O. R. Colan Associates, LLC (ORC) was founded by Owen Richard “Dick” Colan, J.D. He graduated from Georgetown Law School and worked as the Chief Right of Way Agent for the West Virginia Turnpike Commission; then as the FHWA Right-of-Way Representative for Pennsylvania; and as the Director of Right of Way for the State of West Virginia. In 1969, Mr. Colan left public service and started O. R. Colan Associates.
Mr. Colan understood that the enactment of The Uniform Relocation and Real Properties Acquisition Policies Act of 1970 (the Uniform Act) would make right of way acquisition more complicated. This significant legislation formed the basis of the services that ORC initially offered. Mr. Colan was a pioneer in outsourcing right of way services to public agencies before it became a common practice.
Besides leading what is now one of America’s most reputable right of way service providers, Mr. Colan was known for his captivating training courses, which helped him become an industry expert. Mr. Colan’s training legacy lives on today through the ORC Training division, which we are honored to say has partnered with IRWA to develop online training courses for our industry.
