of planning is not in our DNA. We believe that the results early in implementation generates a demand driven process. The JPR process promotes activation.
The following pages outline our project experience and showcase some of our more notable community planning projects.
Elkhart 2040 Business Diversification Plan
Beginning in 2019, JPR, in conjunction with Thomas P. Miller, and Insight Strategic Concepts, worked with the City of Elkhart to assess Elkhart’s economic diversity and identify constraints on future economic development in the city.
The Elkhart community has challenges related to labor force deficits (9000 unfilled positions) as well as business segement difersification.
Elkhart Comprehensive Plan 2015
The Elkhart 2040 Diversification Plan approach was not a study or traditional planning effort. The goal of the project was to design and implement a multifaceted redevelopment and economic diversification initiative that produces short and long-term outcomes. Rather than conducting studies and plans that produce individual silos, this process looked to connect the relevant economic and community development opportunities together.
The Phase I Economic Diversification Plan included research that identified that while Elkhart’s Base Industries contribute over $14 Billion in statewide economic activity, they are also more volatile than the rest of the state’s economy. In addition, this volatility means that Elkhart struggles with periods of extremely high and extremely low unemployment rates, making it a challenge for businesses to grow over time. Factors such as industrial infrastructure, housing availability, automation, and talent development pose challenges for Elkhart’s longterm stability.
Elkhart Comprehensive Plan Update 2015
The Phase II Economic Diversification Program created focused economicbased outcomes by organizing “action teams” for each opportunity area. Each action team engaged in focused analysis of the challenges and the opportunities for their respective topic, generated innovative and effective responses which effectively addressed the challenges identified, and activated the community around the planning and development recommendations that were identified.
Three key economic development initiatives that Phase II focused on included: Industry diversification that identifies target industries and a road map for attracting and growing business; Workforce and talent
development that builds career pathways for Elkhart’s workforce; and Land Use & Infrastructure – Industrial Park redevelopment and infrastructure upgrade programs.
JPR was responsible for the Land Use & Infrastructure initiative that included facilitating the action team meetings that included business leaders, realtors, and City Staff. JPR conducted an in-depth analysis of the two main
industrial and manufacturing clusters conditions, reviewed existing and future land uses, identified, and evaluated existing public and private utility infrastructure, and reviewed existing and future modes of transportation and their routes. Based on the information and data collected JPR then analyzed the current Development and Business Incentive Overlay Areas, prepared Redevelopment and Development Strategies, and created a detailed
Redevelopment Support Plan. Finally, the JPR team prepared the Redevelopment Support Plan Funding Strategies and a detailed Business Activation Plan to ensure that the goals and objectives developed for the Elkhart 2040 Diversification Plan are implemented in a logical and realistic manner. The Plan includes a “Year One” activation plan that weill promote demand driven early success.
Elkhart River District Master Plan
Jones Petrie Rafinski, in association with Jeff Speck, Stantec, Insight Strategic Concepts, Zimmerman Volk Associates, PlanningNext, and Development Concepts Inc., worked with the City of Elkhart and Community Foundation of Elkhart County to develop the Elkhart River District Vision and Implementation Plans. The City’s community vision started with developing a thriving urban, mixed-use, walkable community that is a downtown destination emphasizing the rivers and recreational amenities.
In April 2017, the River District planning team, along with the input of 25 private and public stakeholders, presented to the community a River District revitalization vision plan. Immediately, Mayor Neese and the City Council commissioned the
River District Implementation Team (RDIT) of 17 publicprivate members to complete the research, master design, acquisitions, development, and construction with an approved city investment of $30 million in public infrastructure and amenities. The River District construction immediately ensued building four anchor projects including: a 200unit apartment complex, state-of-the-art Elkhart Health and Aquatics center, a Jackson Boulevard signature streetscape, and a mixeduse project including a Martin’s Supermarket and over 170 residential units.
The active private and public investments now exceed $170 million. Fifty percent of the 105-acre River District will be completed by 2022 and an additional $150 million of investment is anticipated to follow.
