July | August 2022
COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT DISTRICTS DRIVING POSITIVE CHANGE IN GEORGIA
[THE POLITICAL PULSE]
HIGHLIGHTS FROM 2022 PRIMARY
ELECTION SEASON
KSU PRESIDENT
KATHY SCHWAIG
ON FILLING GEORGIA’S TALENT GAP
TABLE OF CONTENTS
18 COVER STORY:
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Filling Georgia’s Talent Gap
THE PULSE News Coverage from In and Around the Engineering Community
NEW KSU PRESIDENT, KATHY SCHWAIG, ALONG WITH SOUTHERN POLYTECHNIC COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING, AIM TO BUILD ON TRACK RECORD OF SUCCESS
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ASSOCIATION NEWS
28 52 Six CIDs Making A Difference
Community Improvement Districts In Georgia
COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT DISTRICTS WITH WIDE-REACHING IMPACT AND ROBUST PLANS FOR THE FUTURE
A DISCUSSION WITH MALAIKA RIVERS
Updates from the Associations that Make Up the Georgia Engineering Alliance.
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A LOOK BACK A Back-Page Throwback Picturing Georgia’s Most Historic Landmarks
ON THE COVER Kathy Schwaig, President of Kennesaw State University
EDITORIAL BOARD
Publisher: Michael “Sully” Sullivan Editor-in-Chief: Brett Hillesheim Creative Director | Designer: Sabrina Tongren www.in8-design.com Contributing Editors: Chandler Baker Jennifer Head Contributing Writers: David Caraviello Brian J Lambert Zawn Villines Accounting Services Manager: Melisa Beauchamp Advertising Sales Manager: Jennifer Head ACEC Georgia 233 Peachtree Street Suite 700 Atlanta, Georgia 30303 jennifer.head@acecga.org (404) 665-3539
ANITA ATKINSON PE, Patterson & Dewar Engineers / ASCE Georgia / GEF CANDANCE SCALE / SAME CHAD BECKER Kimley-Horn STACEY CHAPMAN CIT, Croft Architecture and Engineering STEPHANIE DAMMEN-MORRELL Hussey Gay Bell MICHELLE ERSTE CPSM, iParametrics / SMPS Atlanta LIGIA FLORIM Cobb County DOT / WTS Atlanta PHILLIP HATCHER PE, SE, Uzun + Case / SEAOG JENNY C. JENKINS PE, VHB / ASHE Georgia CATHERINE JOHNSON AECOM / NSBE BETTY JEAN JORDAN PE, GSPE KELLY PATRICK PE, PTOE, Cobb County DOT / ITE Georgia JOHN PIERSON PE, Georgia Tech Research Institute / ASCE Georgia RANDAL RIEBEL PE, Delta Air Lines / GSPE THOMAS TRUE PE, LS, Maser Consulting SASHA UGI Croy Engineering BILL WELLS ITS Georgia
Send change of address to: ACEC Georgia 233 Peachtree Street, Suite 700, Atlanta, GA 30303 or email info@acecga.org
Facebook.com/EngineeringGA @Engineering_GA www.EngineeringGA.com Engineering Georgia 2022 is published bi-monthly by the American Council of Engineering Companies of Georgia (ACEC Georgia) and its partner associations ASCE, ASHE, GEF, GSPE, ITE, ITS, SAME, SEAOG, SMPS and WTS. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part without permission is prohibited. In8 Design, ACEC Georgia, and its partner associations ASCE, ASHE, GEF, GSPE, ITE, ITS, SAME, SEAOG, SMPS and WTS, as well as their representatives, employees and agents, are held harmless from any claim, demand, liability or action on account of, or in any way arising out of, the client’s advertising, products and services, or its participation in Engineering Georgia.
Atlanta Post
T
This time of year brings many dates that are important milestones for me. My birthday is July 20th. But far more importantly, August 2nd is my wedding anniversary and this year was the 25th anniversary of my brilliant and beautiful wife, Rebecca Sullivan, standing next to me at the altar to say “I do.” Those who know me may think she must not be all that brilliant if she married me. That’s fair, but we all make mistakes and as far as I know, that is her only one. I’m glad she made it because it was the best thing that ever happened to me and I’m grateful for her every day. I’m also very grateful to lead ACEC Georgia, and August 13th was the 10-year anniversary of my first day on the job. While marrying Rebecca was definitely the best decision I ever made, I think the decision to join ACEC Georgia ranks pretty high on the list of my good decisions (a list I wish was a lot longer than it is). Working on behalf of the engineering industry has been tremendously rewarding. Particularly when we are able to solve problems and improve the business climate for engineering firms. Sometimes, those problems can be solved quickly – with a phone call, meeting, or even passing legislation. Others can take more time. One example is the very first engineering industry problem that a member brought to me to solve about a month after I started. The problem was the customer service and enforcement issues that engineers and surveyors had been experiencing as a result of the Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors Licensing (PELS) Board having to share support staff with numerous other unrelated licensing boards. In addition to learning about those issues, I learned that the engineer and land surveyor licensing boards in most other states had their own dedicated support staff and had far better customer service and enforcement as a result.
In meetings of the Georgia Engineering Alliance Board (which is the Board where all of Georgia’s engineering societies come together to discuss issues that affect the entire engineering community), it became clear that this was an issue that needed to be addressed, and the consensus was that Georgia should follow the model of most other states, and provide the PELS Board with its own budget and staff. This brings me to a new milestone we created earlier this year: the successful passage of HB 476, which finally makes the PELS Board an independent agency with its own separate budget and the ability hire its own dedicated executive director, support staff, and investigators. It may have taken us ten years, but I am thrilled we finally achieved this longtime goal of Georgia’s engineers and surveyors. Now, all we have to do is get the General Assembly to appropriate the funding in next year’s legislative session that will allow us to begin the process of hiring staff and transitioning to a fully functioning, independent PELS Board (about this time next year, as the state’s fiscal year begins on July 1st). As always, if you have ideas for things we should be covering in the magazine or ideas on how we could improve it, please shoot me an email at sully@acecga.org and let me know.
GET SOCIAL SULLY@ACECGA.ORG 770-356-3769 @MICHAELLSULLY MICHAELLSULLY MICHAELLSULLIVAN
Michael L. "Sully" Sullivan President / CEO, ACEC Georgia Publisher, Engineering Georgia
RAYMOND-POND ENTERPRISE SOLUTIONS AWARDED $40M CONTRACT FOR A-E SERVICES AND MULTI-DISCIPLINE CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS TO ROBINS AFB, GA
Pond and its joint venture partner, Raymond Engineering (Raymond-Pond), have been awarded a new $40 million indefinitedelivery/ indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contract to provide architecture and engineering services to the 78th Air Base Wing at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. Through this strategic partnership, Raymond-Pond will continue to provide A-E services such as planning, design, and construction services for the 78th Air Base Wing, building upon its long history of providing design services to the base.
LEGIS CONSULTANCY AND PROFESSIONAL PROJECT SERVICES ANNOUNCE LEGIS-PRO2SERVE, LLC
Legis Consultancy, Inc. and Professional Project Services, Inc. are pleased to announce the formation of Legis-Pro2Serve, LLC. LegisPro2Serve is a certified Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business based in Atlanta, GA, with an office in Oak Ridge, TN. The firm’s President, Patrick Ray, JD, CCP, PMP, will lead the team in pursuit of Construction Management and Cost Engineering opportunities.
Image Courtesy of CHA
CHA RELEASES 2021 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT Kennesaw Recreational Facility | Photo courtesy of Jason Buch
NEW CROFT-DESIGNED KENNESAW RECREATIONAL CENTER WELCOMES THE PUBLIC, WINS DESIGN AWARD
CROFT & Associates newly-designed recreational center for the city of Kennesaw has officially opened and won its first award. The $10.5 million, 48,700 square feet recreational center, originally designed to be constructed in two phases, was ultimately completed in its entirety and ahead of schedule. Since opening in January, the facility has experienced high activity, welcoming city residents and the public for events and activities, including basketball, volleyball, and pickleball. The Kennesaw Recreational Facility earned First Place Honors for New Construction Management Projects completed by a contractor with $50-100M gross revenue from the Associated General Contractors of Georgia “Build Georgia” award program. The award celebrates projects demonstrating design and construction excellence.
CHA Consulting announces the release of its 2021 Sustainability Report. This report highlights the significant progress made toward achieving its very ambitious green goals and implementing programs to create a more environmentally, socially, and economically sustainable future and the impact that its services and expertise are having on clients’ sustainability objectives. “This report brings to life our commitment and tangible ongoing progress in building sustainability into everything we do. In addition to being the right thing to do, our measured and thoughtful sustainability efforts make good business sense for all our constituents, as more and more clients are seeking innovative solutions that are sustainable and friendly to the future of our planet,” said Jim Stephenson, CEO, CHA Holdings, Inc. and President, CHA Consulting, Inc. The 2021 Sustainability Report details innovative practices and technologies, impactful and rewarding projects, expanded efforts to create an inclusive and diverse workforce, meaningful community contributions, and continued integration of environmentally friendly practices in corporate programs. CHA’s 2021 Sustainability Report is available on the CHA website.
engineering ga [ feature the pulse [ news briefs ]]
July | August 7
GRESHAM SMITH COMPLETES CITY OF PALMETTO WATER AUGMENTATION PROJECT
Photo courtesy of Kennesaw State University
FOUR KENNESAW STATE STUDENTS AWARDED SCHOLARSHIPS FROM US DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
The US Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Nuclear Energy awarded four Kennesaw State students scholarships through its University Nuclear Leadership Program (UNLP) for the upcoming school year. The program invests in the next generation of nuclear scientists and engineers. The following students in the Southern Polytechnic College of Engineering and Engineering Technology (SPCEET) represent KSU as award winners: Simon Bratescu, Kofi Owusu, Evan Pudlo, and Anthony Schanie.
