RW 18R/36L Extension – West Runway (Huntsville International Airport, Huntsville, AL) – $31.2M
In the early 1990’s, Panalpina, an international aviation transport company, had approached Huntsville International Airport with a desire to base operations there and have several daily non-stop flights from HSV to Asia. To permit this aviation operation, the current runway length of 8,000 feet would have to be increased to 12,600 feet. As a Civil Engineer/Program Manager with the Federal Aviation Administration assigned to this Federally obligated airport, it was my job to ensure that the runway extension was justified and that the airport continued to comply with all applicable rules and regulations regarding runway and taxiway geometrics, navigational aids, environmental regulations, land, and landing requirements. This was a monumental effort which spanned more than 3 years and involved the relocation of a 4-lane state highway and several utilities.
Terminal Renovations and Expansion (Huntsville International Airport)- $63M
Transportation Security Administration (TSA) regulations as a result of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, increased passenger traffic at HSV, and forecast increased air traffic as per the HSV’s approved Airport Master Plan necessitated the need of major changes and upgrades at the Huntsville International Airport. As an FAA Civil Engineer/Program Manager, it was my responsibility to essentially supervise the completion of these terminal renovations projects which were completed between 2002 and 2010 and included upgrades/expansions to airline ticketing areas, baggage claim areas, passenger waiting areas, lighting, security check-in areas, and concessionary areas.
Construction of City Hall (Terry, MS)-$330K
In 2005, the Town of Terry’s City Hall was a dilapidated frame building that had roof leaks, poor insulation, and inadequate heating and cooling resulting from years of neglect. After spending more than a year trying to restore this building to some semblance of minimally acceptable condition, it was decided that it would be cheaper to build a new structure in lieu of making further attempts to repair the existing building. Having a Civil Engineering background, I recommended to the Board of Aldermen who ultimately approved building a new City Hall at a more central location along the town’s main east-west street (Cunningham Avenue). I enlisted the services of an architect to design an approximately 3,300 square foot building with more modern amenities such as off-street parking for both employees and patrons, a larger meeting room for the public, storage, and updated wiring for computers and equipment. This building was the recipient of the 2008 National Innovation Award for small towns by the National Association of Development Organizations (NADO).
Construction of Municipal Library (Terry, MS) – $550K
This was the second of the town’s capital improvement projects. Previously, the town’s library occupied a portion of the public meeting room at the old City Hall building. Eventually, the library was moved into an old single-wide trailer and was open for only a few hours per day 2-3 days per week. In 2011, the town secured funding to build a more than 4,000 square foot building. The building has both juvenile and adult sections, 2 separate meeting rooms, a separate office for the managing librarian, full kitchen, 6 computer stations for public use, and off-street parking for employee and patron usage. This was one of the first municipal buildings equipped with Wi-Fi throughout. As a result, the patronage of the library has increased such that the library is now has daily normal business hours and is open six days per week.
Construction of Fire Station/Public Works Building (Terry, MS)- $575K
The site of this building is actually the site of the old City Hall building. The idea of a centrally located fire station in town came out of the town’s desire to improve (lower) its fire insurance rating. Having a 2-bay centrally located fire station helped to lower (improve) the town’s fire rating for the first time in almost 50 years. As a Civil Engineer, I worked with architect and other professionals to design a dual-purpose facility to meet the current and future fire protection needs of this town. Improving a municipality’s insurance rating results in lower commercial and homeowner insurance rates as well as provide greater confidence to potential businesses about the town’s ability to protect real estate from danger from fire and/or other forms of destruction.