RDIT members represent all sectors of the community: city staff, local and national professional consultants, community and business leaders, investors, developers, and current property owners who regularly collaborate on all aspects of the plan.
Additional current projects underway in the district include: access to downtown waterways, a contiguous Riverwalk path around the district, renewed park and town green, inviting and charming tree-lined walkable streets and boulevards, on-street parking, buried utilities and a vibrant community of mixed-use activities ready for everyday social engagement.
Chris Chockley,
Elkhart, Indiana
Walkerton Indiana Redevelopment Master
Jones Petrie Rafinski, in association with Sturtz Public Management worked with the Town of Walkerton to develop the Downtown Redevelopment Master Plan.
The Redevelopment Plan provides the framework for creating a unique and solid foundation for downtown revitalization and growth. The Town’s major strengths and weaknesses were analyzed and considered as part of the overall plan.
The characteristics of this master plan were developed through deliberate conversations between the residents of Walkerton, area stakeholders, and the Planning Committee.
The planning process identifies four key components including:
Who are we?
What do we want?
What can we do?
How can we do it?
The plan proposes a set of principles and recommendations that will build on the cooperation and leadership developed within the planning process. Recommendations regarding policy, market, social and cultural initiatives are included as well as physical improvements such as streetscape and development opportunities. The implementation process identifies recommended steps toward development, funding strategies, and phasing.
A market analysis was performed with a focus of retail and economic development. These findings were used by the planning team to inform the process and help develop recommendations and strategies.
Comprehensive Plan: The rerouting of U.S. Highway 31 one mile east of Town prompted the community to pursue the development of a Comprehensive Plan. The Town obtained a Planning Grant through the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs. This grant enabled the Town to address the impacts the relocation will have as well addressing many other community goals.
A significant portion of the plan was dedicated to contending with the new location of U.S. Highway 31. Although the new interchange was out of their jurisdiction, the Town wanted to maintain some level of control over its development. Jones Petrie Rafinski (JPR) facilitated an inter-local agreement between the St. Joseph County Area Plan Commission and the Town. This included the County’s adoption of a future land use map that extended beyond the Town’s existing limits, the ability of the Town to review improvements that occur within the County but fall outside of the Town’s boundaries, and a mutual agreement between the County’s Redevelopment Commission and the Town’s for the creation and management of a newly proposed multijurisdictional TIF district.
Streetscape: The relocation of U.S. Highway 31 left a large state highway bisecting the downtown. In 2009, Jones Petrie Rafinski assisted the Town of Lakeville with design and beautification plans for the downtown portion of the newly down-graded Michigan St./U.S. Highway 31. We worked closely with both the Town Council and the Redevelopment Commission to determine what the downtown meant to the community and how it should be depicted in the streetscape design.
This heavily themed design incorporated symbolic elements that were related to the natural wetlands and lakes surrounding the Town and included ornamental street trees, street lighting, decorative crosswalks, plaza spaces, and bike lanes.
Funding was obtained through a Group IV grant. JPR provided all necessary services, including facilitating multiple meetings, to ensure that the grant was successfully submitted and awarded.
A market analysis was performed with a focus of retail and economic development. These findings were used by the planning team to inform the process and help develop recommendations and strategies.
Lakeville, Indiana
Kendallville Downtown
Revitalization Plan Decatur Comprehensive Plan
The City of Kendallville actively pursues options to transform their downtown corridor to enhance its overall economic vitality. One of the first phases is to improve the streetscape within the three blocks of their historic downtown core. The streetscape had not been updated since 1987 and needed significant improvements. This streetscape project is expected to boost the downtown appeal and connect with other efforts to make downtown more attractive.
Due to the size and complexity of this project, the City of Kendallville commissioned JPR to assist in the development of a Streetscape Master Plan. The JPR team worked closely with the City’s Mayor and City Staff and facilitated public workshops to create the Downtown Kendallville Streetscape Master Plan. After preparing the plan and cost estimates JPR worked with the City’s grant writer to submit the project to the Indiana Department of Office of Community and Rural Affairs for possible funding. In 2018, Kendallville was one of three communities to be awarded funding through the Main Street Revitalization Program.
