State DOT Engineers, Project Honored

ALBANY, NY (05/14/2012)(readMedia)-- New York State Department of Transportation Commissioner Joan McDonald today announced that two Department engineers and one of its highway improvement projects are being honored by the American Society of Civil Engineers.

Assistant Commissioner Phillip Eng, the Department's chief engineer, is being named as the ASCE Metropolitan Section's Herbert Howard Government Civil Engineer of the Year. The award, to be given on May 31 in Flushing, is presented annually to an outstanding civil engineer who has contributed substantially to the field.

Michael Anderson, the Department's project director for the Tappan Zee Hudson River Crossing project, has been honored by the ASCE Metropolitan Section's Lower Hudson Valley Branch with the William A. Welch Engineer in Government Award. The award, presented May 10 in Hastings-on-Hudson, is given to an individual who has shown outstanding performance in the field of civil engineering in government.

NYSDOT's Route 9 reconstruction project in Peekskill, Westchester County, has also been honored by the ASCE Metropolitan Section's Lower Hudson Valley Branch with the Tappan Zee Award as its Large Project of the Year. The project reconstructed a three-quarter-mile stretch of Route 9, replacing four 1930s era bridges within that section of highway, addressing structural and safety concerns, improving traffic flow and bringing the infrastructure up to modern standards.

"The New York State Department of Transportation and all New Yorkers are fortunate to have engineers of the caliber of Phil Eng and Michael Anderson," Commissioner McDonald said. "I applaud their talents and their commitment to improving the infrastructure of New York State. I also am proud of the work the Department accomplished on the Route 9 project in Peekskill. The efforts of every employee who contributed to this project are worthy of celebration."

Joe Englot, PE, incoming ASCE Metropolitan Section president, said, "Public sector civil engineers like Phil Eng shoulder tremendous decision-making responsibilities in their role as stewards of our region's critical highway infrastructure and should be prominently recognized for their dedication to successfully delivering the state construction programs that are essential to this purpose."

Gerard Brady, ASCE Metropolitan Section's Lower Hudson Valley branch president, said, "The ASCE Lower Hudson Valley branch is proud to honor Mike Anderson and the Route 9 project team in Peekskill. Mike's leadership on the Tappan Zee Bridge and the I-287 corridor project is exemplary and showcases his long-time dedication to New Yorkers and his profession. Likewise, we are proud of the Route 9 project team, which tackled a complex configuration in Peekskill by replacing four bridges, alleviating long-time mobility concerns to meet the transportation needs of the 21st century. These awards showcase the commitment and professionalism of engineers working in New York State and especially the Hudson Valley. We are proud to recognize their hard work."

Eng, a native New Yorker, has served the public for more than 27 years at NYSDOT, starting in 1983 as junior engineer. He has held a number of key positions since then, including regional director of the New York City office. Previously, he was director of regional operations, assistant director of regional structures, regional maintenance engineer, construction area supervisor and design supervisor.

The Herbert Howard Government Civil Engineer of the Year award is named after Herbert Howard, who had a 36-year distinguished career with the New York District and North Atlantic Division of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Anderson has worked for NYSDOT for 28 years, starting in 1982 in NYSDOT's New York City design office and moving to the construction office as area construction supervisor. Previously, he was the deputy director of the Route 9A reconstruction project from Battery Place to 59th Street in Manhattan. He also served as the project director of the I?287/Tappan Zee Bridge corridor project, deputy director/project director of the Route 9A World Trade Center reconstruction and as NYSDOT's Hudson Valley construction engineer, responsible for the regional capital construction program from 1991 to 2004.

The William A. Welch award is named after Major William Addams Welch, who served as the chief engineer and general manager of the Palisades Interstate Park Commission for 26 years. Welch was known as the father of the state park movement and helped to expand Bear Mountain State Park and Harriman State Park.

The $72.9 million Route 9 project in Peekskill began in July 2008 and was completed in December 2010. The project improved the Route 9 corridor between the Bay Street overpass and Main Street. The vertical clearance of the Main Street Bridge over Route 9 was raised, allowing larger trucks and buses to use the highway and helping companies more efficiently deliver their goods to Peekskill businesses. Work included replacing four bridges - Route 9 over Requa Street, Route 9 over Hudson Avenue, Route 9 over Central Avenue on a new alignment and Route 6 (Main Street) over Route 9. The project modernized this section of Route 9 and it is projected to improve safety for the traveling public in the Hudson Valley area for the next 50 years.

Ray Ackerman from NYSDOT served as the project engineer. Brent VanZandt was engineer-in-charge. Dave Bennett was design office manager, and Joseph O'Malley was area construction supervisor. NYSDOT's structures division designed all four bridges. The contractor was Tutor Perini Corporation of Peekskill.

The Tappan Zee Award is presented for a major and complex civil engineering project in the Lower Hudson Valley.

The ASCE Metropolitan Section is the local section of the American Society of Civil Engineers in the New York City metro area and consists of the five boroughs of New York City, Nassau and Suffolk counties on Long Island and Rockland and Westchester counties in the lower Hudson Valley. The Lower Hudson Valley Branch serves ASCE members that reside or work in Rockland and Westchester counties.

The American Society of Civil Engineers was founded in New York City in 1852 and represents more than 147,000 members of the civil engineering profession worldwide. It is America's oldest national engineering society. ASCE's mission is to provide essential value to its members and their careers, its partners and the public by developing leadership, advancing technology, advocating lifelong learning and promoting the profession.