Gresham Smith was tasked with expanding the size of the Coweta County pressure zone, which required Photo Courtesy of Gresham Smith shifting the 250,000-gallon elevated Carlton Road storage tank to a new service line. One of the main concerns with this project was that this shift would increase water age and lead to increased contaminants in the water, triggering violation levels. Not only was the firm able to complete this shift, but it also found a way to reduce the level of chloroform by 68%. Gresham Smith’s design solution also included dampening pads on the aeration blowers, which help to reduce noise vibration, protecting the vitality and health of the surrounding community. Furthermore, the new set-up allows the City of Palmetto to do in-tank maintenance, enabling the city to continue to comply with federal Disinfection Byproduct Reduction regulations as it grows.
“These DOE scholarships are a wonderful opportunity to reward our talented students who are passionate about the field of nuclear engineering,” Lori Lowder, SPCEET’s Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, said. “The funds allow students to earn a minor in nuclear engineering that they may not otherwise be able to obtain. The scholarship and minor make a SPCEET graduate more competitive for positions in an industry where there is a need for future leaders who will develop innovative nuclear engineering solutions.” The scholarships can be used toward students’ tuition, books, and fees for the 2022-2023 school year.
EMC ENGINEERING SERVICES RECOGNIZED BY THE ZWEIG GROUP WITH 2022 AWARDS
EMC Engineering Services, Inc., headquartered in Savannah, Georgia, has been named among Zweig Group’s 2022 Best Firms To Work For and Zweig’s 2022 Hot Firms. The company ranked 23rd on Zweig’s Best Firms To Work For List for 2022, marking its highest-ever ranking and the 7th year of recognition by Zweig as one of the country’s Best Firms To Work For in the AEC Industry. The Best Firms to Work For award recognizes the top AEC firms in the US and Canada based on their workplace practices, employee benefits, employee retention rates, and much more.
8 Engineering Georgia
Photo Courtesy of Pond
MARTA SELECTS POND FOR ON-CALL CONTRACT TO IMPROVE INFRASTRUCTURE
The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) recently awarded a multi-year on-call contract to Pond for Architectural and Engineering Consulting Services to support the design of new and existing facilities and upgrade or replace facility components.The technical services covered under this contract include communication systems, electrical engineering, maintenance engineering, architectural engineering, landscape architecture, and operations. “Being selected by MARTA is a testament to our commitment to provide exceptional infrastructure design solutions to our clients,” added Bob Williams, PE, Chief Executive Officer. “We’re proud to offer the breadth and depth of Pond’s expertise to help MARTA achieve its ultimate mission of advocating and providing safe multimodal transit services that advance prosperity, connectivity, and equity for a more livable region.”
the pulse [ news briefs ]
IN MEMORIUM
LAWRENCE EDWARD BROWDER Larry graduated from Auburn with a Bachelor’s in Civil Engineering in March 1966, then immediately enrolled at Georgia Tech, receiving a Master’s in Structural Engineering in April 1967. Later that month, he entered active service in the United States Air Force as a 2nd Lieutenant. While in the Air Force, Browder focused on testing missile silos with simulated nuclear air pressure and ground shock loads and received his first credentials as a Professional Engineer (PE). At the end of his Air Force service commitment in 1971, Browder moved back to Atlanta and began his career as a structural engineer at Heery & Heery, where he met and worked with his future business partner and lifelong friend, Sergio LeGuizamon. Early in 1978, after receiving an MBA from Georgia State University, Browder decided to take the “big plunge,” as he called it, and went into business for himself. The business grew exponentially, and after two years, Sergio joined him, and together they proudly opened the doors of Browder + LeGuizamon and Associates, Inc. in March 1981. Since its founding, B+L has served as a structural engineer on more than 10,000 different projects in 44 states and multiple foreign countries. Today, the skyline of the entire Atlanta metropolitan area is marked in every direction by the firm’s work.
EDWARD WILLIAM DAVIDSON, JR. Ed Davidson Jr., age 85, of Senoia, Georgia, passed away on June 8th, 2022. Davidson graduated from Southern Tech, where he completed his electrical engineering degree. While working for General Electric, he took night classes at Georgia Tech to complete his Professional Engineering certification. In 1965, Davidson began working with a small design and engineering firm, Edwards and Rosser. He rose to become a senior partner and later chairman emeritus of the board of Rosser International. In his later years, he took on the role of chairman and consultant to International Aviation Consultants, LLC, a joint majority/minority firm that managed various aspects of the Hartsfield-Jackson Airport runway expansion. Davidson also served as chairman of the Greater Atlanta Economic Alliance, championing small, female, and minority-owned construction firms. As a consulting engineer, he received numerous professional recognitions and served as president of the Georgia Engineers Council, President of the ACEC Georgia, and later as a National Director and Vice-President of ACEC National.
July | August 9
COLLIERS ENGINEERING & DESIGN
proactive legislative and regulatory advocacy program in tax, finance, employment policy, and other regulatory areas on behalf of ACEC member firms.
is pleased to announce that it has hired Tom Rock as National Director of Subsurface Utility Engineering services. Rock has been involved with SUE services related to Tom Rock Department of Transportation work throughout the Southeast since its inception and acceptance of ASCE standards. He played a pivotal role in helping to develop the SUE process into the recognized engineering profession it is today. Throughout his career, Rock has been responsible for managing On-Call SUE contracts for SCDOT, NCDOT, GDOT, VDOT, Fairfax Co., TxDOT, IDOT, ODOT, PennDOT, and ALDOT. He is a member of the Utility Engineering and Survey Institute (UESI), North and South Carolina ASHE, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia ACEC organizations.
Pace joined Thomas & Hutton in 2013 and became a shareholder in 2019. He oversees the company's financial reporting, financial planning and analysis, treasury, human resources, and risk management functions. His previous roles include nearly 30 years of leadership roles with Fortune 100 companies. Pace graduated from The Citadel, where he received his Bachelor of Science in Accounting, and Fairleigh Dickinson University, where he received his Master of Business Administration. Pace is a Certified Management Accountant (CMA) and a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) and is involved in several business and community organizations, including America's Second Harvest of Coastal Georgia, United Way, Savannah Recreation Commission, and Savannah CFO Council.
VHB
HNTB
Brian Burch
welcomes Brian Burch, PE, as a Senior Project Manager in the Southeast Division. He will focus on project delivery throughout the multi-state region, including North and South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, and Tennessee. Working out of the Atlanta office, Burch brings nearly three decades of experience in transportation engineering and infrastructure projects in the region.
Debbi Justice
Over his notable 29-year career with the North Carolina Department of Transportation, Burch has held numerous management and leadership positions as District Engineer, Division Engineer, and Deputy Chief Engineer in the western region of the state. In 2010 Burch assumed the role of Project Manager for North Carolina's Corridor K project. With his team collaborating with over a dozen stakeholder organizations and committing to consider alternatives to delivering the project, Burch was able to move the project forward successfully.
THOMAS & HUTTON
(T&H) is pleased to announce that Chief Financial Officer Tom Pace has been named Vice-Chair of the American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) 's Tax & Regulatory Affairs Committee for a two-year term. The Tax & Regulatory Affairs Committee undertakes a Tom Pace
10 Engineering Georgia
engineering the pulse [ on gathe [ feature move ]]
Audra Rojek
welcomes Debbi Justice, PE, PMP, as Manager of Transmission Line Engineering in VHB's Atlanta office. Her civil and structural electrical transmission line engineering leadership brings a multi-disciplined perspective to clients' engineering and energy challenges. She has helped some of the largest energy companies on the East Coast navigate regulatory requirements and understand new energy policies. She is an advocate for advancing reliable, sustainable, and efficient energy projects that move transmission and distribution projects to completion. VHB is also thrilled to welcome Audra Rojek, AICP, to our Atlanta office as Transportation Planning Manager. Audra will work closely with the VHB transportation and transit planners and traffic engineers in the Transportation Systems team, collaborating with community planning, design, and environmental teams. She will be involved with local and regional transportation plans and studies, collaborating with VHB's clients across Georgia.
CHRISTY TARALLO
W
With the dust finally settled around a primary election season rife with political party infighting, Georgia voters can now enjoy a slight reprieve from political mailers, personal attacks on candidates, and campaign commercials flooding the airways, but it will be shortlived. The November elections aren’t far off, and with the political landscape constantly shifting, ACEC Georgia’s government affairs team decided to dive into this summer’s results to report on a primary season like no other. While in past primary seasons, incumbents tended to stave off any potential competitors from the same party—especially at the top of the ticket—the 2022 primary election season differed significantly from that tradition. Every current Republican official at the state-wide level had a primary challenger, and Democrats were not spared from this fate either. Nearly all Democratic incumbents serving in Congress and the US Senate faced primary opposition. In fact, incumbents at all levels of government had a difficult primary election season, while others opted against running for re-election. Seventy-four officials holding statewide, Congressional, and General Assembly seats faced primary challengers; 51 electeds chose not to seek re-election, opting instead to run for higher office or retire from public service all together; and another five incumbents lost their respective primaries. Despite the overwhelming number of crowded primaries and incumbency challenges, several current Republican leaders in high-profile races were able to avoid a run-off, including the Governor and Secretary of State. However, these welcome results were not only enjoyed by incumbents. A number of candidates for open seats in Republican primaries, including the races for Lieutenant Governor and the Republican nomination for the US Senate seat, were equally successful in avoiding a June run-off election. For the most part, Democratic incumbents also enjoyed this trend, and fared very well while other races, lacking an incumbent or favored candidate, where determined by the June run-off.