The City’s $1.1 million streetscape project will transform the downtown corridor between Rush
Street and the railroad tracks. A majority of the project will include tearing out and fully replacing sidewalks and curbs. As part of the project, Kendallville will also upgrade its downtown electrical capacity for festivals and events as well as install decorative lighting, planters, benches and other features.
According to the Mayor of Kendallville “The goal of making our downtown a destination point has many facets and the new and improved streetscape will be an essential element of this. Building improvements through façade grants, the ever-growing number of family-friendly downtown activities, the parklet experience, ‘The Alley’ cultural space renovation, as well a planned pocket park near City Hall will all serve to breathe new life into our beloved historical downtown.”
JPR, upon the award of the grant, continued to work with the City to prepare the necessary construction documents and specifications, facilitated additional public meetings, met with the downtown business owners to present the final plans, assisted with the bidding process, vetted bidding contractors and provided Construction Observation services.
The City of Decatur found itself dealing with many of the same issues as other small communities. They desired to develop a new Comprehensive Plan that would be used as a tool to attract new business, to retain existing business and population, to assist in a logical plan for redevelopment, and to find ways in which to utilize their natural resources.
The Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs assisted the City in obtaining a Planning Grant. Utilizing tools from our arsenal of public input techniques, Jones Petrie Rafinski was successful in obtaining a high percentage of community participation which translated into a plan that was readily accepted by the City as well as its residents.
The plan included detailed recommendations for their downtown and waterfront districts, the creation of a Redevelopment Commission, the formation of a TIF District, an annexation plan, and many other communityfocused strategies.
Kendallville, Indiana
Decatur, Indiana
Auburn Streetscape
The proposed streetscape revitalization project for the City of Auburn is located in the heart of the downtown area. It includes 2-blocks of 6th Street, from Cedar to Jackson Streets and 2-blocks of Main Street from 7th to 5th Street. The focus of these improvements was to provide the community with pedestrian friendly streetscape environments, which in turn will increase public awareness and interest in adjoining businesses.
The proposed street corridor improvements included new sidewalk pavement utilizing a combination of concrete and colorized pavers. The new pavement and pedestrian friendly design utilized the pavers to break up the space with patterns and banding along the sidewalk and crosswalk within the intersection of 6th and Main Street. New vintage style “pedestrianscale” street lights will replace the existing “cobra-head” lights currently mounted on wooden utility poles. The new light poles will offer brackets for festival banners and electrical outlets for holiday decorations. Sign poles and sign frames will be of an ornamental design to fit the overall theme of the design. New benches, bike racks, and trash receptacles will be installed.
Screened enclosures will be included for several trash dumpsters located along 6th Street. Curbed planter islands for street trees and decorative plantings will be installed. The street tree varieties were carefully selected and placed within the sidewalk-zone to allow for uninterrupted sightlines for motorists and visibility of store fronts.
JPR worked with the City of Auburn to create a streetscape design that was utilized to obtain a $500,000 grant from the Indiana Community and Rural Affairs (OCRA) for streetscape projects.
New Haven Community Center
Nearly three decades of studies and investigation by the Park Board clearly demonstrated the desire of residents to have a facility that would provide for comprehensive and diversified programming year-round. New Haven made the first step towards accomplishing this goal by renovating an existing building to develop their Community Center which now provides the community with a variety of amenities and programming.
