Well, it’s that time of year when we look back on what we’ve accomplished over the past year. All in all, with the exception of the Covid pandemic still lurking about, I’m very content and grateful for how 2021 is ending up. I think most of our organizations have had a very good year in spite of the obstacles that the pandemic has and continues to create. As mentioned in last month’s newsletter, our industry as a whole is very strong and, at least on the public works side, will continue to be strong with the $1.2 trillion investment in infrastructure for the next 5 years.
I’d say it’s pretty good timing to announce the new ACEC Sierra Chapter – Caltrans District 3 Professional Liaison Committee (D3 PLC) that was just recently chartered. This committee will consist of representatives from ACEC Sierra Chapter firms, Caltrans District 3 staff and other local agencies. This committee will provide input to Caltrans Headquarters’ PLC relating to the programs and operations germane to Caltrans District 3. The mission of the D3 PLC will be to share information that drives decisions, foster collaborative working relationships, discuss and act upon areas of shared interests such as funding sources, technical issues, and policy issues. Again, the timing of this new D3 PLC couldn’t be better considering the significant portions of transportation investment hopefully heading our way. Many thanks to Sierra Chapter Board Member Howard Michael (AECOM) for working with both Caltrans District 3 and the Sierra Chapter Board on the many iterations it took to get the charter approved.
At our last dinner meeting on November 17, we had the raffle drawing for the $500 gift card to The Kitchen and the lucky winner was Rosa Griggs (Dokken Engineering). This raffle prize was “layered” with the ACEC PAC Fall Sweepstakes and all Sierra Chapter members that bought sweepstakes tickets were entered in the drawing for The Kitchen gift card. Immediately following the drawing, Rosa found herself surrounded by 30 people wanting to become her new best friend. Congrats Rosa!
On December 9th, a few of the chapter board members attended the CREATE Awards Luncheon and I had the honor of awarding a $2,000 scholarship to a very deserving student that will be pursuing a career in civil engineering. It was such an inspiring event and a privilege to represent ACEC and be able to help one of the future leaders in our industry. You can read more about that in an article by Sierra Chapter board member and CREATE Mentor Erik Fanselau later in this newsletter.
Finally, I hope you all have the happiest of holidays with your loved ones. I look forward to seeing you in 2022 and let’s continue to build a better California!
Scott Lillibridge, ACEC-CA Sierra Chapter President
