Chapter Works
An electronic publication of the Mid-Atlantic Chapter of the American Public Works Association
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President's Corner
By Scott A. Smith, P.E., L.S., CPWP-M, Operations Engineer, Public Works Engineering, City of Hampton, Virginia
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Happy Holidays to all Public Works Professionals across the chapter. As others are fretting over Holiday planning and preparations, Public Works crews are checking spreaders, plows and making sure the brine tanks are just right. Hopefully the holiday season will be jolly and snow will not dampen the spirit.
Our Chapter is on a roll, the Public Works Institute (PWI) celebrated a major milestone in October with the graduation of our 100th student. PWI has been a labor of love for many of us and we are so grateful for its success. Registration opens December 14 for the Spring Session. We are happy to be able to offer a live conference in Virginia Beach, taking place in May of 2022. Membership is staying steady at about 960, I hope to see us break the 1,000 member threshold by the May conference.
As I close out the first six months of my tenure as President, I am happy to report we are making progress on the three goals I set when I took office: First, creating branches and reaching out to bring more agencies into the fold; secondly, improving committees to provide events and educational opportunities, to share that collective body of knowledge. Finally and perhaps most importantly, recruiting the youth into Public Service, providing options in Public Works that many do not know exist.
Branches: A branch is a subset of the chapter. Branches have a similar structure to the Chapter but allow for more regional programming and activities. The Board formed a subcommittee at the November Board meeting, working on finalizing a Branch Formation Guide. This guide will provide step by step instructions for how a branch may be formed. If you are interested in forming a Branch please contact me. More information will be forthcoming.
Committees: We are looking to build on the multiple success of our Sustainability Committee. In recent Committee changes, Ryn Kennedy of Henrico has taken over as Chair of Diversity Committee and is looking for engaged individuals that want to help guide the Chapter in becoming a more diverse and equitable organization. Troy Eisenberger of Chesapeake has taken over as Chair of the Emergency Management Committee, and we are looking for someone to take over the chair of the Transportation Committee and focus this on Streets and Bridges Operations. Committees are listed on the web site with Points of Contact, if you wish to serve on a committee please reach out to the chair of the Committee or myself and we will make sure you are connected with the right people.
Recruitment: Recruitment is a topic near and dear to all of us. All of our organizations struggle with finding and keeping employees. A subcommittee was formed to create a platform to explore, share and help each other with outreach to schools, making high school students aware of the many opportunities available in Public Service. Many agencies are doing really great things, reaching out to English as a Second Language classes, High School Programs catered to Equipment operations, career fairs and so much more, we want to share success and help each other with outreach strategies.
I want to thank the members of the chapter for their passion and enthusiasm for Public Works you truly demonstrate the theme, Stronger Together.
Happy Holidays and Best Wishes,
Scott
Scott A. Smith, President
APWA Mid-Atlantic Chapter
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NAIOP Recognizes Work of Fairfax County Building Design and Construction Division with Excellence Award
By Sharon North, Section Chief, Communications, Fairfax County Department of Public Works and Environmental Services
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FAIRFAX COUNTY, Va. –The Building Design and Construction Division of Fairfax County’s Department of Public Works and Environmental Services was recently recognized with the Build-to-Suit Institutional Award of Excellence from the NAIOP Northern Virginia Chapter for the Woodlawn Fire Station project.
Construction on the fire station in the county’s Mount Vernon District began in November 2019 and was completed this year.
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BDCD Director Tiya Raju extended special thanks and congratulations to the design and construction team, members, Maryam Mostamandi, Tim Danforth, Allison Terzigni, Geoff Kimmel, and Peter Duryea, just as she did in October when the project won a county Merit Award for Institutional Design Excellence in the 2021 James M. Scott Exceptional Design Awards Program.
NAIOP is a national commercial real estate development association with more than 19,000 members and chapters across North America. The Northern Virginia Chapter is one of the largest, with more than 900 members.
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Member Spotlight
Jeff Wilkerson
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Jeff is the Public Works Director for the City of Martinsburg, WV and has served in this role for over 11 years. Jeff is originally from Maryland and has lived in West Virginia since 1991. Jeff’s career started in the cement industry where he worked for 14 years, in 2005 he transitioned to a project manager role in paving and road construction. Jeff used the experience and knowledge from these previous positions to start a career in Public Works in 2010.
Where were you born and raised? Indian Head, MD
What originally got you interested in your current field of work? Helping the community, residents and help planning for the future of our City.
