Landscape Architecture Firm, 25-Year Maryland Municipal & Commercial Design Practice

$4.8M

Revenue

$973K

SDE

4.0x

Multiple

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Full Editorial Writeup

Award-winning Landscape Architecture Company serving public and private clients with strong positioning in the Mid-Atlantic Region and EXPANDING Nationwide. The Company is recognized for... Businesses Franchises Brokers Loading... Landscape Architecture Company Serving Municipal & Commercial Clients Maryland Asking Price:$3,900,000 Cash Flow (SDE):Not Disclosed EBITDA:$973,034 Gross Revenue:$4,813,000 Established:2000 Landscape Architecture Company Serving Municipal & Commercial Clients Business Description Premier Profitable Landscape Architecture Company Award-winning Landscape Architecture Company serving public and private clients with strong positioning in the Mid-Atlantic Region and EXPANDING Nationwide. The Company is recognized for transportation corridors, civic environments, institutional campuses, mixed-use developments, streetscapes and urban design, and parks, recreation and open space design (see full list below). It operates at the intersection of design, planning, and infrastructure, transforming community, commercial, and infrastructure spaces into functional and sustainable places increasing regional asset value.With over 25 years of service, the Company's value proposition combines creative design excellence with the technical rigor required to navigate permitting, infrastructure coordination, environmental stewardship, and construction implementation. It has established enduring client relationships and a strong reputation as a trusted advisor to transportation agencies, local governments, educational institutions, healthcare organizations, developers, and community stakeholders. Company Organizational Structure & Culture:Through decades of project experience, the firm has a strong track record and portfolio that reflects the team's expertise in both highly visible public projects and complex private developments. The company team includes licensed landscape architects (RLA) and designers. The Company's mission-driven approach and collaborative culture is a differentiator as demonstrated by a strong retention rate. The organization is overseen by experienced principals and led by senior design professionals responsible for strategic planning, client development, financial performance, quality assurance, talent management, and project execution. Project directors manage delivery performance and resource allocation, while senior technical leaders ensure design excellence, regulatory compliance, and multidisciplinary integration throughout engagement lifecycles.Strategic Value Drivers:The company’s ability to pair creative design with technical execution is a key competitive advantage. Their multidisciplinary project coordination and services enable clients to address planning, regulatory, operational, environmental, and aesthetic objectives within a single engagement framework. • Strong client relationships and repeat business.• Differentiated transportation landscape and public realm expertise.• Specialized certifications supporting access to government procurement opportunities.• Integrated sustainability, resiliency, environmental stewardship, and permitting capabilities.• Regional reputation supported by award-winning projects.Core Service Lines & Capabilities:• Landscape Architecture• Master and Public Realm Planning• Transportation Corridor Enhancement • Mixed-Use, Commercial and Residential Development• Streetscape Design• Urban and Site Design & Placemaking• Site Design and Land Development Support• Campus and Institutional Planning• Parks, Recreation and Open Space Design• Infrastructure and Stormwater Integration• Forest Conservation, Tree Preservation and Arboriculture• Environmental Planning and Regulatory Coordination• Public Art Coordination & Administration• Quality Control Construction Administration and Permitting ServicesDiversification of clients, sectors, and multiple end markets reduces dependence on a single customer or industry:• Federal, State, Municipal Agencies• Transportation Agencies• Park and Recreation Departments• Commercial clients• Residential and mixed-use clients • Educational Institutions and Campus Development• Healthcare Institutions and Senior Living Facilities• Administrative and Environmental Compliance Services to Architects and Developers Ad#:2532493 Detailed Information Furniture, Fixtures, & Equipment (FF&E): $138,744 Included in asking price Employees: 21 Full-time Facilities: Main Office and Two Regional Offices (co-working rentals). Assets comprise furniture, fixtures, computers, operating systems Competition: The business operates in a resilient market encompassing specialty design and working with allied expert segments including architecture, landscaping, construction, environmental impact, among others. There is a market opportunity/need to improve or replace decaying private and public infrastructure and facilities, such as schools, hospitals, highways, and mix-use housing/retail complexes. According to the American Society of Civil Engineers' 2025 infrastructure report card, there is a need for continued investment to revitalize an aging infrastructure. Furthermore, Brooking and other credible sources document 12+ US metropolitan areas that have experience continued revitalization and expansion driven by private real estate development, housing demand, adaptive reuse of underutilized properties, and public infrastructure investment. Cities range from Seattle, WA, Des Moines, IA, and Philadelphia. Growth & Expansion: Value drivers include the team's experience and expertise to operate in an integrated model that allows it to manage projects from concept through execution. The team's strong reputation with clients and the industry drive referral and new leads. This is supported by national award-winning projects and accolades. Growth and expansion opportunities include:• Regional Prominence: The company's business growth is driven by its strong connections and continued demand in the Mid-Atlantic region• Geographic Expansion: The biggest growth opportunity is its expansion to the South, North, and West - including into AL, TN, UT, MA.• Expand Market Share: Transportation landscape and public realm expertise is a differentiator. Expand market share by investing in other specialty areas.• Additional upside exists from building on strong client relationships to generate repeat business in allied areas of expertise. Financing: Seller financing available 10% or less Support & Training: Seller will train for 4 weeks at no charge. Reason for Selling: Evolving interests Business Location Real Estate: Leased Lease Expiration: 02/28/2033 Rent: $12,000 per month Listing Statistics Saved This Listing Listing Last Updated Appeared in Search Listing Detail Views BizBuySell EDGE Know the True Market Value Before You Make an Offer Get valuation data to negotiate with confidence. Get a Valuation Report Business Listed By: Exit Team Silver Tsunami Transitions LLC View My Listings Phone Number 202-793-7099 Voice only (no SMS) Ad#:2532493 The information in this listing has been provided by the business seller or representative stated above. BizBuySell has no stake in the sale of this business, has not independently verified any of the information about the business, and assumes no responsibility for its accuracy or completeness. Read BizBuySell's Terms of Use before responding to any ad. Learn how to avoid scams. Contact Form Full Name* Enter a valid Full Name Phone Number* Enter Phone Number Email Address* Enter Email Address Zip Code Amount to Invest Purchase Timeframe 1-3 Months 3-6 Months 6+ Months Optional Message Yes, send me the Buyer Newsletter for popular businesses, tips, & email promotions. Send Message By clicking the button, you agree to BizBuySell’s Terms of Use and Privacy Notice Business Listed By: Silver Tsunami Transitions Silver Tsunami Transitions LLC View My Listings Phone Number 202-793-7099 Voice only (no SMS) Your request has been sent. What Happens Next? is reviewing your details. A representative will reach out soon to discuss your options. Expect a response in 1-2 business days. Report an issue with this listing Similar Listings Architecture and Engineering

