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Meet the Stars

Our survey staff works closely with homeowners, local contractors, real estate agents, town and county officials to provide quality services to our entire client base.  

Our survey staff works closely with homeowners, local contractors, real estate agents, town and county officials to provide quality services to our entire client base.   

ROBERT ANDERSON

Bob is a graduate of the University of North Carolina and has been a licensed as a Professional Land Surveyor since 1981.   He has been surveying the San Juan Islands since the 1970’s working with our firm under then owner Thomas Starr, PLS.  Bob has supervised large scale mapping projects in such diverse locations as Hells Canyon, the Aleutian Islands, Peru, Mt. McKinley and guided the survey climb team that re-established the elevation of Mt. Rainier. 

 

In 1999, Bob received an appointment from the United Nations to be the technical advisor in Bhutan for the Nation Urban Surveying & Mapping Group.  After 5 years in the Himalayas, Bob returned to the San Juan Islands and assumed the position of Chief Surveyor for Star Surveying, purchasing the firm in 2007. 

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JAMES WILSON

James began his surveying career in South King County. After his time in the Navy and starting a family, he returned to surveying. Over the next decade James performed surveys throughout Washington state, northern Idaho, Montana and spent a year in Texas doing right-of-way acquisition surveys for the Texas State Department of Transportation as part of SAM inc.

Throughout his career James has completed numerous boundary surveys, sectional breakdowns,

significant tree surveys, steep slope analysis, topographical mapping, short plats, long plats, construction as built and layout surveys, site plans, and flood elevation certificates. A favorite experience in his surveying career was spent in north central Washington, performing sectional breakdowns which required interpreting 100-year-old survey field notes and searching for original Government Land Office

stone monuments.

In 2008 James passed his L.S.I.T. exam, and within the last few years acquired his Professional Land Surveyors license. He is currently preparing to enroll in the Certified Federal Surveyors program, which by doing so will allow him to preform surveys on any Federal Land and Indian Reservations within Washington State.

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BRENNAN PRICE

Brennan graduated from University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2012 with a degree in wildlife ecology.  He then moved to Washington to work for the Washington State fish hatcheries before moving on to 911 dispatching for Skagit county for 6 years.  Deciding that a career change was in order, Brennan attended and continues to attend Renton Technical College’s survey program.  Joining the Star team in Fall 2021, Brennan is excited to learn the ins and outs of land surveying, both the technical field aspect and the Civil 3D data processing side.

Brennan has been exploring the northern Puget Sound in his 18 foot 1969 Starcraft boat since moving to Washington.  He has particularly enjoyed the island camping opportunities the San Juan Islands have to offer.  He looks forward to spending time in and exploring the area in his new role as a survey technician.

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MICK BENALES

Mick began his survey career in 2018 working as a grade checker.  Always a math, weights, measure and tech fanatic he quickly took to the mathematics required to operate the rods, rovers and robotic total stations for bolt placements and structure layout before moving to machine control and guidance. In recent years he has worked as a GPS specialist in construction surveying.

Mick has long fostered an interest in land survey and jumped at the chance to develop his skills under the mentorship of owner Robert M. Anderson, PLS. He is currently in the application process for his LSIT and plans to pursue his PLS thereafter.  

A family man, Mick enjoys spending his free time exploring the outdoors with his wife and children.  Recently relocating to the San Juan Islands from Oregon, Mick and his family are thrilled to join San Juan Islands local community.   

ATHENA KAUFMAN

Athena recently moved to Anacortes to settle down with her husband, dog and reptiles. Currently serving as a field survey technician to support the Anacortes branch getting hands on experience. She developed a lifelong passion for the outdoors and natural S.T.E.M fields as a child, where Guatemalan cloud forests, the Australian outback, and Yellowstone National Park served as her backyard. 

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Star Surveying is proud to have memberships with the following Organizations and Associations:

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Star Surveying in the News

San Juan
Journal

Local surveyor Bob Anderson leading the latest effort to measure Mount Rainier.

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