Austin Tao of Lawrence Group named one of “Most Influential Minority Business Leaders”
October 06, 2008
ST. LOUIS, MO – St. Louis-based Lawrence Group | ATA principal Austin Tao was recently named one of the St. Louis Business Journal’s “Most Influential Minority Business Leader” for 2008.
“I’m honored to be selected among so many excellent minority business leaders who contribute to our community,” said Tao, who lives in Olivette, Missouri.
Tao founded Austin Tao and Associates (ATA) in 1981 and merged with the Lawrence Group earlier this year where he now serves as the principal designer on ATA projects, leads the Lawrence Group’s landscape architectural practice, and helps grow the firm’s international portfolio. The firm has its corporate headquarters in St. Louis and an office in Beijing, China.
Tao has more than 40 years of experience in private practice. He is a professional landscape architect deeply committed to the improvement of urban and natural environments through excellence in design. Tao received a Bachelor of Landscape Architecture from the University of Illinois and a Master of Landscape Architecture from the University of Oregon.
Currently Tao is working on the Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri master plan, the Delmar Gardens Creve Coeur office/retail project and a roadside landscape design at 501 South Florissant Rd. and Suburban Ave. He recently completed the Lewis and Clark Katy Trailhead Park and the St. Anthony’s Medical Center Concept Plan and Healing Garden projects.
Tao also served as a landscape architecture instructor at Washington University in St. Louis and the Missouri Botanical Garden. He also serves as commissioner of the Missouri History Museum and the St. Louis County Human Rights Commission. Tao is a member of the Organization of Chinese Americans (OCA) and the Craft Alliance of St. Louis.
Lawrence Group is one of the largest international building design, planning, and project delivery firms in St. Louis with more than 200 employees in the US and China. Named in the “Top 100 Giants” by Interior Design magazine, the Lawrence Group offers architecture, interior design, a retail furniture showroom (Niche), landscape architecture, graphic design, town planning, construction management, and real estate development services to health care, commercial and housing clients. Lawrence Group is a member of the American Institute of Architects, the U.S. Green Building Council and the Urban Land Institute. For more information call Donna Gamache, director of communications for Lawrence Group, at 314-231-5700 x 1341, and visit www.thelawrencegroup.com.
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Media Contact: Jenny Burns
Synergy Group • 7915 Big Bend Blvd. • St. Louis, MO 63119
314.961.9772 • 314.961.9782 (fax)
www.synergy-pr.com
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