Why we like it

Earnings quality is solid for a services firm: $973K EBITDA on $4.8M revenue is a ~20 percent margin, and the client base spans federal, state, municipal, transportation, healthcare, education, and private developers. That diversification means no single logo can blow up cash flow, and government work tends to be repeat and sticky once you are on the approved vendor list.
The moat is credential-based and hard to replicate quickly. Licensed RLA staff, specialized government procurement certifications, and 25 years of award-winning public projects create a reference portfolio that new entrants cannot fake. In public-realm design, past performance on visible projects is the primary buying criterion, so incumbency compounds.
Market tailwinds are real and publicly funded. Aging US infrastructure (per the ASCE 2025 report card), transportation corridor investment, and metro revitalization all drive demand for exactly this firm's specialty. Public infrastructure spending is among the most recession-resistant demand sources because it is budget-driven and often federally backed rather than dependent on consumer sentiment.
The operator advantage is a clean, staffed platform with a light asset base. Twenty-one full-time employees led by principals and project directors means the business is not a one-person shop dependent solely on the seller. Leased offices and only $139K of FF&E mean capital stays in the business rather than tied up in real estate or equipment.

How to improve it

Systematize business development around government procurement. Build a dedicated proposal and RFP-response function so the firm stops relying on referrals and starts winning on volume across more agencies. A repeatable capture process is the single biggest lever for a certified public-sector design firm.
Execute the stated geographic expansion deliberately. Management flags the South, North, and West (AL, TN, UT, MA) as the biggest opportunity, so pursue reciprocal RLA licensure and partner with local firms to qualify for out-of-state public bids. Expansion should be tied to specific agency relationships, not a scattershot map.
Reduce principal dependence before it becomes a valuation drag. With 4 weeks of training and 'evolving interests' as the seller's reason, lock down key client relationships and design leadership under the project directors and senior technical leaders already in place. Retention agreements for the RLAs are essential.
Push margin through utilization discipline. Track billable hours, project realization, and scope creep at the project-director level, because in design services a few percentage points of utilization improvement flow almost entirely to EBITDA. Instituting time tracking and change-order rigor is fast, low-cost upside.
Cross-sell allied services into the existing base. The firm already lists forest conservation, arboriculture, stormwater integration, public art coordination, and construction administration as capabilities, so mine current clients for these adjacent scopes. Repeat and expanded engagements are cheaper to win than new logos.
Formalize recurring revenue where possible. Pursue multi-year on-call and IDIQ (indefinite delivery) contracts with transportation agencies and municipalities to create a backlog floor. Predictable, pre-qualified contract vehicles smooth the lumpiness inherent in project-based design work.

Diligence notes

Verify EBITDA quality and add-back composition. SDE is listed as Not Disclosed while EBITDA is $973K, so confirm what owner compensation, discretionary expenses, and normalization assumptions are embedded. Understand how much of the profit walks out the door with the departing principal.
Stress-test revenue concentration and backlog. Despite the diversification narrative, pull the actual client and project revenue breakdown for the last three years plus signed backlog. Government work can be lumpy and tied to funding cycles, so confirm the pipeline is real and contracted, not aspirational.
Assess key-person and licensure risk. Identify which RLAs hold the certifications that qualify the firm for government procurement, and confirm those licenses transfer or remain post-sale. If the seller personally holds critical certifications or relationships, the enterprise value could erode fast on exit.
Confirm the lease and facility economics. The main office lease runs to 2033 at $12,000 per month plus two co-working regional offices, so verify total occupancy cost, escalation clauses, and whether the expansion plan requires new footprints. Understand how facility cost scales if you push into new geographies.
Review win rate and BD dependence. Because the pitch leans heavily on referrals and reputation, examine historical proposal win rates and how new work is currently sourced. A firm that cannot systematically originate work without the founder is a thinner asset than the marketing suggests.

Source

Originally listed on BizBuySell. View original listing →