APWA Central FL Branch FEB 2014 Newsletter

Special points of interest:
• Upcoming Events
Page 2
• UCF Tailgate
Pages 4-5
• Member Spotlights Pages 8-9
• Give Kids the
World
Pages 10-11
• Project Spotlight
Pages 20-21
• December Holiday Event Pages
24-25
• Dean Crutch Memorial Page 26

Inside this issue:
E-Week

3

Pump Workshop

7

GKTW Landscape
Day

12

Annual Scholarship
and Awards Meeting

14

Awards Application

16

YP Event

19

Asphalt Lunch and
Learn

22

APWA Trade Show

23

New Members

26

CONTACT
Christiane Nelson
(Universal Engineering)
Newsletter
Editor
CMNelson
@universalengineering.com

Winter Edition

February 2014

Chairman’s Message

we will not know what the
needs may be and how we can
improve. As a team, there are
appy new year to evemany players and supporters
ryone and hope you
that you can reach out to for
had a restful and relaxing holiday
assistance so that you can finish
season. It was a great start of
that project or assignment. In
the new year for those supportclosing, I just want to give a
ing a team. I’m not identifying
shout out,
any team in particular, since
there are many teams we support, and our APWA team is one
Go APWA…and
I’m glad you do support. WhethKnights.
er you are in Utilities, Communications, or Facilities, we want to
hear from you and build a sustaining effort for your
Mike McCabe, PE,
needs. Remember, the AssociaCentral Florida Branch Chairman
tion is constantly evolving and
Public Works Division Manager
City of Palm Bay
may seem to be under construction forever, and without your
input,

H

The Central Florida Branch includes the counties of
Brevard, Lake, Orange, Osceola, Seminole and Volusia.

APWA Central Florida Branch

.

SAVE THE DATE FALL2013!!
February 20
Page 3

Annual E-Week Transportation Summit
The Future of Transportation Funding,
OOCEA, Orlando, Orange County, Time: 7:30-10AM

March 15
Page 10

Give Kids the World Quarterly Landscape Day
Give Kids the World Village, Kissimmee, Osceola County, Time: 8AM

March 27
Page 11

CFB Annual Scholarship & Awards Business Meeting (and Golf Tournament)
Cypress Head Golf Club, Port Orange, Volusia County
Time: 1PM Shotgun, Networking 6-7PM, Dinner 6:45PM

May 9 & 10

APWA Florida Chapter Annual Meeting
Fort Lauderdale, Broward County

July 7-11
Page 20

2014 APWA Florida Chapter Conference and Exposition
Fort Lauderdale, Broward County

2013 Central Florida Branch Officers

Chair

Chair-Elect

Vice Chair

Mike McCabe, PE
Public Works Division Mgr. City
of Palm Bay

Matt LaChance
Project Manager
VHB Orlando

Amanda Millirons
Assistant Public Works Mgr.
City of Palm Bay

District Representative

Secretary

Treasurer

Amy Blaida, MPA
Business Development
RS&H Orlando

Angela Lawrence
Operations Coordinator
Atkins

Althea Parrish
Utility Coordinator
City of Sanford


UCF Game Day and Tailgate
UCF VS. UConn
October 26th, 2013
The Central Florida Branch held their second annual tailgating event at the UCFUConn football game on October 26th. What a great day this turned out to be as the
weather cooperated with us with nice clear sky and cool weather early. The tailgating
was well attended with over 40 members, family, and friends laughing and socializing. We had a few competitive games of a modified corn hole toss and tossing of the
pigskin. Wackadoo’s provided excellent
food of pulled pork, buns, homemade potato chips, beans, coleslaw, and fudge brownies. Florida Engineering Society sponsored a
raffle, which was well received, to win a Kindle Fire HD with proceeds going to their
scholarship fund. Rick Kenney, the attendee
who traveled the furthest to join us was rewarded with the winning ticket number. Kickoff for the game was at noon, and with a few stragglers trickling in after the
first couple of possessions, we all sat down at our respective seats, approximately at the
forty yard line. What a view as we witnessed UCF take a 45-10 lead into the locker
room at halftime. As the afternoon sun rose and the temperature increased, some retreated back to the comforts of the tailgating area while UCF
brought in their reserves to finish the game. The stadium
lived up to one of its nicknames, the
Wok, to cook without liquids, and
there was plenty back at the coolers and tents. All in all it was a
great event and we want to thank
our sponsors for the purchase of
the food and beverages, Universal
Engineering Sciences, Inc. (UES),
England, Thims & Miller, Inc. (ETM),
Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Inc. (VHB),
and WadeTrim.
- Written by Mike McCabe