THE MOST SIGNIFICANT HIGHLIGHTS FROM THIS YEAR’S PRIMARY ELECTION SEASON INCLUDE:
Governor: Governor Brian Kemp handily defeated former Senator David Perdue with a 50-point spread for the Republican nomination for governor in May, while former State House Minority Leader Stacey Abrams ran unopposed for the Democratic nomination for the state’s highest constitutional office. Abrams and Governor Kemp and will face off, for the second time, in November.
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Lt. Governor: Senator Burt Jones earned the Republican nomination for the open seat outright in May with 50.06% of the vote. On the Democratic side, Charlie Bailey and Kwanza Hall duked it out in a June run-off, where Bailey captured the nomination. Secretary of State: Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger emerged victorious in the Republican primary against Congressman Jody Hice (CD 10) and a host of other candidates in the May primary. During a June run-off, current State Representative Bee Nguyen won the Democratic nomination against former State Representative Dee Dawkins-Haigler. U.S. Senate: Former UGA running back Herschel Walker bested several candidates in May, winning the Republican nomination outright for the Senate seat currently occupied by incumbent Senator Raphael Warnock. The two will go head-to-head in November for a seat that could potentially decide which party controls the US Senate for the next two years. Congressional District 7: After re-districting drew her out of her old district, Congresswoman Lucy McBath (formerly CD 6) ran against Congresswoman Carolyn Bourdeaux (CD 7). McBath won the nomination without a run-off and will face Republican Mark Gonsalves for the seat in November. Congressional District 6: Lacking an incumbent and leaning more heavily Republican after re-districting, the Republican nomination for the open seat was determined by a June run-off, which resulted in a landslide victory for Dr. Rich McCormick over attorney Jake Evans. McCormick will face Democrat Bob Christian for the position in November. Congressional District 10: In what was perhaps the most volatile race during the primary season, Mike Collins won the Republican nomination for CD 10, defeating former State Representative and Democrat-turnedRepublican Vernon Jones in the June run-off. Mr. Collins will face Tabitha Johnson-Green in November for the seat formerly occupied by Congressman Hice. As we move closer towards November 8th, some may worry that the vitriolic nature of this primary season will extend to an equally bitter general election season, complete with constant, baseless personal attacks. But Georgia voters can take heart in the knowledge that our current situation pales in comparison to the political slander of the past. Case in point: in 1800, the John Adams’ campaign started a rumor that Thomas Jefferson had died and was no longer eligible for the presidency. Fortunately, we now have more accessible means to confirm the vital life signs of today’s candidates. A
July | August 13
the pulse
OUT & ABOUT
Participants in ASHE’s Golf Tournament
Participants in ASHE’s Golf Tournament
Participants in ASHE’s Golf Tournament
ACEC Georgia staff enjoys dinner before the 2022 Georgia Engineers Summer Conference starts
Participants in ASHE’s Golf Tournament
Participants at the 2022 Georgia Engineers Summer Conference
Chuck Roberts, President & CEO, Performance Management Group, Inc.
Veronica Jenkins, Kyle Mote, Travis Riker, and moderator Charlene Smart discuss Winning The War for Talent
Elizabeth Hartzog, Leon Hendee, Melissa Ting, and moderator Michael “Sully” Sullivan discuss Retaining Talent: What Your Younger Employees Are Looking For
John Lowry, President, Thrivence
Albert Shelby, Director of Program Delivery, GDOT
Joe Allen, Ann Hanlon, Alisha Smith, Kristin Winzeler, and moderator Michael Leithhead give a CID Directors Update
the pulse
GEORGIA NUMBERS by the
1777 56
YEAR THE GEORGIA STATE ASSEMBLY was founded in Savannah, Georgia.
180
STATE REPRESENTATIVES serve the lower house of the Georgia General Assembly.
5
CITIES THAT HAVE SERVED AS GEORGIA’S CAPITOL. Savannah, Augusta, Louisville, Milledgeville, and finally, Atlanta have all served as Georgia’s state capitol at one point.
SENATORS serve the upper house of the Georgia General Assembly.
562
BILLS WERE PASSED by the Georgia General Assembly during the 2022 Georgia Legislative Session.
60
BILLS TRACKED by ACEC Georgia on behalf of it's members.
July | August 17
18 Engineering Georgia
FILLING GEORGIA’S TALENT GAP New KSU President, Kathy Schwaig, along with Southern Polytechnic College of Engineering, aim to build on track record of success DAVID CARAVIELLO
I
In February of 2019, Dr. Kathy Schwaig was elevated to the role of Provost at Kennesaw State University, putting her in charge of all the school’s academic departments. Soon afterward she toured the University’s Marietta campus, home to the Southern Polytechnic College of Engineering and Engineering Technology—and for the first time, truly realized why the engineering program has been so central to Kennesaw State’s growth. “I had not been around an engineering college either as a student or an administrator,” recalled Schwaig, who has a background in information technology. “I was probably most blown away by the labs, and the practical nature of the education that the students get. Some of the labs are massive, and walking through them and watching students build and design things, I was very, very impressed with it.” N
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Today, Schwaig oversees not just academic departments, but all of Kennesaw State itself. In March she was named the new President of the third-largest university in Georgia, with 43,000 students. The majority of those students are from Georgia, and stay in Georgia after graduation—meaning that the Southern Polytechnic College of Engineering and Engineering Technology will play a major role in filling the engineering talent gap in the Peach State. “I think it's a huge role, and I think it's an obligation. I think it's a responsibility that we have in a state that has been very generous with public support of higher education. So that is our job, that is our expectation. Our Board of Regents is going to look at us and ask the question, what are you doing to meet that demand?” said Schwaig, who spent eight months as Interim President of Kennesaw State before being elevated to the role on a permanent basis. “We’re always going to have that very relevant, very pragmatic approach, even as we've moved into to being a research institution. That’s the focus of the research our facility does, and it's very translatable to industry. That's the heart and soul of what we do as an institution. It's about educating the next workforce, but also educating Georgia citizens of the future so that they can continue to learn throughout their careers. And that's a core element of what higher education has to do today.”
COMMUTER SCHOOL TO CARNEGIE DESIGNATION
A Texas native with degrees from Baylor University, Johns Hopkins University and the University of South Carolina, Schwaig joined the faculty at Kennesaw State in 2002. Since then, she’s served in a variety of leadership roles at the school—including interim chair for the departments of accounting and computer science, dean of the college of business, and endowed chair of entrepreneurial management. In early 2019, Schwaig was named Kennesaw State’s Provost by then-President Pamela Whitten, a role which made Schwaig the school’s No. 2 administrator, overseeing the deans of the University’s 13 colleges. It was in the provost’s role that Schwaig truly began to appreciate the breadth of KSU beyond the colleges where she had previously worked. She learned about other academic departments, about facilities, about the athletic programs, about marketing and communications, all of it at a university-wide level. N
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Photo courtesy of Cooper Carry
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July | August 21
Photo courtesy of Cooper Carry
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Schwaig was Provost until July of 2021, when Whitten was selected to become President of Indiana University. Schwaig moved into the interim president’s role, and was clear to the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia (USG) that she wanted the permanent job. “You kind of have to speak out,” she said. “You have to say, ‘I am interested, I would love to have this opportunity.’ But then you get into the process, just like everybody else.” Kennesaw State conducted a national search for its next President. Schwaig applied for the position, and believes her familiarity with the University, and the variety of leadership positions she’d held over nearly two decades at the school, worked in her favor. On March 15, USG announced Schwaig as Kennesaw State’s new President. “As a longtime member of the KSU community,” USG Acting Chancellor Teresa MacCartney said, “she has been a major part of its journey to become a force for student success in higher education.” Schwaig has seen Kennesaw State’s growth firsthand. When she first arrived in 2002, the University was primarily a commuter school with 15,000 students, 80 percent of which were age 28 or older. It was just beginning to open residence halls. Kennesaw State had achieved university status only six years earlier, the school’s athletic program competed at the NCAA Division II level, and the debut of the football program was still 13 years away. Now, Schwaig oversees a university with a larger enrollment than that of the University of Georgia, with 6,500 residence hall beds and 90 percent of students aged 18 to 22. In 2018, it became one of 259 institutions to carry a Carnegie doctoral research designation. And the football team has evolved into one of the best in the Atlantic Sun Conference. “It’s fun to put all those elements together and watch them develop,” she said. “Hopefully they take deep roots during my presidency and continue to grow and flourish for decades to come.”
