Courtesy photo / Roaring Spring native Gerald Pastva has spent almost 50 years as a well-respected land surveyor, working with such companies as Keller Engineers and Stiffler McGraw. He is calling it after struggling with some health issues in recent years.

ROARING SPRING — After nearly 50 years, a well-respected professional land surveyor has decided it’s time to step away from his work.

Gerald Pastva, 73, of Roaring Spring, said it is time to call it a career.

“It is mainly physical, (as) I am slowing down. The time was right,” said Pastva, who attributed most of his physical decline to a back injury in June 2017.

Pastva’s retirement is a loss to the local surveying community.

“The local survey industry will be losing a person that approached the job the right way and produced surveys that were accurate and that will be used by others for the next century,” said professional land surveyor Andrew Ebersole, vice president, Survey Division Manager, Keller Engineers Inc., who has known Pastva for close to 40 years, mostly in relation to the boundary survey portion of the profession.

Pastva grew up in Martinsburg and graduated from Central High School in 1970. He studied civil engineering and surveying under Ray Parks at Penn State Altoona and received an associate degree in engineering in 1972.

Beginning at a young age, Pastva worked all his life in Morrisons Cove, early on at the Charles Bechtel and George Smith farms, Cove Shoe Factory Cove Apple Packers, Daniel Boyles Painting, Blair County Highway Department, Curry Supply Co., New Enterprise Stone & Lime Co Inc. and finally as a licensed professional land surveyor.

He joined the engineering department at NES&L in Roaring Spring in 1972 and worked his way up to prestress plant manager.

In the meantime, he started serving in the Pennsylvania Army National Guard and obtained his professional land surveyor license in 1976.

“There was demand for surveyors at that time,” Pastva said.

He decided to leave his position at NES&L in 2000 and at the suggestion of attorney Tom Reese, a good friend, started his own business Gerald L. Pastva Professional Land Surveyor.

“I always found him to be a capable and intelligent surveyor, he knew his field very well and had a practical approach. I encouraged him to start his own business,” Reese said. “We’ve been friends over the years and we support each other when needed. He has definite opinions but is quite open to discussion, it’s not his way or the highway. I feel he is very reasonable but with very strong opinions.”

He admitted it was hard to start his business and was a bit risky but he had support from local engineering firms such as Keller Engineers Inc. and Stiffler McGraw.

“It was an opportunity of a lifetime,” Pastva said.

Pastva said he is “detail-oriented.” He said there was a lot of competition among surveyors but he “never strived to be a cheap surveyor and did not undercut anyone.

A big part of his work was doing research.

“As a surveyor unless creating a new property you have to research prior surveys to note any differences,” Pastva said.

Chuck Colony, a professional engineer and surveyor, met Pastva about 20 years ago through Pennsylvania Society of Land Surveyors meetings.

“We didn’t work on projects at the same time. We shared notes. Recently he sent some work my way. It was from a survey in Huntingdon County done years ago. We found his work to be quite accurate. I have been very impressed with his surveying work, he puts notes in that are very helpful to the next surveyor. We have a good relationship,” Colony said.

The surveying business has changed over the years.

“It has evolved from 66-foot chains to more modern electronic equipment. In the 1980s and 1990s, we started to go with electronic distance equipment. That replaced the steel tapes and gave you more accuracy,” Pastva said. “Technology is more involved and made the job easier. We can now shoot a farm in a day, it used to take 4-5 days and the accuracy is phenomenal.”

Surveys are used to determine boundaries, size and topographics of the land and more.

Pastva said he did a lot of “as-built surveys.”

An as-built survey is a detailed, post-construction survey conducted by a licensed surveyor to document the precise final locations, dimensions and elevations of structures, utilities and improvements on a property. It highlights deviations from original design plans, ensuring regulatory compliance and providing a permanent record for future maintenance or renovations.

Pastva said he focused on residential projects and light commercial work.

“I prepared subdivisions for local municipalities for review and approval. You had to deal with state regulations and have to follow municipal regulations, Pastva said.

Pastva worked in Blair and several surrounding counties including Bedford, Huntingdon, Centre and Cambria. He said he has completed “thousands” of surveys over the years.

“I maintained paper and electronic files for all of them. I would still like to find some time to organize my surveying files,” Pastva said.

He said honesty and diligence have been the keys to his success.

“I didn’t try to compete and undercut. I had so much work I decided I didn’t have to do that. As far as ethics, if someone called me and they could get it cheaper I would tell them to take it,” he said. “I fought for my clients. I would stand up for what was right and honest.”

Pastva is well respected by others in the industry.

Jeff Gunnett, owner of Gunnett Engineers LLC, Martinsburg, said he worked for Pastva.

“From my early days working as his rodman, to learning the ropes as his instrument man, Gerald generously shared his wisdom about boundary surveying, guiding me through the thoughtful decisions behind every calculation. When my son and I launched Gunnett Engineers, Gerald joined our team, becoming an invaluable asset whose expertise elevated our work,” Gunnett said. “Gerald’s vast knowledge and extraordinary memory — recalling surveys and stories from decades past — have always inspired and amazed me. His legacy will continue to shape all those who had the privilege to work alongside him.”

“We will occasionally encounter Gerald’s work while performing ours. I have always found it to be of high quality and accuracy,” Ebersole said. “If our opinion of something is different than his, we could usually see the logic and method he used to arrive at his solution. I have always felt that logic and method is a key indicator of a person that knows what they are doing and are taking the time, thought process and effort to do it right.”

Pastva said his role models were his parents Michael and Mary Lou.

“I came from a hard working family,” Pastva said.

He also mentioned longtime Spring Cove educator Leon Kensinger and his high school basketball coach Don Appleman.

“Gerald is a great person, one of the nicest people you would ever meet. I thought a lot of him, he was a good player, it was my first year as head coach at Central. He was a good teammate, and the guys on the team liked Gerald — how hard he played and competed,” Appleman said. “I am not sure what I did for him. I treated him like every other player. We pushed him to make him the best he could be, we wanted him to be the best he could be. I appreciate it when kids say things like we had an impact on their life. That is why you coach.”

Pastva, a member of Martinsburg Memorial Church of the Brethren, said the church has been important in his life.

“I spent a year reading the Bible,” Pastva said. “I was fortunate to have grown up in a Christian society with good parenting, education and a driving force in sports and military discipline.”

He hopes people remember him favorably.

“I hope they remember me as someone who worked hard and was honest and that he cared,” Pastva said.

Mirror Staff Writer Walt Frank is at 814-946-7467.