SAVE THE DATE
Upcoming Florida Local Government Coalition,
Florida League of Cities, Inc, &
Lou Frey Institute Spring Symposium
Symposium Details:
“From the Chambers to the Cloud: Connecting Citizens and Local Government”
Date: March 10, 2014
Time: 9:15 a.m. – 3 p.m.
Cost: This symposium is FREE for coalition members.
Lunch: Lunch will be provided.
Location: University of Central Florida’s Pegasus Ballroom
Audience: A mixed audience of local government officials and advanced students from
both high schools and colleges. The event will also be live streamed.
Speakers:
• Former U.S. Congressman Lou Frey
• Leadership from Code for America. Since 2010 Code for America has been partnering with local governments across the nation to develop innovative software applications that help engage citizens with their communities and that help local governments make use of their data to deliver public services more effectively and efficiently. Code for America’s work has been supported by Google, the Knight Foundation, ESRI and the Rockefeller Foundation.
• To provide a national perspective on recent developments in technology and engagement, the symposium will include speakers from Boston’s Office of New Urban
Mechanics, ICMA’s 311Technical Assistance Program, and Philadelphia’s Chief Data
Officer (invited).
• Florida local governments that have already moved to implement some of these
new technologies will join us to share their experiences.
• The day will conclude with hands-on demonstrations by applications developers – so
symposium participants will be urged to bring their devices to take a test drive.
Registration: Registration is required for every attendee. Registration will remain open until Friday, February 28. Just look for the blue “RSVP for the symposium” at the top of the
page. Be sure to enter your mailing address on the registration form to receive a free event
parking decal in the mail. Otherwise, parking is $5.00 the day of the event.
Register @ http://loufreyinstitute.org/symposia/from-the-chambers-to-the-cloud/

Pump Workshop
Held by Thompson Pump
November 7th, 2013
Thompson Pump Hosts Second Annual Pump Workshop
On November 7th, Thompson Pump & Manufacturing Co., Inc., in partnership
with Daytona State College, presented their second annual one-day pump workshop approved by the Florida Board of Professional Engineers, the Construction Industry Licensing Board and the Florida Rural Water Association for continuing education units.
The workshop consisted of six courses taught by experienced industry professionals including Dale Conway, Thompson Pump Vice President of Engineering; Dave Perry,
Thompson Pump Florida Sales Engineer; and Jessada Sunhachawi, Thompson Pump
Application Engineer.
Participants earned 6 hours of continuing education through the FBPE and CILB,
or .6 CEU’s through the FRWA for water and wastewater plant operators. Courses included Calculating Total Dynamic Head, Principles of Pumping, Reading Pump Curves,
Pump Sound Attenuation,
Permanent Lift Station
Backup Pump Systems,
and Pump Failure Analysis
and Troubleshooting. Collectively these six courses
make up a FRWA combined title course, Introduction to Pumps and
Pump Systems.
The course was an
overall success hosting 17
attendees from various
Central Florida public
works groups and engineering firms. Thompson
Pump plans to continue
hosting this annual one-day workshop each Fall. Contact Lindsey Thorp at
lthorp@thompsonpump.com to receive information about the next upcoming course.

Page 8

APWA CFB Member Spotlights
Chris Thompson, the Public
Works Director with the
City of Tavares, receiving his
APWA Donald C Stone
award from Rick Keeney
Congratulations Chris!

Congratulations to Amanda Millirons for your
promotion to Assistant Public Works Director with the
City of Palm Bay and for being a
Recipient of the
2014 Jennings Randolph International Fellowship!!!

Scott H. Martin, P.E.,
Engineering Section Manager with
Volusia County
With our Branch’s
APWA Presidential Award for
Branch Excellence for the Central
Florida Branch

Amy Blaida, with RS&H Orlando, Former Chairperson of
APWA CFB, and current District Rep, has been asked to be a
part of the APWA Quality Council
Congratulations Amy!!

.