MOVING QUICKLY TO RELEVANCE AND IMPACT
Kennesaw State’s Southern Polytechnic College of Engineering and Engineering Technology has helped foster the growth of the University at large. The College of Engineering resulted when the USG Board of Regents merged KSU with Southern Polytechnic State University in 2015, creating what is now Georgia’s second-largest engineering college. That legacy endures at Kennesaw State, whose engineering school is housed at the Marietta campus that was once home to Southern Polytechnic State. “The consolidation of these two fine universities will create an educational and economic powerhouse for the State of Georgia, and for that matter, the nation,” then-KSU president Dr. Dan Papp said after the merger was announced. Those words proved prophetic: as of the fall of 2020—the most recent year for which figures are available— KSU’s engineering school had 5,048 students, making it Kennesaw State’s third-largest by enrollment. N
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“Something has been created that far exceeds what either campus was individually before,” Schwaig said. “KSU is better because of the majors and degrees that are on the Marietta campus.” The Southern Polytechnic College of Engineering and Engineering Technology has grown to offer 12 undergraduate degrees, 13 engineering minors, six master’s degree programs and one engineering doctorate. It added civil, electrical and mechanical engineering degrees in 2009, and programs in aerospace, robotics and mechatronics have followed. “Our focus is on industry needs,” Schwaig said. “Because our faculty members are so connected to industry, they're going to have a good sense of what is coming next. And so, in this way, if we put something new on the books now, if we create a new program, it's because there is high industry demand for employees that are educated in that space. So that's what we're always looking for.” Kennesaw State’s engineering program is grounded in relevant industry experience; faculty members all have it, and students work toward it with a heavy emphasis on laboratory work, the reason behind those large
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Photo courtesy of Archinect lab buildings that Schwaig noticed when she first toured the Marietta campus as provost. Students quickly put theoretical knowledge to work through building, testing, and experimenting—just as they’ll be doing after graduation. “A few weeks ago, I toured one of our local engineering firms that just has a big desire to hire our engineering technology graduates, who are very hands-on and very pragmatic. They not only help in the design of things, but they build the prototypes, or they build the mock-ups. I think our reputation is very, very strong for producing work-ready, high-quality graduates. They are work-ready when they get out,” Schwaig said. “We have faculty that for the most part came from industry, so they understand where these students are going. And they build programs that I think are relevant, and still have a theoretical base, which is important. That's what higher ed adds to the conversation, and we have faculty that understand the theory, and are doing research in that in that area. But they take it very quickly to relevance and impact. We don't sit in the theoretical very long.” N
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July | August 25
STANDING OUT EVEN AMID TECH’S SHADOW
That approach has its roots in the genesis of Southern Polytechnic State University, which was founded in 1948 to address the state’s technology-related workforce needs in the wake of World War II. Of those first 116 students, all but 10 were war veterans. The school was initially established as a two-year branch of the Georgia Institute of Technology, with which it maintained an affiliation until it broke away to become independent in 1980. Of course, it’s impossible to discuss engineering education in metro Atlanta and the Peach State without acknowledging the large shadow that Georgia Tech casts from its Midtown campus. Georgia Tech enrolled more than 8,000 undergraduate students into its engineering college in 2020, part of Tech’s 43,859 total student enrollment. And yet, Kennesaw State has managed to not only carve its own niche in the metro Atlanta engineering landscape, but also see continued growth in an engineering college that had 3,500 students in 2015. Once again, it’s the pragmatic approach that helps KSU stand out.
Photo courtesy of KSU
“The engineering technology piece of what we do, that's why that campus was created—to be less theoretical, more practical, more hands-on,” Schwaig said. “The educational experience that you can have at Kennesaw State and our engineering college is very, very attractive to students. Georgia Tech has a very prestigious program, but it's very hard to get into their program. And there are a lot of highly qualified students that we're happy to educate at KSU. The quality of the students that we have is extraordinary, and it only continues to get better.” The growth at KSU continues. In 2016, Southern Polytechnic College of Engineering and Engineering Technology began offering an online graduate degree program in engineering management. A bachelor’s degree program in computer engineering followed the next year. In 2021, the University of System of Georgia approved a Master’s in intelligent robotics system, and a doctorate in interdisciplinary engineering—the first engineering Ph.D. offered by the university’s engineering program. And upon completion, the overwhelming majority of those graduates will put their degrees to work in the state of Georgia. “The majority of our students at KSU are from Georgia, and most of them stay in Georgia when they graduate. And so, we're just really proud of that, and that’s certainly true of our engineers,” Schwaig said. “Our engineers when they graduate, 92 percent of them stay in Georgia, and they're still in Georgia five years later. So, we take very seriously our role as an institution of educating Georgia, and impacting Georgia’s economy.” A
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July | August 27
SIX CIDs MAKING A DIFFERENCE Community Improvement Districts with wide-reaching impact and robust plans for the future. ZAWN VILLINES
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In 1983 John Williams, Founder and President of Post Properties, traveled to Washington D.C. with Earl Smith, Chairman of the Cobb County Commission, in search of a solution to emerging transportation and infrastructure challenges in Cobb County. They learned that business improvement districts had helped fill government funding gaps across the country. But the Georgia Constitution explicitly banned these districts. N
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July | August 29
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Williams partnered with State Representative Joe Mack Wilson and lobbied for change. In 1984, Georgians voted to approve a constitutional amendment authorizing Community Improvement Districts (CID), Georgia's version of a business improvement district. Under the amendment, CIDs must be created to provide one or more governmental services, such as parks and recreation, public transportation, water management, road construction and maintenance, traffic control, or sewage collection and disposal. Georgia is now home to more than 25 active CIDs that have contributed billions of dollars to community improvement, infrastructure, and public safety projects. CIDs have been integral to some of Georgia's most beloved projects, including the Atlanta BeltLine, numerous parks, and dozens of greenspaces and interchanges. CIDs collect revenue through self-imposed and self-regulated property taxes on non-residential properties. These taxes are in addition to the millage rates counties and cities collect. The property owners elect a Board of Directors, which oversees the use of the funds. CIDs may form partnerships with local governments, businesses, or other CIDs to raise funds and complete projects. "CIDs operate as good stewards of the tax dollars they bring in. Our operating expenses are kept lean so more of our funds can be invested in projects. It is an exceptional business model that greatly benefits the community and the region it serves," said Ann M. Hanlon, Executive Director of the Perimeter Community Improvement Districts. The largest and most active CIDs are all clustered around metro Atlanta. These Community Improvement Districts boast active involvement in their communities, wide-reaching impact, and robust plans for the future. N
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Gerald McDowell, Executive Director , Atlanta Airport CIDs
ATLANTA AIRPORT CIDS
Together, the Airport South CID, in Clayton County, and the Airport West CID, in Fulton County make up the two Atlanta Airport Community Improvement Districts (AACID). Formed in 2014, AACID partners with local stakeholders and hosts monthly board meetings that are open to the public. "The AACIDs represent over 900 commercial parcels and 325 property owners," said Gerald McDowell, Executive Director of the Airport West Community Improvement District. "We collaborate with our government partners – Fulton County, Clayton County, Atlanta, East Point, College Park, Forest Park, South Fulton, and Hapeville – and work with the Chambers in South Metro as well as the Aerotropolis Alliance. Our main focus is infrastructure, which includes roads, bridges, sidewalks, transportation, streetscape, and landscape." The AACIDs have invested over a million dollars in public safety and beautification. This includes 75 Flock license plate cameras throughout the district, with a command center in the office of the AACIDs. The AACIDs also continue weekly maintenance and landscaping across 15 square miles, including five state routes. Atlanta consistently tops lists of cities with the worst commutes. A 2019 Geotab study found that 6% of residents commute longer than an hour to work. Only 10% of residents who use public transit report being able to get to work in 30 minutes or less. Over the last four years, the AACIDs have worked with regional transportation partners, including GDOT, MARTA, and the Atlanta Regional Commission to advance a comprehensive transit vision for the airport region. The automated transit network AACID envisions it will include personal rapid transit, microtransit, and autonomous shuttles. N
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Some other recent AACID projects include: • Through a partnership, AACID and GDOT completed the $13 million diverging diamond interchange servicing the intersection of Camp Creek Parkway and I-285. • Thanks to a $350,000 transit feasibility study, the AACID has entered the exploratory phase of its Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) system in the AACIDs Mobility District. This mode of transportation would use small pod cars to transport passengers throughout the Mobility District. • The AACIDs Freight Plan, valued at $313,000, will generate additional improvements in the district, particularly along Camp Creek Parkway and I-285. "After our Freight and Cluster Study, we will be advancing over 30 projects identified for improvement throughout the Districts," McDowell added. N
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Jim Durrett, Executive Director, Buckhead CID
BUCKHEAD CID
