Welcome to the Southwest Branch!
Will County DOT Update
Please join us to hear about upcoming design and construction projects in Will County. The presentation by Eric Wesel, P.E. from the Will County Division of Transportation will discuss important projects for the upcoming year and further ahead. Eric has over 25 years of experience with municipalities, consultants and Will County. He started with Will County as the permit engineer and is currently the Phase II Project Manager for the Division of Transportation. Eric’s duties include managing roadway improvement projects including plan reviews of right-of-way acquisition and contact administration.
https://my.apwa.yokoco.dev/s/lt-event?id=a1mJx000004fwk5IAA
2024 Southwest Branch Scholarship Application
Please find the link to the Southwest Branch Student Scholarship. The scholarship is open for all full-time college students within the SW Branch area in an applicable area of study to apply. The application deadline for the Spring 2025 Semester is November 1st, 2024! See below for the application.
2024 Southwest Branch Scholarship Application
Previous Events This Year:
October 2024 News:
Thank you very much Mark Teschke with Baxter & Woodman for presenting on ArcGIS programs and GIS in general. Mark reviewed the current practice for utilizing GIS tools, as well as modern, streamlined methods of updating GIS in real-time for projects under construction. Additionally, Mark discussed how GIS programs are paired with aerial and aquatic drones to survey bodies of water for both municipal and public use.
September 2024 News:
Thank you very much Austin Ridgely with HLR Inc. for presenting on drone surveying and the benefits of the technology. Austin discussed the different sensors used by drones, and what to consider for your project needs and financial constraints when determining the best drone technology for the task at hand. Additionally, Austin reviewed the benefits and challenges of drone surveying with respect to current technology, the regulatory environment, and how the data is utilized.
August 2024 News:
The Southwest Branch hosted the 11th annual Demo and Product Fair at the Joliet Eastside WWTP on August 7th, 2024. This event provided an opportunity for vendors to showcase their products and have public works staff learn more about these products as well as how they could help their community. There were 30 vendors, 8 presentations/demonstrations, and over 150 attendees.
June 2024 News:
Southwest Branch had the first APWA Golf Outing of the year which was successful in raising funds for branch’s scholarship fund. The Southwest Branch also awarded scholarships to very deserving applicants. Thank to Don Cassier for planning a very successful Golf Outing and Jonathan Kjellman for coordinating the scholarships.
May 2024 News:
Thank you very much Thano Tziforos, Matthew Moorehouse with American Surveying & Engineering and Reid Magner with Bravo Company Engineering for presenting on subsurface utility engineering (SUE) and the various options for equipment and methods. The speakers discussed how accurate mapping is produced from subsurface utility engineering, as well as the challenges associated with underground conflicts encountered during exploration.
April 2024 News:
Thank you very much Jonathan Shuptar with the V3 Companies for presenting on the benefits and challenges of soil management for engineering projects. Jonathan reviewed the general process for CCDD soil certification, the highlights of clean fill regulations, and how to manage impacts to the project as well as the process for handling failed soils.
March 2024 News:
Thank you very much Patrick Hulsebosch with RJN Group for presenting force main inspection. Patrick explored the benefits of screening level assessments to inspect force mains as a fiscally prudent and effective approach to identifying areas of defect within force main pipelines.
February 2024 News:
On February 7th, the APWA SW Branch held the 2024 Awards Banquet at the Patrick Haley Mansion. Thank you to all members that attended this event to recognize the award-winning projects from the SW Branch.
Public Works Project of the Year:
- Post 5 Lift Station Improvements (Environment, less than $5M) – Village of Tinley Park
- Shorewood Public Works Facility (Structures, $5M to $25M) – Village of Shorewood
- Doctor Marsh Prairie Path (Transportation, less than $5M) – Village of Orland Park
- Houbolt Road Extension and Diverging Diamond Interchange (Transportation, over $75M) – City of Joliet
Congratulations to all the award winners!
January 2024 News:
Thank you very much Hugh O’Hara with the Will County Governmental League for presenting on the 2024 state and federal legislative items of pertinence to the field of public works. Hugh also discussed the financial outlook of Illinois for the year ahead and associated impacts to local funding.
