Michael G. Buettner, P.S. - Principal

Since being hired to work on the survey crews after his graduation from Purdue University in 1978, Mike has spent over 31 years with Kohli and Kaliher, and is now a principal with the firm. He specializes in the preparation of legal descriptions and drawings for property surveys, and for bridge and highway projects--including the U.S. 30 relocation east of Beaverdam, the U.S. 24 Bypass Improvement at Defiance, the Eastown Road Improvement in Lima, and the Ottawa River Bikeway Project in Lima. He is also responsible for the preparation of all right-of-way plan sheets that are required for those types of projects.

Through the years, Mike has had significant experience with topographic and title insurance (ALTA) surveys, engineering design, and site planning--especially for industrial and commercial properties. The Eastgate Shopping Center east of Lima is a good example of an ongoing development project where Mike has been involved with several aspects of surveying and engineering work.

Mike is also responsible for the preparation of subdivision plats, annexation plats, and street dedication or vacation plats. Along with his associates at Kohli and Kaliher, he continues to assist clients who are developing the Swiss Park Subdivision in Bluffton, American Village in Lima, and the Sugar Creek Golf Course Development near Beaverdam. 

Mike’s passion for maps and history has served well in his research work on roads and highways--both as a professional surveyor and as an amateur historian. He is regarded as one of the two leading authorities on the Ohio history of the Lincoln Highway, proclaimed in 1913 as the nation’s first transcontinental automobile route. He has prepared a unique compilation of his research, photographs, and original drawings in a self-published book entitled “A History and Road Guide of the Lincoln Highway in Ohio.”

His similar fascination with railroads has inspired him to develop a continuing education program entitled “I’ve Been Learning on the Railroad,” which has twice been presented and twice well-received at conferences of the Professional Land Surveyors of Ohio. The first presentation of this program was at the PLSO Fall Conference in Lima in October 2003, where Mike also served as the program chairman. The entire event was hosted by the Treaty Lands Chapter of PLSO, in which Mike has been active as either president or secretary for many years. The railroad program was again presented at the PLSO Annual Conference in Dayton in February 2005.