Initially formed in 1999, the Buckhead CID endeavors to make Buckhead a walkable, livable urban center. As concerns about crime increase, a key priority has been improving public safety. "Crime in Buckhead has gotten a lot of headlines in recent years, which has created a perception that it's not safe to come here," said Buckhead CID Executive Director Jim Durrett. "In reality, Buckhead is quite safe. While crime within Atlanta has been on the rise overall, crime within APD's Zone 2, Buckhead's zone, has decreased over the past two years. Zone 2 won the crime reduction award in 2021, which is down 11% year-to-date compared to last year, while crime is up in every other zone." A collaboration between Buckhead CID, Cousins Properties, the Atlanta Police Department, and the Buckhead Coalition opened a new APD precinct at Buckhead Village this year. The precinct will staff at least a dozen officers, with an eventual goal of hosting 24 officers. Partnerships with APD, the City of Atlanta, and local businesses have enabled the CID to fund police cruiser patrols and extra bike patrols. The Buckhead CID is currently spearheading the first multi-lane roundabout in the City of Atlanta. Its signature project is the remaking of Peachtree Road, which is now in its third phase. N
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Some other Buckhead CID projects include: • HUB404. This project will create a nine-acre greenspace above GA 400. Thanks to assistance from Georgia State Representative Nikema, District 5, the project is on track to receive federal funding next year. • Lenox Road Complete Street. This project will create a linear urban park along Lenox Road, adding much-needed pedestrian and bike infrastructure in Buckhead. • A number of pedestrian-focused improvements, including building a new pedestrian hybrid beacon (PHB) crossing Roswell Road from Charlie Loudermilk Park. "From ongoing landscaping along major arteries in Buckhead to programs increasing connectivity, the CID is the driving force behind progress to create a walkable community where residents want to live, businesses thrive, and visitors feel safe. A big reason for our success is our trusting relationship with our partners in the public sector and the return on our CID taxpayers' investment. We don't take that for granted and work hard to maintain that drive to deliver," Durrett added. N
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Kim Menefee, Executive Director, Cumberland CID
CUMBERLAND CID
Cumberland CID was Georgia's first CID, founded in 1988 as a result of the constitutional amendment effort led by John Williams, Earl Smith and State Rep. Joe Mack Wilson. Since then, the Cumberland CID has improved access, connectivity, and the character of the Cumberland District. "Cumberland is experiencing tremendous growth and development," says Kim Menefee, Cumberland CID Executive Director. "Today, the District has a $23.6 billion annual impact on Georgia's economy, over 4.5 million square feet of commercial development in the pipeline, and 30,000 people who call Cumberland home." The Cumberland Submarket is one of the largest submarkets in the Southeast. The top-ten employers in the area alone deliver 12,000 of the submarket's 76,400 jobs and produces nearly 165,000 total jobs around the state. For decades, the approximately 190 commercial property owners in the CID have been investing in critical infrastructure and beautification improvements. "The district has really evolved from a 9 to 5 business center to a growing, thriving major employment center. We are now considered more than a business district. Cumberland is a business, cultural, and entertainment district," Menefee said. "Commercial property owners have invested $160 million to-date, which combined with our partners at the federal, state, and local levels, translates to $2.5 billion worth of investments in the District," she added. The CID's investments have had a strong track record of success and have enhanced access and investment in the Cumberland Market Area, making it one of the most desirable communities to live, work, play, and shop. N
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Some of Cumberland CID's current projects include: • The Akers Mill Road Ramp will provide a 12th access point to the Interstate 75 Northwest Express Lanes. This $44 million project was funded by numerous partners and will provide safe and efficient connection to the 100,000+ people who travel within the Cumberland area daily. • The Cumberland Sweep is a 3-mile, multimodal corridor designed to improve connectivity throughout the core of the Cumberland District. It will have dedicated walking and biking lanes and an autonomous shuttle system to make travel easier, more reliable, and safer within The District. • The Paces Mills Palisades Unit is part of the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area (CRNRA) and one of the most popular destinations in the CRNRA. The $11.8 million rehabilitation project will create a new, state-of-the-art visitor information center, new river access points with river viewing platforms, improved boat ramps, and more visitor amenities. "The District has really evolved and continues to transform and attract corporate headquarters; the Pandemic didn't slow that down. Cumberland is a cool place to live now, which is really exciting for us in the District," Menefee added. N
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Joe Allen, Executive Director, Gwinnett Place CID
GWINNETT PLACE CID
Established in 2006, the Gwinnett Place CID envisions Gwinnett as a flourishing, diverse, business-friendly community. It serves 2,841 businesses, 27,904 employees, and millions of visitors annually through its successful partnerships with Gwinnett County Government, the Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce, the State of Georgia, and others. Its partnership with the Atlanta Regional Commission aims to transform Gwinnett Place Mall – a once thriving mall that has significantly declined – into a walkable, sustainable mixed-use development. In 2021, the CID selected Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Inc. to chart the redevelopment path forward, focusing on seizing market-driven opportunities within an equity framework that centers on the region's cultural diversity. "Gwinnett Place is more than a dead mall. Gwinnett Place remains one of metro Atlanta's most successful business hubs," said Joe Allen, Gwinnett Place CID Executive Director. "Over 2,800 businesses produce about $6.3 billion in annual sales and $1.8 billion in wages and benefits in Gwinnett Place, and overall, Gwinnett Place has an annual economic impact of $13.4 billion. Gwinnett Place is also home to 23% of Gwinnett County's class A office space and 10% of the county's total office space. There's an annual $1.69 billion economic output in retail sales (that's more than the Mall of Georgia and Sugarloaf areas combined) and $118 million annual economic output in retail food and beverage sales." The CID has focused heavily on quality of life and safety improvements, including daily security patrols, removing illegal signs, and nearly 50 tons of trash each year. The CID also has installed 63 Flock license plate cameras. According to Allen, these cameras have led to the location of 93 wanted persons, the recovery of 104 stolen cars and 33 stolen tags, and 46 investigations that produced an arrest. "Gwinnett Police tell us that the CID's installation of the cameras has been a game-changer in their ongoing efforts to keep Gwinnett's central business district at Gwinnett Place one of the safest locations in the county," Allen added. Some other Gwinnett Place CID projects include: • Transportation investments such as intersection improvements, continuous traffic signal improvements, and miles of new sidewalks. • A mobile channel to promote local businesses. • Numerous park and walkability improvements, including a plan to connect the Gwinnett Place commercial area to Shorty Howell and McDaniel Farm parks. N
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Ann Hanlon, Executive Director , Perimeter CIDs
PERIMETER CIDS
For two decades, the Perimeter Community Improvement Districts have partnered with governments to improve the region for businesses and residents. Its new Capital Work Plan includes a mix of congestion relief, new trails along Ashford Dunwoody, Peachtree Dunwoody, and Mt. Vernon Road, as well as its Livable Cities Initiative. PCIDs is also responsible for the DeKalb County, Dunwoody, Sandy Springs, and Fulton County police officers who direct traffic at up to 21 intersections in the Perimeter Business District during peak traffic. "Perimeter CIDs is very bullish on the market. We see the district's solid growth mode, welcoming several large-scale office leases, such as Carvana and HapagLloyd. Other significant developments are planned or underway that will positively impact the entire district. We are delighted that the state continues its large investment in the 285/400 Top End program slated to be completed in 2023," Executive Director Ann Hanlon said. Some other Perimeter CIDs projects include: • The Bicycle Implementation Strategy is developing a plan to make Perimeter into a safe and accessible urban center for bicycles. • The Perimeter Community Districts has won funding to design commuter rails between various Perimeter corporate campuses. • A 2012 award of $1 million in grants from GTIB/SRTA allows Perimeter CIDs to partner with the City of Sandy Springs to advance a concept plan for the Lake Hearn at Peachtree Dunwoody Road intersection. "As we partner with our local governments, we are able to leverage our tax dollars along with TSPLOST dollars in Fulton County and SPLOST, Hotel/Motel dollars in DeKalb County to advance projects that would otherwise be shouldered 100% by the cities. Having PCIDs as a financing mechanism helps everyone keep costs low as a benefit to all who work, live in, or visit the district," added Hanlon. PCIDs' 2020 Perimeter in Progress update reviewed projects in several other regions and updated the 2018 Perimeter CIDs Consolidated Plan. The report prioritizes fostering access, mobility, and a sense of place throughout the region. N
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Tracy Styf, Executive Director, Town Center CID
TOWN CENTER CID
Town Center CID celebrates its 25th anniversary this year. Through its partnerships with the Atlanta Regional Commission, Cobb Chamber, Kennesaw State University and other CIDs such as Cumberland CID and Gateway Marietta CID, it has spearheaded a wide range of projects. Between 1997 and 2020, it leveraged $169.6 million and invested $58.5 million in the Town Center community. "As we mark this milestone, we lead with a vision to enable the most prosperous future for the Town Center Community. We advance our vision each day through 14 coordinated projects that transform our ability to connect and access our parks and trails, commerce and retail, restaurants, and residential communities," said Tracy Styf, Executive Director. The CID focuses on projects that promote safety, traffic improvements, and quality of life, including the Skip Spann Connector, Big Shanty connector, and Noonday Creek Trail. One of its signature upcoming projects is the South Barrett Reliever Phase 3. This roadway will reduce congestion on Barrett Parkway by 22% while adding corridor improvements such as bike lanes and crosswalks and offering a less congested path to Town Center's prime growth areas. N
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Some other projects include: • Building the Noonday Creek Trail pedestrian bridge at Cobb Parkway. • Various studies and assessments, including engineering and environmental studies for new multimodal and trail connections in Cobb Place and Chastain Meadows. The CID's research includes freight and logistics and electric vehicle infrastructure studies. • The Town Center Bike Share Program provides 24/7 access to 45 bikes at six stations across the CID. "We bring expertise, passion, and leadership to transportation, mobility, trails, parks, and cultural assets. While marking our anniversary, we are laser-focused on continuing to innovate to help our changing community meet its most complex issues. We are releasing a 2022 Master Plan Update that presents a strategic and forward-thinking look at our future projects and how we continue to make an impact on an evolving community. The plan prioritizes more than 60 projects and initiatives across four categories: placemaking, trails, smart technology, and transportation/multimodal enhancements," Styf added.