What’s the career highlight you’re most proud of? Changing the culture of our Department in a positive direction. Employees are more helpful, pleasant and effective. Once the change started the community noticed and made us aware that they saw a positive change. This not only benefits our Department, but the entire City.
What was your first APWA (MA Chapter) role? After graduating from the first class in the MA Public Works Institute, I became a member of the MPWI Steering Committee to help guide the direction of the Institute.
What advice would you give to new members of the Public Works community? No matter what your role in public works is, you can always use your leadership skills to help your Department, Town or City. Learn from others and strive to help whenever needed.
What’s your favorite way to spend a day off? Spending time with family and spoiling our grandsons.
What’s your favorite sport to watch and which team do you root for? Baseball, college football and basketball-WVU Mountaineers and Baltimore Orioles
If you have suggestions of a member you wish to see highlighted, please reach out to Jennifer Caples at jcaples@wrallp.com
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Newport News Citizen Public Works Academy Graduation
By Karen E. Self, MPA, Management Analyst, Department of Public Works, City of Newport News
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On November 4, 2021, Newport News Public Works celebrated its third annual Citizen Academy graduation. Eight participants embarked on a ten-week journey to learn firsthand about the Department of Public Works. Through a series of lectures, demonstrations, hands-on activities and field trips, citizens were given an inside look of day-to-day public works operations. Public Works partnered with the Engineering, Fire, Communications, and Information Technology Departments to achieve the mission.
It was an honor to have Assistant City Manager Ralph “Bo” Clayton as the guest speaker at the third annual Citizen Public Works Academy graduation. Graduates shared what they learned and how they will move forward as Public Works ambassadors for the City of Newport News. The fourth class is scheduled for the Fall of 2022. To learn more, visit the Academy’s website. |
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Annual Water Week on the Hill, April 24-30, 2022
APWA one of 13 national associations/organizations calling attention to water industry needs
By Ken Eyre, Chapter Past-President
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Each year APWA, together with 12 other national organizations/associations are planning a series of events to bring awareness to water infrastructure needs. Decisions will be made regarding whether in-person engagements, meetings and briefing will be scheduled with legislators or caucuses. The Mid-Atlantic Chapter last participated with the annual Water Week in 2018. With the COVID19 outbreak, in-person meetings were scaled back and some of the partnering national organizations/associations relied on virtual meetings. The Mid-Atlantic Chapter coordinates with APWA’s Washington DC staff regarding getting the Water Week plans in advance and sharing the details with our members. Stay tuned for further details regarding how you can participate in the 2022 Water Week activities.
We encourage you to visit the collaborative website and review the many ways and source data from 2021 available to become better informed and engaged with this important sector of public works.
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Status of the Virginia Community Flood Preparedness Fund
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One year ago, I authored the newsletter article “NEW Virginia Community Flood Preparedness Fund Under Development” announcing DCR would finalize the fund guidelines by March 1 and release the first request for proposals in April. Although the timeline shifted a bit, DCR did establish the program and release two quarterly requests for proposals in 2021. Let’s review the success of the program.
For background, in 2020 the State Legislature approved the Clean Energy and Community Flood Preparedness Act (Code of Virginia § 10.1-1330) authorizing Virginia to join the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) and sell allowances in the regional carbon dioxide electric power sector cap and trade program. Per code, DCR will receive 45% of the revenue for the Community Flood Preparedness Fund (CFPF) and DHCD will receive 50% for low-income energy efficiency programs. Virginia participated in the four quarterly auctions in 2021 generating $227M with over $100M going to the CFPF. There is no way to exaggerate the dramatic increase this is in funding for both flood preparedness and energy efficiency in the state.
The CFPF supports projects that implement flood prevention and protection projects and studies in areas that are subject to recurrent flooding. So far, the program offers cost-share grants, and the program may offer grant and loan options in the future. This year, DCR offered three categories eligible to receive funds: Capacity Building and Planning, Studies, and Projects (design and construction). The cost-share (match) amount varies based on the category and is reduced in low-income geographic areas. Applications that include socially vulnerable areas (according to the Virginia Vulnerability Map), nature-based solutions, and regional approaches are more competitive in the scoring matrix.
