With more than 30 years of experience under his belt, Jefferson City registered land surveyor Ric Hurst has built his career from the ground up and continues to hone in on his skills.
As a registered land surveyor with the Jefferson City Public Works Department, Hurst does a variety of work, such as solving right-of-way or alleyway disputes, deciding where property lines run, and staking out various locations for proposed construction projects. He also assists the Jefferson City Police Department when they respond to fatal car wrecks by mapping the crime scene.
Hurst worked on various projects over the years, such as the Hyde Park area, now home to the Jefferson City Animal Shelter, Jefferson City Fire Department training facility, and the Jefferson City Street and Sewer divisions buildings.
"Just to see the ground from back in the early '80s to what it is now is pretty amazing - just to go from the raw, completely untouched ground, to the product it is today," he said.
The various work projects keep his days interesting.
"Everything has its own application," Hurst said. "Everything has to be done differently and every job is unique and where the setting is and what we're having to do at each one. I like the diversity of the job. Some of them seem are mundane in a way you work on it for a few days, weeks, even months, but then it's done and you move onto the next one."
Hurst first came on with the city 33 years ago as a survey technician and worked his way up the ladder by getting his pre-license and license. He landed in his current position in 2005.
Hurst previously worked as a surveyor for the Callaway Nuclear Plant during its construction and at Central Missouri Professional Services before working for Jefferson City.
Map making became Hurst's passion, which was evident by his desk. Various maps rested on his gray desk while others were tacked to boards overlooking his work area. Pens, pencils, and pink and yellow highlighters marked different items on the documents.
"I really like map making," Hurst said, pointing at a white map on his desk. "I like to see the ground for the way it is and how it's transferred on paper."
Part of his job entails analyzing documents to understand the history and layout of a piece of land. While he wasn't a fan of history at first, Hurst learned to embrace the land's past, reviewing maps and documents that go back before the founding of Jefferson City or even the United States. Now, he said, he is making his mark in history.
"I talked to an old guy years ago and I told him, 'I find myself being a little more interested in history,' and he said, 'Because you're living it. You're becoming part of history,'" Hurst recalled. "I didn't realize how profound that was until years down the road. Since I've been here a long time, people will ask, 'Remember when you did this or that?' So, I'm a little bit of a walking history book."
His hard work at Jefferson City hasn't go unnoticed. Hurst received the 2018 City of Jefferson Outstanding Service Award last month, which he said was "overwhelming."
When he's not working as a land surveyor, Hurst enjoys working on his farm and spending time with his wife, four children and three grandchildren.