ASCE/SEI Symposium: Bay Area Resilience on 30th Anniversary of Loma Prieta Earthquake
ASCE/SEI San Francisco Chapter is hosting a symposium on resilience to mark the 30th anniversary of the Loma Prieta earthquake. The speaker panel will consist of representatives from BART, Caltrans, EBMUD, City of Oakland, and the San Francisco Office of Resilience and Capital Planning. This event presents a unique opportunity to learn about the resiliency efforts of major building and infrastructure agencies in the Bay Area. Join us for engaging presentations and a lively discussion!
The following are some of the issues to be addressed in the symposium:
- Lessons learned in 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake
- Completed, current, and future projects aimed at improving system and regional resilience
- Performance objectives, recovery times, emergency funding, etc. for the next big one
- Interdependence of area systems and agencies
The tentative event schedule is as follows:
- 5:30 - 6:00pm Light dinner and networking
- 6:00 - 7:00pm Presentations, Part 1
- 7:00 - 7:10pm Break
- 7:10 - 7:40pm Presentations, Part 2
- 7:40 - 8:00pm Panel discussion and Q&A
We are honored to welcome the following distinguished speakers:
Tracy Johnson is the Chief Design and Construction Officer for the SF Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART), where she is responsible for the delivery of capital programs including the $3.5B Core Capacity Program. Throughout her career as a Professional Engineer, Tracy has worked in design and construction of capital projects as well as manufacturing and transit operations. Tracy has extensive experience in earthquake engineering and served for 6 years as vice-chair of the California Seismic Safety Commission. She holds a B.S. and an M.S. in Civil Engineering from University of Wisconsin, Madison.
As the City’s Chief Resilience Officer and Director of the Office of Resilience and Capital Planning, Brian Strong is responsible for San Francisco’s resilience strategy and its $39 billion 10-year capital plan. During his tenure, annual infrastructure investments have increased by over 400% and voters have passed $3.9 billion in G.O. bonds. Brian has also initiated a number of innovative resilience programs including the Tall Buildings Study, lifeline system performance, hazard and climate resilience planning, Earthquake Safety and Emergency Response bonds; and Sea Level Rise Guidance. Brian sits on California’s Integrated Climate and Resiliency Program Technical Advisory Committee and serves as Board President for the San Francisco Community Investment Fund. Brian has a MPA in Intergovernmental Management from USC and a BA from Oberlin College.
Katie Dignan joined the City of Oakland as the Assistant Director of the Planning & Building Department in July of 2018. She is responsible for the department’s financial, human resources, operations management and IT support. Prior to joining the City, Katie served as the Project Delivery Unit Manager for the City of New Orleans from 2011 to 2018. Responsible for the fiscal management of the City’s Capital and Infrastructure Budget, she oversaw and managed a budget increase from $600 million to over $3 billion. She served as program and grant administrator for the FEMA Public Assistance, FEMA Hazard Mitigation Grant Program, HUD Disaster Community Development Block Grant, and HUD National Disaster Resilience projects. She also assisted in the planning and execution of repairs, renovations, and new construction of over 500 facilities and infrastructure recovery projects, with the support of over 50 project delivery unit staff at both the City and Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans. For the last three years of her time in New Orleans, Katie was responsible for spearheading the planning and implementation of the $200M Resilience and Stormwater Management Capital Program. Building on her experiences from New Orleans she is working with the Planning and Building team to spearhead several new resilience initiatives for the Department such as the Mandatory Seismic Retrofit Program, the Building Occupancy Resumption Program, Certification of Inspectors and support staff in the Safety Assessment Program to assist following a disaster, and much more.
Brian H. Maroney, P.E., D.Engr. is the Chief Bridge Engineer for the Toll Bridge Seismic Retrofit Program with the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) and is assisting with the Delta Moveable Bridges and the Stockton Channel Crossing. He has served as a bridge engineer with Caltrans for 35 year. At Caltrans Brian has worked on bridge design and construction, with emphasis on earthquake engineering, developing techniques to analyze and design bridges for earthquake demands. He also developed the statewide seismic identification and prioritization for the bridge seismic retrofit program. He earned his B.S. and M.S. in Civil (Structures) Engineering from Colorado State University in Fort Collins. Brian earned his Doctorate from the University of California in Davis under Dr. Karl Romstad working on research on bridges and earthquake engineering. Brian has continued to serve as an adjunct professor at the University of California in Davis.
Xavier Irias, P.E. is the Director of Engineering and Construction for the East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD), which provides water and wastewater service to 1,400,000 customers in parts of Contra Costa and Alameda counties. Xavier has worked for 32 years as a professional engineer in the water industry. His current duties include managing a staff of 265 technical and professional staff to complete the planning, design, and construction of over $100 million per year in infrastructure improvements such as replacement or rehabilitation of pipelines, reservoirs, pumping plants and other facilities. Over the years Xavier has played key roles in several important EBMUD programs. Many of the projects performed under his direction have received major industry awards. In 2013, Xavier was recognized as California’s Outstanding Engineer in the Public Sector by the American Society of Civil Engineers. In recent years, Xavier led efforts to establish “Pipeline Rebuild,” EBMUD’s Pipeline Renewal Program, which is quadrupling the miles of pipe replaced per year to ensure on-going, reliable water service for all EBMUD customers. As EBMUD’s Chief Dam Safety Officer, Xavier oversees EBMUD’s Dam Safety Program. Xavier has also overseen several major water supply, treatment and transmission projects, including the Folsom South Canal Connection, the Water Treatment Improvement Program, the Polybutylene Service Lateral Program, the Walnut Creek-San Ramon Valley Improvements Program, the Seismic Improvement Program, as well as initiatives to improve internal efficiencies and customer service.