THE FUTURE OF CIDS
A decades-long track record of delivering successful projects have earned CIDs the praise of Georgia's residents and immensely improved the quality of life and property values within their boundaries. So, it's no wonder that property owners in other regions often spearhead the push for creating new CIDs when a new project or program is identified. As a result of the success of this powerful tool for infrastructure, community improvement and revitalization, new CIDs continue to form all over Georgia. A
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COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT DISTRICTS IN GEORGIA A Discussion with Malaika Rivers
BRIAN J LAMBERT
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Community Improvement Districts (CIDs) have emerged as important drivers of positive change in Georgia. Authorized under Article IX, Section VII of the Georgia Constitution, CIDs utilize an additional, self-imposed property tax on non-residential properties (not to exceed 2.5 percent of the assessed value of the commercial property). The resulting revenue can be used to fund community improvement, infrastructure, and public safety projects that will improve quality of life. "CIDs form when neighboring property owners join together to amplify their voice and raise money by creating a self-taxing authority to improve their community," says Malaika Rivers, a 30-year CID veteran who heads the Chamblee Doraville CID and is a Partner with Lexicon Strategies. "Initially, CIDs focused on transportation, but now their projects can include things like parks and recreation, stormwater and sewage systems, water systems, public transportation systems, and other services and facilities," she adds.
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And while most CIDs are in Metro Atlanta, it's a tool that communities around the state could use to create revenue and leadership around needed revitalization and redevelopment.
CHANGING NEEDS
By engaging with CIDs, "commercial property owners can initiate improvements that benefit their real estate investments and partner with government to improve their communities," Rivers explains. When CIDs were first developing in the 1980s, their focus was on drivable suburban roads since residences were miles away from commercial real estate at that time. But as real estate trends have changed and the renaissance of urban areas has given rise to residential properties in traditionally commercial spaces, a new mix of CID partnerships and project types has emerged. CIDs are changing focus to projects that reflect the move toward walkable, live/work/play types of communities, and Rivers notes that "the current trend is toward providing amenities that create connectivity and more pedestrian-friendly streetscapes that allow for people to work in a community and attract residential life as well."
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PARTNERSHIPS AND PROJECTS
In addition to funding, CIDs are a tool for community stakeholders to identify needed capital projects or programs and collaborate with the government to make them happen. CIDs can identify the need, bring resources to the table, and help scope, plan, and design a project. CIDs are a unique partnership between the government and the private sector that can get projects done more quickly. As Rivers points out, "if there is grant money for preliminary engineering, the CID might provide the local match, or the CID along with the local government could provide the local match to draw down those funds." CIDs can jump-start projects that might otherwise languish by initiating the plans, engaging the consultants (such as engineering firms, planning firms, etc.), and providing initial funding. These projects are often run through and directly managed by CIDs, offering a more streamlined approach to management and community engagement. While they juggle multiple projects, CIDs typically have minimal staff, with some only having an executive director. Because of this, most CIDs outsource their work through partnerships with qualified engineering firms. Rivers notes, "CIDs are at their best when they are the convener, the organizer, and the facilitator, but not necessarily directly staffing those functions." For example, Rivers notes that the Chamblee Doraville CID "enlisted the engineering and planning firm, Stantec for assistance with the master improvement plan" and "will continue to partner with more firms to help facilitate more projects."
LEADING THE WAY IN INFRASTRUCTURE
"CIDs have participated in nearly $5 billion of infrastructure development in Georgia. That includes everything from local roads to the CIDs' involvement in the Managed Lanes (or Toll Road Express Lanes) along the Interstates." CIDs play pivotal roles in securing federal funds for "mega" projects and for creating healthy environments for the commercial real estate that they represent. "CIDs sit at the intersection of development, infrastructure, and politics, advocating and lobbying for funding and creating political relationships. CIDs are also at the intersection of public finance because it is ultimately a mechanism for creating public funding for infrastructure and economic development," Rivers says of the importance and depth of CIDs.
THE FUTURE IN GEORGIA
Leveraging the best aspects of the private and public sectors to enhance local communities makes CIDs a powerful tool for infrastructure and revitalization in Georgia. Rivers adds, "CIDs are focused on infrastructure development, and integrating the private sector into this traditionally public sector role is unique. When this partnership is done correctly, everyone in the community benefits." CIDs have already helped shape the Metro Atlanta region through community engagement, infrastructure development, and private sector/government partnerships. As more CIDs are created in communities all over Georgia, they will play an even more significant role in shaping a better future while improving the properties within their boundaries and the surrounding community.
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JULIE SECRIST, PE, M. ASCE Meritage Land Development President, 2021-2022 ASCE Georgia www.ascega.org
ASCE GEORGIA HIGHLIGHT: ANNUAL GALA AND AWARDS
2022 ASCE GEORGIA INDIVIDUAL AWARDS
In June, the Georgia Section of ASCE held the Annual Gala which provides an opportunity to celebrate the year and recognize exceptional civil engineers and projects in the state of Georgia. This year’s event also hosted ASCE’s International President-Elect Maria Lehman, PE which was an incredible honor to welcome such a distinguished guest. The 2-day event consisted of many social gatherings, meetings with important stakeholders, and the main event Gala at Ponce City Market Rooftop.
Volunteer Of The Year Natalia Bernal, EIT, M. ASCE Student Of The Year - The University Of Georgia Bri Dier, S.M. ASCE Student Of The Year - Kennesaw State University Connor Embleu, S.M. ASCE President’s Awards: Anita Atkinson, PE, F. ASCE David Glassman, PE, M. ASCE Jennifer Young, PE, M. ASCE Young Civil Engineer of the Year: Raj Anand, PE, M. ASCE Civil Engineer of the Year: Rebecca Shelton, PE, F. ASCE
2022 ASCE GEORGIA PROJECT AWARDS The Georgia section awarded four projects of excellence recognizing the top civil engineering projects in the state. These extraordinary projects are recognized in no particular order or category: The Water Tower Global Innovation Hub at Gwinnett; Reeves Young Spalding Drive from Winters Chapel Road to Holcomb Bridge Road/ SR 140; Kimley Horn Demolition of Rogers Bridge over the Chattahoochee River; Astra Group LLC AND Heath & Lineback Engineers Inc. Enmarket Arena; The City of Savannah, Perkins & Will and Hussey Gay Bell
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2022 ASCE NATIONAL INDIVIDUAL AWARDS Philip J. W. Roberts, PE, F. ASCE ASCE Hunter Rouse Hydraulic Engineering Award Katie Kelly, EIT, M. ASCE ASCE New Faces of Civil Engineering – Professional Zoe Zhang, S.M. ASCE ASCE New Faces of Civil Engineering – Collegiate Rodney Cook Sr. Park, PE, F. ASCE ASCE Innovation in Sustainable Engineering Award
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THANKS TO EVERYONE FOR COMING OUT TO THIS YEAR’S ASHE GOLF TOURNAMENT! WE WERE THRILLED TO BE BACK TOGETHER IN THE SPRING WITH A FULL TOURNAMENT, AND WE ARE ALREADY LOOKING FORWARD TO NEXT YEAR. STAY TUNED FOR DETAILS!
SHAWN FLEET Heath & Lineback Engineers ASHE Georgia President www.georgia.ashe.pro
CONGRATS TO THE 2022-2023 ASHE GEORGIA SECTION OFFICERS! President Sarah Blackburn Gresham Smith 1ST PLACE
1st Vice President Lindsey Dunnahoo AECOM 2nd Vice President Brad Cox Gwinnett County Treasurer James Nguyen Peachtree Corners Secretary Jennifer Lott Aulick Engineering Co-Secretary Tori Brinkley WSP
2ND PLACE
Immediate Past President Shawn Fleet Heath & Lineback Director Year 1 Karyn Matthews ARCADIS Director Year 2 Chris Rideout Croy Engineering Director Year 3 Ravi Vachhani Moffat & Nichol association [ news ]
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3RD PLACE
CHRISTINA BARRY, PE
PEGGY PARKS PRESENTS TO THE GAITE MENTORSHIP PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS ON BUSINESS ETIQUETTE
GDOT GAITE President president@gaite.org www.gaite.org
The summer is a busy time for GAITE. We have continued our monthly meeting schedule with meetings in May and June held jointly with ASCE and GPA, respectively. Our May meeting featured GDOT Chief Engineer Meg Pirkle, who gave an Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) Update. Our June meeting was a Park Tavern, and we heard from a trio of speakers, Jordan Dowdy (ATLDOT), Rebecca Serna (Propel ATL), and Ron Knezevich (GDOT), on transportation safety, planning, and project implementation. As a reminder, GAITE encourages student attendance at our monthly meetings. Students are free at all monthly meetings if registered online prior to the meeting.
2022 GAITE MENTORSHIP PROGRAM
MEG PIRKLE PRESENTS AT THE ASCE/ITE JOINT MAY MEETING
In July, we took a break from our regular monthly meetings to attend Summer Seminar. This annual conference takes place at St. Simons and features a strong technical program, social events, guest activities, a scholarship auction, and a banquet. We would like to thank the planning committee and our sponsors who make this event our most highly anticipated event of the year. In addition to our regular meetings, our 2022 Mentorship Program has also begun. The Georgia Section ITE 2022 Mentorship Program is a professional development opportunity for ITE members that feel they are in the beginning stages of their careers. The program began June 23 with a session on business etiquette and continues monthly until the GAITE annual meeting in December. The session topics range from presentation and management skills to Work-Life Balance to Politics and Relationships. The program is limited to six participants paired with a more experienced industry mentor.