Past Year Highlights:
November 2022 News:
Thank you very much Brian Nestler with American Red Cross of Illinois for presenting on what Red Cross can do for local communities in case of a disaster. Brian went into detail about how Red Cross was able to provide relief to the Naperville and Woodridge communities during the 2021 tornado. Congratulations to Village of Elwood (Environmental less than $5M) and the City of Joliet (Environmental $25M – $75M) for their 2022 award winning projects that were showcased during the November meeting.
October 2022 News:
Thank you very much to Brandon Thomas with Trotter and Associates for their detailed presentation on lift station evaluation and design. After the presentation the attendees were provided the opportunity to visit one of the City of Joliet’s lift station that was previously evaluated by Trotter and Associates. Congratulations to the Village of Channahon for their award-winning project (Environmental $5M – $25M), Channahon’s Strategic Master Planning Facilitated Cost-Effective Phased Improvements.
September 2022 News:
Thank you very much to Steve Lane and Steve Ludwig with Great Lakes Urban Forestry Management for their very informative presentation on GIS Mapping for Tree Inventories and Asset Management Level of Service Insights. Congratulations to Orland Park (Transportation- $5M – $25M) and New Lenox (Structures- $5M – $25M) for their award-winning projects that were also showcased at the September meeting.
August 2022 News:
The Southwest Branch hosted the 9th annual Demo and Product Fair at the Joliet Eastside WWTP on August 3rd, 2022. This event provided an opportunity for vendors to showcase their products and have public works staff learn more about these products as well as how they could help their community. There were 30 vendors, 5 presentations/demonstrations, and over 180 attendees. The event also had a BBQ and bags tournament, which was won by Matt Raymond and Greg Snodgrass from the Village of Plainfield.
June 2022 News:
Southwest Branch had the first APWA Golf Outing of the year which was successful in raising funds for branches scholarship fund. We could have asked for better weather, but there were a few foursomes that finished all 18 holes. The Southwest Branch also awarded three scholarships to very deserving applicants. Thank to Don Cassier for planning a very successful Golf Outing and Jonathan Kjellman for coordinating the scholarships.
May 2022 News:
On May 4th, the APWA SW Branch and Fox Valley Branch cosponsored an educational event at Clarke Environmental. The event was an overview of Integrated Mosquito Control & Annual Solid Mosquito Larvicide Training which certifies attendees for the Illinois Department of Agriculture Special Application one-hour Solid Larvicide Training Requirement. Thank you to Clarke Environmental for hosting the event.
April 2022 News:
On April 6th, the APWA SW Branch held the 2022 Awards Banquet at the Patrick Haley Mansion. Thank you to all members that attended this event to recognize the award-winning projects from the SW Branch.
March 2022 News:
Thank you very much to TranSystems and Zachary Pucel for an engaging presentation on Minimizing Issues During Construction. Congratulations to 2022 Structures (less than $5 million) project award winner that was also showcased, Romeoville Public Works Fleet Maintenance Building.
February 2022 News:
Thank you very much to East Jordan and Paul Thibaudeau for a very interesting webinar on Iron Casting Manufacturing and Design. Congratulations to 2022 Transportation (less than $5 million) project award winner that was also showcased, Essington Road over Rock Run Creek.
2024 Executive Members:
President
Owen Dean, P.E.
City of Joliet
Vice President
Jonathan Kjellman, P.E.
HDR, Inc.
Treasurer
Joe Nordman
City of Joliet
Secretary
Sean Brady, P.E.
True North Consultants, Inc.
Past President
Alex Alejandro, P.E., CFM, DECI
Hancock Engineering
Here is our schedule and topics for 2024:
Monthly Meetings (1st Wednesday of the Month):
January 17th – Will County Governmental League 2024 Legislative Outlook
February 7th– Southwest Branch Awards Banquet
March 6th – Force Main Inspection
April 3rd – Soil Management, CCDD Certifications, and Solid Waste
May 1st – Education Event – Subsurface Utility Engineering
June 11th – Southwest Branch Golf Outing at Silver Lake Country Club
July – No meeting
August 7th – Demo and Product Fair
September 4th – Drone Survey & Aerial Photography
October 2nd – GIS in Public Works
November 6th – Will County DOT Update
December TBD – Southwest Branch Holiday Party
Thank you for visiting this web page. Please contact Owen Dean at odean@joliet.gov if you have any comments/questions.