Tait & Associates: Engineering Growth Across OC

Santa Ana-based Tait & Associates is coming off a record year, and the company is only poised for more growth with a slew of projects and opportunities in and outside of the county.

“There is still a lot of pent-up demand that has come back strong, and we are seeing that in every market we operate in,” Managing Director Trevor Tait told the Business Journal.

The civil engineering, environmental service, land planning and architectural firm is making strides on several notable master- planning projects in the works across OC, including repurposing a landfill in Newport Beach and acting as master engineer for the Dana Point Harbor redevelopment project.

Coyote Canyon

When the firm was awarded the Longevity Award at the Business Journal’s 2021 Family-Owned Business Awards, it was coming off another win: it had just gained approvals to develop the former Coyote Canyon Landfill into a mixed-use recreational hub.

The company is still in the planning and design stages for the 375-acre Newport Coast property, but the vision is becoming clearer.

“This is a true opportunity to create a national model of how to sustainably repurpose landfill sites,” Tait said.

Uses are likely to include a golf course, residential units and environmental trails.

“All of the components will complement each other in a cohesive master-planned community near Newport Coast.” 

Harbor Progress

In Dana Point, construction is expected to kick off soon on the first phase of the $300 million overhaul of the city’s harbor. Burnham Ward Properties, R.D. Olson Development and Bellwether Financial Group are the master developers; Tait & Associates is the master engineer.

“We have made great progress, and there has been tremendous care in making sure this project stays true to the city,” Tait, a Dana Point resident, said.

Tait & Associates counts eight offices and 220 employees.

“Part of what has helped us grow is our status as a family-owned business,” said Tait, who is grandson to the company’s founder, Kenneth Tait.

The firm’s leadership team also includes Kenneth’s two sons, President Rich Tait, and Chief Executive Tom Tait, also the former mayor of Anaheim.

“We get to think differently than large engineering companies as long-term planners,” Trevor Tait said.