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JUNE JOINT MONTHLY MEETING WITH GPA AT PARK TAVERN
If you would like to be a part of Georgia ITE, please see our website at: gaite.org/join.php for information on how to join. When you join ITE international, you are automatically added as a member of your local section. Members receive discounts on our monthly meetings and events and have the opportunity to serve on our various committees.
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JOHN PRIEN, CAPT, USN (RET) GEF President www.GEFinc.org
The Georgia Engineering Foundation (GEF) is immensely grateful for the support of our professional society members, engineering firm benefactors, and individual endowment partners, as well as our board members, both past and present, who have helped to build and sustain GEF during our past 50 years (Happy Birthday!!!). Our history dates back to February 1972, when a newly elected board of directors from diverse professional societies, engineering firms, and cultural backgrounds would translate a vision into a living reality. This dynamic entity would bring together the energies and resources of the entire engineering community of the State of Georgia to accomplish philanthropic and educational goals which none of the existing engineering societies or associations could achieve alone. GEF's objectives were and continue to be 1) a cementing element in attaining philanthropic and educational objectives of the entire engineering community in Georgia; 2) be structured efficiently to encourage the pooling of resources for efficiently delivering financial help to the next generation of engineers; 3) provide opportunities for communicating to the public the role of engineering and the engineer in society; 4) attract engineers of business and technical prominence to serve freely toward the accomplishment of objectives for which they have a sense of community responsibility and interest; and 5) be a tax-exempt depository of funds from all groups or individuals desirous of encouraging philanthropic and educational pursuits. GEF's professionally conducted scholarship program allows our members and benefactors to define specific scholarship criteria and efficiently deliver financial help to the next generation. GEF's volunteer efforts bring a larger pool of deserving candidates forward for consideration while at the same time allowing our members to be free from the administrative time and costs associated with independently running their program. Now more than ever, investing in our nation's future leaders and the greater engineering community is critical. You can know that GEF will ensure that each scholarship is awarded on benefactor goals, student merit, and with a strong consideration of each scholar's financial need. As the need for financial assistance continues to grow, your generosity is needed now more than ever. If you are interested in setting up a scholarship, endowment, or volunteering to serve, please reach out to GEF at President@gefinc.org. association [ news ]
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GRAHAM S. SIZEMORE, E.I.T.
The Order of the Engineer was initiated in the United States to foster a spirit of pride and responsibility in the engineering profession, bridge the gap between training and experience, and present a visible symbol identifying the engineer to the public. The first ceremony was held on June 4, 1970, at Cleveland State University. Since then, similar ceremonies have been held across the United States at which graduate and registered engineers are invited to accept the Obligation of the Engineer and a stainless steel ring. The ceremonies are conducted by Links (local sections) of the Order. The Order is not a membership organization; there are never any meetings to attend or dues to pay. Instead, the Order fosters a unity of purpose and the honoring of one's lifelong pledge. The Order of the Engineer ceremony will be held at GSPE's new PE event in September! To learn more about the Order of the Engineer, visit: order-of-the-engineer.org
Goodwyn, Mills and Cawood GSPE President graham.sizemore@gmcnetwork.com www.gspe.org
DATE SET FOR PDH DAY! GOLF TOURNAMENT OCTOBER 7, 2022 | Mystery Valley Golf Club 6094 Shadow Rock Drive 9 AM Registration; 10 AM Shotgun Start GSPE and the Georgia MATHCOUNTS Foundation invite you and your guest(s) to participate in the 19th annual MATHCOUNTS golf tournament to support the Georgia MATHCOUNTS program. This year, the golf tournament will be held at the Mystery Valley Golf Club in Lithonia, GA. MATHCOUNTS provides fun and challenging math programs for middle school students - our future engineers - to build their confidence and problem-solving skills. The golf tournament helps us offer chapter and state competitions in Georgia. Pictured are the Georgia students at the 2022 national MATHCOUNTS competition who finished 7th in team and 3rd in individual competitions.
December 2, 2022 @ 8 AM | Georgia Tech Exhibition Hall, Atlanta, GA Join us on December 2 to catch up on PDHs! This is a great opportunity to earn up to 8 PDH hours for continuing education requirements. Engaging speakers with interesting and timely topics will update attendees on the status of the engineering profession, important information on recent updates from within the State of Georgia, and helpful educational material for advancing your career and technical knowledge. If you or one of your colleagues would like to join, please contact us at bettyjean@gspe.org!
Join us as a sponsor and/or a golfer! Sponsorships ranging from $200 to $2,500 are available. Golfers may register for $125 each or $450 per foursome. More details are available through the QR code link.
NEW PE RECOGNITION EVENT September 11, 2022 | Wreckingbar Brewpub, Atlanta, GA Every year, GSPE hosts a new PE recognition event to help celebrate the accomplishment of licensure to those newly licensed individuals and Professional Engineering Firms. This year the event will be held on Saturday, September 11, at the Wreckingbar Brewpub in Atlanta at 6 PM. The event will be free to new PEs with heavy hors d'oeuvre provided. Guest speakers will talk about licensure and the future ahead. Please join us by contacting bettyjean@gspe.org!
PRESIDENT-ELECT AND VICE PRESIDENT, REGION III GSPE is searching for a President-Elect and a Vice President of Region III. Please reach out to graham.sizemore@gmcnetwork. com if you would like to nominate someone you know or yourself to serve on the GSPE Board of Directors or for more information regarding the roles. Serving on the Board of Directors is a great way to gain leadership experience, give back to the engineering community, and expand your network.
CONNECT WITH US ON SOCIAL MEDIA! Facebook.com/gspeorg
Linkedin.com/company/Georgia-society-of-professional-engineers
TO LEARN MORE VISIT GSPE.ORG | TO JOIN VISIT NSPE.ORG/MEMBERSHIP/JOIN-NOW
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www.youtube.com/GSPEng
THOMAS GLUECKERT, PE, PTOE Kimley-Horn ITS Georgia President itsgachapter@gmail.com www.itsga.org
ITS GEORGIA DISCUSSES DIVES INTO CONNECTED VEHICLES ITS Georgia hosted two great monthly meetings in May and June. In May, we met in Peachtree Corners to discuss Emergency Signal Preemption and Transit Signal Priority with Alan Davis (GDOT), Alex Hofelich (Gwinnett County), Jim Bunting (City of Sandy Springs), and Juan Duarte (Kimley-Horn). It was great to hear about how each agency is approaching these developing trends in their own way and the different obstacles they have had to overcome. In June, we met at Monday Night Garage to learn about the FHWA's Complete Trip ITS4US program and pack some backpacks! Kofi Wakhisi (ARC), Maria Roell (ARC), Danny Tongson (Gwinnett County), and Natalie Smusz-Mengelkoch walked our members through the first stage of the GDOT/ARC-sponsored project, Safe Trips in a Connected Transportation Network (ST-CTN) that provides additional support to underserved communities. If successful, this pilot project could be deployed throughout the metro Atlanta area and other locations across the country! Both these meetings were well attended and are published on our YouTube channel (youtube.com/c/ITSGeorgia) if you miss them.
BACKPACK PACKING! ITS Georgia remains committed to partnering with the Boys and Girls Club of Atlanta to collect, pack, and deliver 1,000 backpacks full of back-to-school supplies for Georgia youth. Many of our members stayed after to volunteer their time and energy to help stuff 1,000 backpacks full of paper, pencils, crayons, and glue. I am proud of our members' commitment to supporting the community through this effort, and I hope they know that we could not have done it without their support! Thanks to everyone who helped pack, donate, or coordinate the effort!
ITS GEORGIA FEATURED VOLUNTEER
In each edition of Engineering Georgia, we like to highlight a volunteer who generously gives their time to the Chapter. In this issue, we spotlight Steven Foy, the Traffic Operations Division Manager for the Paulding County DOT and the ITS Georgia Secretary.
When did you know you would be involved in transportation engineering or policy? I knew when I started working for the Athens-Clarke County Traffic Engineering Division in the late 1990s as a Transportation Systems Engineer. I got exposed to a side of Civil Engineering I wasn't as familiar with, and everything clicked. I knew then I would be involved with transportation engineering and policy for the rest of my career. I am proud to be involved in the public sector as I get an opportunity to work directly for the people using our roads and signals.
What got you interested in transportation? While attending college at the University of Georgia (GO DAWGS!) I had an opportunity to intern with the Athens-Clarke County Transportation and Public Works Department. I was able to work on a few different project types, but I found myself going out of my way to work on transportation projects. I had some great mentors in Athens-Clarke County who helped lead me into this field.
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What is the coolest project you have worked on? The coolest project I have had the opportunity to work on is the Paulding County Traffic Management Center. I got to work with some great partners envisioning what would be needed to manage the traffic operations in the 2nd fastest growing county in Georgia. Paulding County expanded its fiber network, deployed several CCTVs, built a data center, and installed a massive display wall. The County is working to establish a permanent fiber connection to the GDOT TMC to finalize the project. Best of all, I got to build where I work daily!
What does the future of transportation look like to you? In my mind, the future of transportation is all about leveraging our communications and connections to all of our devices in the field. There is so much data being collected on a second-by-second basis, and the intelligent transportation network will start piecing that together to make all of our commuters safer and more time-efficient.
