04.03.12 -
On March 22, 2012 Tom Warne received the OPAL Award for Management from the American Society of Civil Engineers for his lifetime contribution to the profession and project delivery. Others recognized as OPAL recipients were Michael J. Abrahams-Design, Robert L. Bowen-Construction, Francis J. Lombardi-Government, and Cliff Schexnayder-Education. In addition, Antonio Nanni received the Michel Award and Jon Schmitz the Journalism Award. Congratulations are also in order for the Hoover Dam Bypass Bridge Project that won the Outstanding Civil Engineering Achievement Award for the year.
08.23.11 -
August 18, 2011
AUSTIN – The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) My 35 public involvement effort won the 2011 National Transportation Public Affairs Workshop (NTPAW) award for best public involvement approach. The award was presented at the 34th annual NTPAW Conference held in Des Moines, Iowa and sponsored by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO). Tom has had the key role of facilitator since April, 2008.
My 35 is a transportation planning process that enlists local citizens’ help to plan for major highway corridors in Texas. The effort is led by the I-35 Advisory Committee and four I-35 Segment Committees. These committees are made up of volunteer citizens who represent counties, cities, Metropolitan Planning Organizations, the Texas Farm Bureau, chambers of commerce and others with a vested interest in improving mobility and safety along I-35.
NTPAW is the annual conference of AASHTO’s Subcommittee on Transportation Communications. The subcommittee is made up of public affairs professionals from the 50 states. Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia. It promotes excellence in communications through the exchange of ideas and educational programming, presents annual skills awards and advises other committees on communications issues.
08.15.11 -
August 15, 2011
The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) announced their Outstanding Projects and Leaders (OPAL) award recipients today. Tom was awarded the 2012 OPAL for Management. Nominees in this category are senior managers of an engineering organization, whose primary responsibility is to oversee and direct operations. Tom has spent an exemplary career representing strong leadership values.
Leadership awards are presented in the categories of Construction, Design, Education, Government and Management. Established in 1999, these prestigious awards recognize and honor outstanding civil engineering leaders who have demonstrated outstanding lifetime achievement, leadership and a long-term commitment to excellence.
The 2012 OPAL Gala will be held March 22, 2012, at the Renaissance Arlington Capital View Hotel, Washington, D.C. http://www.asce.org
08.05.10 -
Salem, OR/Olympia, WA
Governors Christine O. Gregoire and Theodore R. Kulongoski of Washington and Oregon respectively announced the release of the final report of the Independent Review Panel (IRP) they formed in April to review the current status of the $3.6 billion Columbia River Crossing Project. The panel was charged to assess three areas of the project: implementation activities, the finance plan and performance measures.
http://crcreview.org/documents/GovernorsPressRelease_073010.pdf
The IRP was comprised of the following individuals:
- Tom Warne, Chairman (Tom Warne and Associates)
- Rodney Brown (Cascadia Law Group)
- E. Robert Ferguson (ERF LLC)
- Dr. Patricia Galloway (Pegasus Global Holdings)
- Diana Mendes (AECOM)
- Dr. Michael Meyer (GA Tech)
- Mary Lou Ralls-Newman (Ralls-Newman)
- Tim Neuman (CH2M Hill)
Administrative support was provided to the panel by Public Knowledge through Jennifer Vachon.
The IRP’s final report provided 30 recommendations to the governors. The recommendations offer a “road map” for the project to progress forward towards construction.
http://crcreview.org/documents/IRP_report.pdf
The panel conducted seven hearings and three community comment meetings and gathered significant information relative to their charge. The major recommendations are:
- Resolve current land use issues and transportation solutions on Hayden Island
- Resolve technical issues relating to the open web design for the Columbia River Crossing
- Complete a variety of NEPA requirements
- Reinvigorate the public involvement process
- Establish a long-term governance structure for the project
First, it was an amazing experience to work with such an amazing group of individuals as found on this panel. Second, the lessons learned from this review have application on many projects throughout the country. The CRC is an important project that must be built. The recommendations provided by the IRP are the most direct route to that end goal. TW
01.19.10 -
Tom Warne was recently invited to provide partnering facilitation services for the on-going work on the Center Hill Dam in Smithville, Tennessee. The owner is the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Nashville District and the contractor is a Kiewit/ACT, a joint venture. The project has a value of $90 million and includes constructing an 800-foot long grout curtain wall.