Give Kids the World
Extreme Village makeover

Orlando Sentinel Article
Give Kids the World getting 'extreme village makeover'
January 7, 2014|By Kate Santich, Orlando Sentinel
Give Kids the World is about to undergo an “extreme village makeover” at its Kissimmee resort — a 70-acre vacation site for children with life-threatening illnesses and
their families.
The two-week, $4.4 million project, which starts Sunday and goes through Jan.
25, will close the village for the first time in the charity's 25-year-history. Some 40 or
50 families unable to reschedule their visits will still receive their weeklong “wish” vacations at nearby hotels.
The village is a kid's paradise — with free restaurants that serve ice cream for
breakfast, nightly parades and weekly Christmas celebrations, costumed characters, a
water park and its own railroad.
The organization also provides families with meals and free tickets to local
theme parks.
The two-week project will focus on updating 88 of the village's 140 villas — the
homes-away-from-home over the years for nearly 122,000 families from all 50 states
and 74 countries. Most of the villas were built about 1989 and are in need of new
paint, carpeting, tile, blinds, furniture, appliances and driveways.
“January is typically one of our slowest times of year,” said the charity's spokesman, Mark Hoewing. “We wanted to do this with a minimum of disruption.”
Doing all the work at once allows the charity to take advantage of bulk pricing
and the expertise of the Orlando-based Wyndham Vacation Ownership, which volunteered to manage the project and will be overseeing all contractors and subcontractors.
“They've been big supporters of ours,” Hoewing said. “This is a major undertaking for them, but it's something they do on a regular basis to renovate and upgrade
their properties around the world.”
Paid laborers and volunteers will work around the clock during the two weeks.
“We even have staff who are on vacation during this time who have volunteered
to come in and help out,” Hoewing said.

Central Florida Branch of the APWA joined forces with an army of
City of Kissimmee volunteers to
help in the precision demolition and
debris removal.. The Village Makeover took place January 12-25, 2014.
Dave Derrick, the Public Works
Director with the City of Kissimmee, has been one of the key
players in the 2 year development of
this epic undertaking. The project is
presently in full swing. Having the opportunity for our branch to participate
in this once in a lifetime event has been
unbelievable.
Chris Thompson with the City of
Tavares, is has been heading up the APWA CFB events as Volunteer Chair
with GKTW. The next landscape day
is March 15, 2014

APWA CFB
Young Professionals
Event
November 15th, 2013

The Branch hosted the Third Annual
Young Professionals Networking
Event on Friday, November 15th at The Imperial Wine Bar & Beer Garden.Young professionals including members and non-members located in the Central Florida Branch
area were invited to attend the free event to connect with fellow YPs in the public
works industry and to learn more about what APWA has to offer. Approximately fifteen attendees representing both the public and private sector connected. The event
was a success and we look forward to hosting a future event in the Brevard County
region.
The Young Professionals group was formed to recruit, connect, empower and retain
young professionals in APWA through increased opportunities and resources to enhance their professional development and success within the association and the public
works industry (APWA National YP Network,
Mission Statement). For more information regarding the Young Professionals group contact
Amanda Millirons via email at millia@pbfl.org
or by phone at 321.953.8996.
- Written by Amanda Millirons


Project Spotlight

Kissimmee Trail Pedestrian Bridge over John Young
Parkway
By Andra Diggs, Senior Engineer, Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Inc.

One of the many improvements implemented as the City of Kissimmee continues to grow, is
the development of trail opportunity corridors such as the proposed Kissimmee Loop Trail. The
proposed trail consists of the existing and proposed designated bike lane along Martin Luther King
Jr. Boulevard and Central Avenue, and existing and proposed off-street path along Pine Branch
Drive. The trail connects to the designated bike lanes along Hoagland Boulevard, Dyer Boulevard,
Thacker Avenue, John Young Parkway, and Columbia Avenue and includes the extension of an existing 12’ x 8’ (triple) concrete box culvert as well as the construction of the Kissimmee Trail Pedestrian Bridge. The pedestrian bridge crossing is located approximately 0.25 miles North of W. Columbia Avenue and 0.5 miles south of W. Donegan Avenue offering pedestrians a safe alternative to
cross John Young Parkway. At over 1,100 feet in overall length, the structure provides a unique
experience for pedestrians as they enter and exit the main crossing bridge on helical or “spiral” type
approach ramps. Under the original concept, the ramps were to extend east and west of the roadway following a linear alignment, but were eventually revised to the helical arrangement to accommodate right of way restrictions.
In order to span the 6 lanes of busy John Young Parkway, the main bridge was designed to
be approximately 220 feet long with one major request from the City; no piers would be permitted
within the median. With a main span of this magnitude, coupled with limited right of way, it was
determined that the bridge vertical clearance was quickly becoming a limiting design parameter.
Although a concrete structure is capable of spanning the
required distance, the depth
of the beams would require
an overall increase in the profile of the bridge. A steel box
truss was chosen which not
only provides the necessary
clearances, but is capable of
spanning well beyond the limits of the roadway below.

