Meet Patrick Waylor from W&A Engineering’s Athens office!
Patrick Waylor has been with W&A Engineering since September of last year, though he has been practicing landscape architecture for over twenty years. A project manager in the Planning Department, Patrick assists both the Planning and Landscape Architecture teams on various planning and design projects. Above all, he enjoys the challenge of design that the work brings with it and finds it very rewarding to be able to show his family the projects he has gotten to be a part of over the years.
“Watching my son smile and run around on playgrounds that I have designed has been some of the highlights of my career,” Patrick added.
Something that lies very dear to Patrick’s heart is undertaking projects with an accessibility-guided mindset. Throughout his entire career, one of Patrick’s favorite projects centered around creating a playground in Woodstock, Georgia that would be fully accessible to children with various levels of abilities. This gave him the opportunity to find creative and fun solutions to create a unique space that engages children and adults alike. The features they were able to incorporate included a balsa wood lumber construction area, giant foam play blocks, outdoor musical equipment, and a custom play mound with climbing boulders, synthetic turf sliding areas, and wheelchair accessible tunnels.
“One of my favorite experiences as a Landscape Architect was taking my son here after construction was completed and seeing him, other kids, parents and grandparents all engaging with the features we designed and playing together,” Patrick said.
Outside of work, Patrick loves to spend time with his family. Whether it’s traveling to an actual jungle with his wife Felicia or traipsing around the jungle gyms with his son Zachary, Patrick and the Waylor family love to travel, cook, and bake together.
Adorably enough, Patrick and Felicia were high school sweethearts. Meeting for the very first time in middle school band class, he played the French horn, and she played the trumpet. After high school, they both attended the University of Georgia where Normaltown Café was an all-time favorite spot.
Though they currently live in Atlanta, Georgia, Patrick is thoroughly looking forward to moving back to Athens in the near future. Hoping to leave the hustle and bustle of the big city, the allure of less traffic, new places to explore, and the intimacy of a smaller town will have him in Bulldog territory soon!