The round 1 request for proposals offered $18M to applicants with a Sept. 3, 2021, deadline. The grant awards, announced Oct. 5, 2021, supplied $7.8M for 19 projects. The winning projects included a good mix of resilience plans, studies, and design projects as well as two construction projects. The awards ranged from approximately $26,000 to $3M. Most projects represented moderate to high vulnerability populations and low-income geographic areas. DCR processed contracts in early November so work could begin quickly. While generally considered a successful first round, there were applicants that were not awarded funds questioning the wide range in application scores (from 6% to 78% of the potential points) and the $1.2M reserve in funds.
The round 2 request for proposals offered $17M to applicants with a Nov. 5, 2021, deadline. The awards have not yet been announced (as of December 3, 2021). Keep your eye on the DCR website for the results, training, and the request for proposals for round 3 in early 2022.
As mentioned above, RGGI auctions in 2021 generated $227M for Virginia with over $100M going to the CFPF. This financial influx is quite a success following the delay in authorizing the legislation in 2019. Now, there are new concerns rising that the change in administration may styme the program. If you support this new source of funding and the focus on flood preparedness and energy efficiency, consider taking a moment to thank the supporters of the legislation and make your community leaders aware of the need for these significant funds to address long overdue and increasing flooding issues.
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Denise Nelson is Vice President of the Mid-Atlantic Chapter. She is also active on the Chapter’s Sustainability Committee and in promoting the Chapter’s social media accounts. Denise is the Director of Resilience and Grants at Launch! Consulting.
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SAVE THE DATE FOR THESE EXCITING EVENTS! |
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Succession Management 101
March 8, 2022
Virtual educational venue hosted by the Chapter’s Metro DC-Baltimore-Northern Virginia Activities Committee
Stay tuned for further notifications and when registration will be opened. Event will be offered virtually on Zoom.
Topics include: Succession Management and Workforce Needs Assessment; Career Ladders; Breakout Group exercise, others
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West Virginia Design & Construction Expo
March 23-24, Charleston, WV
Jeff Wilkerson, City of Martinsburg, WV is coordinating the Chapter’s participation. Jeff and Ken Eyre are presenting Safety in Public Works as part of the Expo educational track. As of date of printing, event to be in-person. For more Chapter information contact Jeff at: jwilkerson@cityofmartinsburg.org
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If you missed the APWA Mid-Atlantic Chapter
Virtual Membership Meeting and Awards Presentation,
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SPECIAL THANKS
To Our Newsletter Sponsors!
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Chapter Welcomes
New Members!
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2021-2022
OFFICERS/DIRECTORS
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Officers
President
Scott A. Smith, PE
Operations Engineer
City of Hampton, VA
President-Elect
Harold Caples, PE
Asst. State Construction Engineer
Virginia Department of Transportation
Richmond, VA
Immediate Past-President
Phillip J. Koetter, PE
Operations Management Administrator
Department of Public Works
City of Virginia Beach, VA
Vice-President
Denise Nelson, PE CFM, ENV SP, LEED AP
Director of Resilience and Grants
Launch! Consulting Inc.
Richmond, VA
Secretary
Amy Linderman, PE
Fairfax County Department of Public Works
Planning and Development Division
Fairfax County, VA
Treasurer
David Bradshaw, PE
Principal
Clark Nexsen
Virginia Beach, VA
Chapter Delegate
James W. Long, III, PE, DBIA
Project Manager
Rummel, Klepper & Kahl, LLP
Virginia Beach, VA
Historian
Dawn V. Odom
Retired
Suffolk, VA
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Directors
Jason Calbert
Administrator Street Maintenance
City of Newport News, VA
Jennifer Caples
Marketing & Business Development
Whitman, Requardt & Associates, LLP
Richmond, VA
Troy Eisenberger, PE
Project Manager
City of Chesapeake, VA
Gaynelle L. Hart
Director of Public Works
City of Lynchburg, Virginia
Mark D. Jamison, PE
Director of Public Works
Roanoke, VA
Ryn Kennedy
Stormwater Facility Specialist
Henrico County, VA
Joe Kroboth, III, PE, LS, PWLF
Director, Transportation & Capital Infrastructure
Loudoun County, VA
Renee LaFollette, PE
Director of DPW Capital Projects
Town of Leesburg VA
Juan Reyes
Assistant Director of Public Works
Fairfax County, VA
Matt Stolte, PE, ENV SP
Assistant Director of Public Works
Town of Blacksburg, VA
Jeff Wilkerson
Director of Public Works
City of Martinsburg, WV
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APWA Mid-Atlantic Chapter | 5007 C Victory Blvd, #280 | Yorktown, VA 23693 |
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