Some of the unique features of the bridge include four signature towers approximately 55 feet
tall with two on each end of the main span structure. A steel “gateway” arch will stretch between the
set of towers and will support signage and lighting to welcome residents and visitors into the City.
Beyond the towers, lighting is provided for safety along both ramps offering an entirely different bridge
experience at night. However, the intent of the bridge was not just for viewing pleasure. From the
beginning, Dave Derrick and his staff envisioned a structure that would encompass the new direction
of the City of Kissimmee, while also remaining functional and environmentally sensitive. Following
this directive, throughout the design process the team focused on Green design features to reduce
energy consumption and lessen the overall environmental impact. Features include a collection of solar panels along the roof structure of the main crossing that are designed to minimize the power consumption required for lighting the structure which is typically drawn from the City’s power grid. Also,
as users navigate the ramps they will notice drought resistant landscaping within the interior of the
ramp structures. This landscaping will be self-sustaining with the help of a deck drainage system which
collects rainwater from the main bridge and delivers it to the landscaping below.
The project represents a collaborative effort between the design and construction teams, the
City of Kissimmee, Osceola County, the Florida Department of Transportation, and the
surrounding community. As a Local Agency
Program (LAP) project, coordination between
all team members was a key to the success of
the project. It was the success of the team
that ultimately secured federal funding to help
the City bring the project to life.

PROJECT TEAM
Owner:
City of Kissimmee
Engineer of Record:
Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Inc.
Architect:
Borrelli + Partners, Inc.
Lighting:
Comprehensive Engineering Services, Inc.
Landscaping:
Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Inc.
Box Culvert Extension: Osceola Engineering, Inc.
Geotechnical Engineer: Geotechnical and Environmental Consultants, Inc.
Prime Contractor:
Gibbs & Register, Inc.
Construction Inspection: Infrastructure Engineers, Inc.

Page 22

Lunch and Learn
Superpave and Warm Mix Asphalt
November 20th, 2013
The Central Florida Branch, as part of their continuing education series, conducted a
lunch and learn entitled All About Asphalt. Held on November 20th and hosted by the City
of Kissimmee, the event was attended by about 50 local engineers and public works
staff. The two part workshop was presented by Matt LaChance of VHB and our CFB Chair
Elect, Past Chapter President, Chris Evers of Evers Infrastructure Group, and Lance Brooks
of MeadWestvaco. Covering the first
half of the presentation, Matt
LaChance lead the group through a
break down on the SuperPave method
of mix design in a segment called
“SuperPave for Dummies”, a light
hearted look on how the system
works, what prompted the change for
the old methods, how to specify the
newer materials, and what to expect
from SuperPave. In the second part of
the workshop, Chris Evers and Lance
Brooks explained the various technologies available to produce warm mix
asphalt (WMA). They provided an
overview of what WMA is and it’s
benefits as a “Green Technology” as well
as extending the life of the road. Overall
the attendees found the presentations informative and useful. Orange County,
having several engineers in attendance,
requested additional information and that
the workshop be presented to their Public Works Advisory Board to allow the
use or WMA in the County.
- Written by Matt LaChance

Registration Opens in April 2014

Save the Date

Mark Juliano (City of Holly Hill), Rick Keeney (City of Punta Gorda) and Sam
May (City of Margate) will be giving a presentation on behalf of APWA FL at
the:
Governor’s Hurricane Conference
Orlando on May 15.
Details at http://flghc.org/


December Business Meeting and Holiday Party
December 6th, 2013
Cape Canaveral
The Central FL Branch met at Port Canaveral’s new Welcome Center,
the Exploration Tower, on Friday, December 6, to tour and “play” in this
new state-of-the-art facility. The $21 million, 22,000-square-foot Center
includes interactive exhibits unique to the Exploration Tower and the
Space Coast, such as a virtual ship bridge from which we could pilot a
cruise ship through the Canaveral Channel, and view display of the
changing Brevard coastline through history, a cruise ship through the Canaveral Channel, and a display of the changing Brevard coastline through
history. It was amazing! Following the tour, we walked over to Rusty’s
Seafood on the water to enjoy networking, food and drinks. We held our
December Business Meeting prior
to our dinner led by our Chair Mike
McCabe. We even got lucky enough
to watch a beautiful cruise ship with
all of its lights come in to the Port.
As you can see by the photos, it was
a memorable event and an awesome
time was had by all!! - Written by
Amy Blaida

The charity for the 2013 Holiday party was
Knight’s Pantry with UCF. This organization
provides UCF students access to free necessities if they fall on hard times. Mike
McCabe dropped off the APWA CFB donations to Sasha Ruiz with Knight’s pantry following the event.


