Ruettiger, Tonelli & Associates Inc.

RT&A is a mid-size multidisciplinary design, consulting firm headquartered in Joliet, the hub of Will County and one of the fastest-growing areas in the state. The firm is completing its 30th year of practice in planning, civil engineering, landscape architecture and surveying. The firm includes over 30 licensed and degreed professionals in the fields of landscape architecture, planning, engineering and surveying. Partner, Rick Suttle, a landscape architecture graduate of the University of Michigan, directs the firm’s Landscape and Environmental Sciences Department. The firm provides planning and design expertise for the public and private sectors. Projects range from campus planning for universities, comprehensive master planning, residential and commercial subdivisions, park and recreation plans, LEED-certified sustainable designs, residential landscape designs, GIS studies and natural and environmental resource services.

RT&A has 10 partners including, Rodney Tonelli, AICP, president; Ken Pesavento, PLS, vice president; Terry Ruettiger, PLS; Dennis Tonelli, PLS; Rick Suttle, ASLA; Ron Hodgen, PLS; Richard Witt, PLS; Joseph Hammer, PE; Joseph Borio, PLS; and Nancy Murphy, PHR.

The technology/software used are Autocadd, Microstation, Arcview/Arcinfo GIS, LandFX, and Trimble GPS and Robotics.

Joliet Community Hospice Therapeutic Garden Walk, Joliet, Ill.

The original limestone screen trail around the stormwater retention basin was dreary and difficult to traverse for many patients and visitors. RT&A worked closely with the Joliet Community Hospice to design an inviting garden walk that would be aesthetically pleasing and provide areas for rest and relaxation. The limestone screen trail was replaced with a porous paver walk. An overlook, terrace, and benches provided places to rest. An accessible fishing pier, constructed of composite lumber, offers an additional resting spot and a chance to catch fish in the stocked pond. Ornamental and native landscape plants and outcrop stones are also placed to provide a variety of color and texture along the walk. The garden is enjoyed by patrons and visitors and often included in the community’s spring garden walk event. Funding for the garden walk was provided by private donations and by Unilock.

Autobahn Country Club, Joliet, Ill.

The Autobahn Country Club blends fast cars and naturalized areas on 320 rolling acres. RT&A worked with a private venture group from start to finish to develop a site plan that would incorporate one of the longest grand-prix style race tracks in the country, while minimizing impacts to the site’s many natural features. RT&A prepared construction documents that included wetland mitigation, naturalized stormwater detention and over 100 acres of native landscaping. The result is a unique racecourse that successfully and aesthetically integrates motor sports with sustainable design.