What are you doing for ITS Georgia? I am the current Secretary for ITS Georgia. I work hard to keep detailed and accurate minutes of our board meetings so that each of the 13 committees within ITS Georgia have a clear understanding of the discussions that are had and any action items they need to be working towards. I also work closely with all the committees to develop the agenda to keep our meetings on track.
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Atlanta Post CANDICE SCALE DOD, CHA Consulting, Inc SAME Atlanta Post President Candice.scale@gmail.com www.sameatlantapost.org
JOIN US IN ATLANTA FOR THE 2022 JETS We’re counting down the days until the start of the Southeastern Tri-Regional Joint Engineering Training Symposium (JETS) scheduled for October 12 – 14! We hope you’ll join us as we welcome more than 400 A/E professionals doing business in the federal marketplace to the newly renovated Georgia Tech Hotel & Conference Center for federal agency briefings, technical sessions, networking, TopGolf, and more. Sponsorship and exhibitor opportunities are still available. Visit our website to learn more and register now.
UPCOMING EVENTS You’re invited to join us at one of our
upcoming events! Visit our website for more information and register.
AUGUST 30: MEGA Meeting at Georgia Aquarium SEPTEMBER 15: 50th Annual Shrimp Boil at Bold Monk Brewing Co. OCTOBER 12 - 14: Southeast Tri-Regional JETS Conference at Georgia Tech Hotel & Conference Center
LEARN MORE ABOUT SAME & CONNECT WITH US! sameatlantapost.org
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linkedin.com/company/same-atlanta-post
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2022-2023 SEAOG BOARD OF DIRECTORS
CHRIS LYTLE Uzun & Case Engineers, LLC SEAOG President www.seaog.org
President Chris Lytle Past-President Kenneth R. Nuttall Vice President Tom Szewcyzk Secretary Sarah Scarborough Treasurer Stephen Richards Directors-at-Large Martin Kigudde, Jeff Milheizler and John O’Brien
WE WOULD LIKE TO WELCOME OUR 2022-2023 BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND INTRODUCE THREE NEW MEMBERS TO OUR LEADERSHIP TEAM: July 1 starts the 2022-2023 SEAOG operations and fiscal year. We welcome three new members to our Board of Directors: Jeff Milheizler, PE, SE is an Associate Principal at Uzun+Case with over 20 years of experience working on various institutional, healthcare, commercial, and residential projects. He is involved in leading the firm's K-12 educational sector and has been heavily involved in the firm's heavy timber design initiatives. Jeff enjoys traveling, spending time at home with his wife and daughter, and enjoying the outdoors (including a quick round of golf when time allows). He has attended numerous SEAOG functions over the past 20 years and appreciates past committee members' work. Jeff wants to do his part to continue promoting structural engineering and be involved as sustainable design becomes more of a focus within the structural engineering community. Jeff will be serving as a Director. John O'Brien, P.E., S.E. is a Senior Structural Engineer at Haskell in Atlanta, GA. He has nearly 20 years of experience leading the design of senior living, mixed-use, hospitality, industrial and retail structures. His professional interests include designing structures for extreme loads (hurricanes & tornadoes, floods, and earthquakes) and sharing knowledge with peers about interpreting and applying code provisions. John is the Vice-Chair of the NCSEA Code Advisory Committee for Wind Loads. He is also a voting member of the ASCE 7 Wind Loads Subcommittee, serving on the Chapter 30 Components and Cladding and Chapter 32 Tornado Loads Task Committees. John looks forward to working with SEAOG's leadership to continue promoting the technical aspects of Structural Engineering. John will be serving as a Director. Stephen Richards, PE, SE received his Bachelors and Masters in Civil Engineering from Georgia Tech. He is an Associate with Uzun+Case in Atlanta, GA, where he serves as chair of the internal Steel Committee and has enjoyed working on several large educational, hospitality, healthcare, and cultural projects. Stephen joined the Structural Engineer's Association of Georgia in 2015, has served on SEAOG's Young Member Group Board since 2019, including chairing the YMG from 2021-2022, and was chair of the 2022 Excellence in Structural Engineering Awards Committee. Additionally, Stephen volunteers as a NCEES Structural Exam Committee member and as a Project Sponsor for Georgia Tech's Capstone Course. Stephen will be serving as Treasurer.
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WITH A COMBINED TOTAL OF 25 YEARS OF LEADERSHIP IN SEAOG, WE THANK OUR BOD MEMBERS WHOSE TERMS HAVE COME TO AN END. ADRIAN PERSAUD, PE, SE Principal, Uzun+Case
Member Since: 2004 Positions Held: • Director 2013-2016 • Vice President 2016-2018 • President 2018-2020 • Past President 2020-2022 Top Contributions: • Assisted with SE law passage • Restarting ESE awards after hiatus • Establishing annual and sustaining sponsors What's Next? ASCE National Committee on Education
ANGELINA STASULIS, PE, SE Senior Structural Engineer, Shear Structural
Member Since: 2012 Positions Held: • YMG Founding Chair 2013-2015 • Publicity Chair 2015-present • Director 2018-2022 Top Contributions: • Founding Young Member Group in 2013 • Leading efforts to publicize impacts/ navigation of Georiga's SE Bill • Leading transition to cloud-based member management platform and website updates What's Next? Chairing NCSEA's External Communications Committee
BRIAN ADORNO, PE, SE Associate Structural Engineer, Marx|Okubo
Member Since: 2013 Positions Held: • YMG Media Chair 2015-2017 • YMG Chair 2017-2019 • Treasurer 2020-2022 Top Contributions: • Increasing YMG membership • Chairing 2018 ESE awards • Establishing SEAOG presence at Georgia Tech What's Next? Real Estate
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LAURA MCDONALD, CPSM Terracon SMPS President www.smpsatl.org
THANK YOU TO THE 2021-22 BOARD OF SMPS ATLANTA! August 31 is the end of the SMPS Atlanta fiscal year which means that our current board will retire from their roles and a new board will be installed. We’d like to take a moment to thank this year’s board that has worked so hard to move us out of the pandemic era and back into something that feels semi-normal.
LAURA MCDONALD, CPSM
MICHELE HOLCOMBE
President Terracon
President-Elect Foundation Technologies
CALLIE PETERSON
ANGEL JONES, CPSM
Treasurer-Elect Catamount Constructors
NATE HAMMOND
Sponsorship Hammond Engineering
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MARY JO BUTCHER
MATT KRACZON Secretary PGAL
Treasurer Stevens & Wilkinson
SUSAN JOHNSON, CPSM
MOLLY MILLER
SARAH BATCHELOR
Past President PES Structural Engineers
Programs SLS Consulting
Professional Development TYLin
Membership Eberly & Associates
FELITA BUNN
ERIC KEENS, CPSM, SSOE
STEPHANIE DAMMEN-MORRELL
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion Brown & Caldwell
Chapter Development Stevens & Wilkinson
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Chair, Coastal Committee Hussey Gay Bell
MEGAN KOPACKO
Communications Modomodo Agency
JOAN BORCHARDT
Chapter Administrator Moxie Meeting Planning
KRISTIN ROME WINZELER WTS Atlanta President kwinzeler@northfultoncid.com www.wtsinternational.org/atlanta
DBE PROGRAM
MENTOR PROTÉGÉ PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS
MENTOR-PROTÉGÉ The WTS Atlanta 2022 Mentor Protégé program is in full swing. The program provides opportunities for 11 pairs of mentors and their protégés to grow professionally through panels, workshops, and professional development activities. The Mentor Protégé Committee would like to thank ATL/SRTA/GRTA, HNTB, Lowe Engineers, and North Fulton CID for hosting the in-person sessions.
WTS DBE PROGRAM WTS Atlanta is excited to ramp up our effort to help our DBE sponsors and members in 2022. Our goals are to help connect DBE’s to discuss issues pertinent to these firms, disseminate relevant agency information and advice, provide greater networking events, and provide opportunities that will expand the DBE firms access to larger consulting firms to help maximize teaming arrangements. For additional information about this program, contact WTS Atlanta Director at Large and DBE Inclusion and Diversity Committee Chair, Charlotte Weber of Lumenor Consulting at cweber@lumenorconsulting.com
WTS ATLANTA IS RAISING $40K FOR THE 40TH FOR SCHOLARSHIPS To celebrate WTS Atlanta’s 40th Anniversary in 2022, our chapter has set a goal to grow our scholarship program by raising $40,000 this year to support women pursuing transportation careers. Help us reach this important goal by clicking on the link below, through the QR code, or text to give! Send a text to 41-444 with message WTSATLANTA2022 and include the amount you’d like to give and your name.
TO BECOME A 2022 CORPORATE SPONSOR, CONTACT KRISTIN WINZELER AT KWINZELER@NORTHFULTONCID.COM OR (678) 397-0570. association [ news ]
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A LOOK BACK Atlanta, Georgia - State Capitol Building – The current Georgia Capitol building was constructed in 1889. The original roof, pictured here, was made of tin. By the 1950s the original roof was in desperate need of repair, with some sections completely missing. In 1957, the architect in charge of the project, Thomas Bradbury, and an engineer, Gordon Price, proposed that the dome be rebuilt with sturdier materials and covered with Georgia gold. Georgia’s Gold Dome was supplied by Dahlonega residents who panned 43 ounces of Georgia gold from local streams. PHOTO CREDIT: Photographer Unknown, c. 1929 66 Engineering Georgia