Welcome to all of our NEW
Central Florida Branch Members who
joined APWA in the
October—December 2013 Quarter
Member

Employer

City

Month
Joined

Mr. Richard Allen, PSM CST III

City of Orlando

Orlando

October

Mr. Thomas L. Zenker

BRPH Architects—Engineers Inc.

Melbourne

November

The Central Florida Branch would like to THANK all of our current members and WELCOME all
of our NEW members who joined APWA during this quarter. We would like to encourage input
on how we can make our Branch better and we can better provide you with better educational
meetings and events. Please contact anyone listed on the back page of this Newsletter. And we
always have room for more folks on our Branch Executive Committee. The Branch is only as
good as WE as a TEAM make it!

Dean (Deano) Crutch's memorial service and golf outing
Memorial Services will be held at Lohman Funeral Home Daytona Beach,
FL. Visitation with the family will begin at 1:00 pm with the Service to follow
at 2:00 pm on Saturday, March 1, 2014. The family will also hold a celebration of life at the Daytona Beach Golf Club directly following the service.
http://daytonabeachgc.com
The Dean Crutch Memorial Golf Outing will be held Saturday, May 10, 2014
at the Daytona Beach Municipal Golf course on Wilder Blvd., Daytona
Beach.
Please contact Scott Martin to form APWA 4-somes at smartin@volusia.org
Deano was active in APWA for decades. Served as a Branch officer Secty./
Treasure to Chairman. Deano was one of the founding fathers of our APWA
Central Florida Branch.

Annual FES Central Florida Chapter Joint Legislative Updates Meeting at APWA, ASHE, ASCE, WTS and SWE
at OOCEA on January 29, 2014
APWA CFB was one of a
handful of associations
who co-hosted the meeting. Frank Rudd, FICE/FES
Executive Director,
served as the moderator
for the event.

Congratulations to Dave Derrick,
Director of Public Works, City of
Kissimmee for winning the Branch
Membership Competition for the
APWA Florida Chapter. Dave has
had multiple entries for ALL of
our individual membership competitions cause he is a membership rock star! He received a
$200 Amazon gift card.

APWA 2013-2014 Central FL Branch
Officers, Directors & Executive Committee

Chairman

Chair-Elect

Secretary

District
Representative:/
Immediate Past Chair

Amy Blaida
amy.blaida@rsandh.com

Matt LaChance
Mlachance@VHB.com

Vice Chair

Amanda Millirons
milla@palmbayflorida.org

Angela Lawrence
Agela.Lawrence@atkins-global.com

Treasurer

Althea Parrish
parrisha@sanfordfl.gov

Mike McCabe
mccabm@palmbayflorida.org

Volunteer Chair/
Branch Director

Chris Thompson
cthompson@tavares.org

Membership Chair

Greg Kern
Gregory.Kern@stvinc.com

Awards and
Newsletter/
Historical Chair

Christiane Nelson
cmnelson@universalengineering.com

Scholarship Chair
and Audit Chair

Paul Moore
paul.moore@sanfordfl.gov

Rodeo Chair/ Branch
Director

Dave Derrick
Dderrick@kissimmee.org

Continuing Education & Training Chair

Mike McCabe
mccabm@palmbayflorida.org

Association Alliance
Chair

EC Member
Young Professionals
Chair

Scott Martin
smartin@volusia.org
Amanda Millirons
milla@palmbayflorida.org

Amy Blaida
amy.blaida@rsandh.com

$87 Membership
JOIN APWA FOR $87 (regularly $174)!
FIRST-TIME MEMBER SPECIAL OFFER!

The American Public Works Association is offering a $87 one-year Individual Membership
to industry professionals who have never been an APWA national association member.
The American Public Works Association is an international educational and professional association of public agencies, private sector companies, and individuals dedicated to providing high quality public works goods and services. APWA is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization, incorporated in
the state of Illinois. GO here for the offer.

APWA Central FL Branch FEB 2014 Newsletter

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