This next phase of the project intends to develop the property surrounding the Community Center to build on the success of the Community Center thus far and to be a grand example of the New Haven Parks and Recreation’s Vision: “Building the community and increasing
the quality of life through people, parks, and programs.” The proposed improvements will provide a diverse range of amenities that offer recreational opportunities for all ages that will assist in strengthening the community and enhance the quality of life for all of those in the community. The improvements include a multifunctional outdoor plaza, inclusive playground, accessible splash pad, restroom and storage building, four pickleball courts, basketball court, open space, a trail connection and site lighting improvements. As this project becomes the hub of New Haven, the City already anticipates the future expansion of this project which will be easily achievable due to the thoughtful and forward-thinking design and layout of each
space. The limits of where this project could go are unknown, but preparations have already been made for future expansion of the Community Center to incorporate a recreational center that could double the size of the existing facility, the inclusion of a synthetic ice rink on the pickleball courts with adjacent concession space, open space for future programmed spaces and the development of a safer vehicular entrance to the property.
The City of New Haven is thrilled to begin this next step in expanding its Community Center to better fit the community’s needs and can’t wait to see what the future holds.
$1 Million City of Auburn 260.925.6455
Andrew Cunningham, RLA, ASLA
New Haven, Indiana
Northwest Gateway Planning Study
Jones Petrie Rafinski was hired as part of a team to provide planning and design services for a key gateway entrance into Elkhart County. It was suffering from both a lack of identity and a lack of growth. This project included an economic development strategy, a branding and identity scheme, and a multi-modal accessibility plan.
Each of these components required in-depth research and a detailed study to ensure that all aspects of the plan acted as a cohesive whole. Revitalizing the area through a balance of land uses, targeted business clusters, environmentally friendly design approaches, and connectivity planning were major focuses of the project.
Project Cost
$125,000
Client Contact
JPR’s scope of services expanded to include implementing the Plan. Our project team surveyed property owners and business owners within the district to assess their level of interest and commitment. In addition, we conducted an in-depth review of current and projected TIF increment to ensure that our recommendations for TIF-funded projects and incentives would be realistic and achievable. The last phase has been to identify and investigate potential developers for the area.
North Elkhart Gateway Implementation Strategy
This major entrance into the City of Elkhart was facing considerable challenges. Numerous commercial vacancies were eroding the tax base, the interior site configuration was inadequate for today’s retail venues, and the area projected a bland and unimpressive welcoming.
The development team assembled for this project concentrated on reactivating the retail center in order to serve visitors and residents, on creating a memorable gateway into Elkhart from the Toll Road, and on leveraging visitor spending from the hotel complex. These strategies combined to produce a sound and viable plan that will guide the area for years to come.
Project Cost
$1.25 million
Client Contact
Eric Trotter - Assistant Director Planning 574.294.5471 Chris Godlewski, Director
Project Manager
Kenneth Jones, PLS
Project Manager
Kenneth Jones, PLS
Elkhart County, Indiana
Elkhart County, Indiana
South Bend
Five Year Park Master Plan
The City of South Bend commissioned the JPR team, including the nationally renowned park and recreation planning firm, GreenPlay, LLC, to provide planning services to assist in the development of their 5-Year Park Master Plan. As a city with a population over 100,000, it has a rich tradition offering a multitude of park programs to fulfill the wants and needs of a diverse population. Nonetheless, the city wanted to gain a better understanding of how it could improve upon its 57 parks and 1,200 acres of park land to meet the growing demands of a 21st century city.
The development of the plan
consisted of formulating goals and objectives with an emphasis on establishing an inclusive public dialogue. During the planning process the project team held 26 public meetings, conducted a statistically valid survey, and received online survey responses from more than 1,000 people. The information gathered from these forums helped in the assessment and analysis of South Bend’s needs with respect to parks and open space, recreation, community building strategies, and organizational structure. Furthermore, the analysis identified the necessary funding requirements for deferred maintenance and capital improvement projects.
The completion of the City of South Bend 5-Year Park Master Plan resulted in a $5 million parks bond to begin funding critical projects identified during the analysis. The plan now serves as a user friendly framework for the city’s ongoing stewardship of its existing natural resources, as well as a guide for further enhancement to meet the needs of an ever changing city. The document provides a clear set of goals, policies, standards, and objectives for achieving the parks mission statement - building community through people, parks, and programs.
South Bend, Indiana
