June 2023 - VDOT Project Development Forum

Presentation File & Attendee List


Presentation File

Attendee List

 


Our Speakers

Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) NOVA District
Nicholas J. Roper, P.E. - District Project Development Engineer

Nicholas J. Roper, P.E., has more than 40 years of engineering experience in the military, private, and public sectors.   Nick earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering from the Virginia Military Institute in 1982, and a Master of Engineering degree from the University of Virginia in 1996.  He joined VDOT in 2001 as the District Structure and Bridge Engineer, and in 2013 he became the Assistant District Engineer for Project Development, where he is currently responsible for development of nearly 250 transportation projects valued at more than $3.4 billion as well as the construction of 45 active local assistance projects valued at $477 million.  Nick retired from the US Army as a Colonel following 28 years of service on active duty and in the reserves, including deployments to Kosovo and Iraq.  He resides in Occoquan, Virginia.



Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) NOVA District
William Cuttler, PE - Deputy District Engineer


Bill Cuttler is the Deputy District Engineer for VDOT’s Northern Virginia District where he is responsible for planning and investment management, project development, and construction.
 
While delivering a complex multimodal program, his teams have won two national project of the year awards and a Governor’s award for innovation.
 



Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) NOVA District
Timothy Belcher, PE - Assistant District Location & Design Engineer


Tim has 22 years of experience (1 with FHWA, 16 with private sector, 5 with VDOT).  He is one of the three Assistant District L&D Engineers and leads the Quality Assurance plan review group who performs about 700+ reviews/year for a variety of projects throughout the entire Northern Virginia District.





Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) NOVA District
Heidi Mitter - Bicycle/Pedestrian and Park & Ride Coordinator/Transportation Planning


Heidi Mitter is a multimodal transportation planner, currently serving as VDOT's NOVA District Bicycle/Pedestrian and Park & Ride Lot Coordinator. She has worked in VDOT's Transportation Planning section since 2015, with experience in TDM and transit coordination, traffic calming and corridor plans, multimodal studies, and increasing safe, comfortable bicycle/pedestrian mobility in our region. Heidi holds a Bachelors of Urban and Environmental Planning from the University of Virginia and is a longtime resident of the Waterford area. She is also a mom to 9-month old son, Paul.


 


Kimley-Horn & Associates, Inc.
John Martin - Consultant Project Manager, Route 1 Multimodal Improvements Study

John Martin is a Principal and Senior Vice President with Kimley-Horn and Associates, where he’s worked for more than 25 years, supporting projects for VDOT and Virginia localities, as well as infrastructure projects across the U.S.  Prior to Kimley-Horn, John served as a segment project manager for the construction of the Dulles Greenway.  He also served in the Air Force, on Active Duty and in the Reserves, specializing in infrastructure development for the Air Force’s space-related missions and retiring in 2008 as a Colonel.  John is a graduate of N.C. State University and the Air Force Institute of Technology.
 
John has been the consultant project manager for the Route 1 Multimodal Improvements Study, working closely with VDOT and Arlington County, since the project’s inception in the fall of 2020.  He is currently leading the completion of Phase 2 of the study.
 



 

Kimley-Horn & Associates, Inc.
Geoff Giffin - Deputy Project Manager



Geoff Giffin is a Vice President with Kimley-Horn, where he’s worked for more than 20 years, also supporting projects for VDOT and Virginia localities.  In addition to serving as Deputy Project Manager for the Route 1 Multimodal Improvements Study, Geoff led the traffic signal design for the Metroway transit service in Arlington and Alexandria, the Commonwealth’s first bus rapid transit project.  Geoff is also a technical committee member of the National Committee on Uniform Traffic Control Devices and has been supporting FHWA on revisions to the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) for the past 20 years.  Geoff holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Virginia Tech and is a father of 4 boys.
 
Geoff has been serving as deputy project manager for the Route 1 Multimodal Improvements Study, leading the multimodal transportation analyses during Phases 1 and 2 of the study.


 

City of Falls Church
Cindy Mester - Deputy City Manager/ Pension Plan Administrator


Since 2006 Mrs. Mester currently serves the City of Falls Church as the Deputy City Manager and has served as interim director for departments of Planning, Public Works and Human Resources.  In these roles she is responsible for community engagement special projects, capital planning, Federal and State legislation, ADA compliance, IT operations, planning, zoning, building safety, land use/permit processing and human resources management.
 
Mrs. Mester joined the City of Falls Church in April 2005 as the Community Services General Manager; this department is comprised of the Mary Riley Styles Public Library, Recreation and Parks, Housing and Human Services and Court Services. Mrs. Mester has a committed history of public service and prior to joining the City, worked for Loudoun County (1982-2005) in various human service capacities including the Mental Health/Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Program Coordinator and subsequently as the Housing Services Director.
 
Ms. Mester is committed to building community through her local government service.



 

Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) NOVA District
Pawan Sarang, PE - District Drainage Engineer

 
Pawan Sarang is a registered Professional Engineer in Commonwealth of Virginia and State of Maryland. He has a post graduate degree in Highway Engineering and has been working with VDOT – NOVA District as District Drainage Engineer since July 2005 (about 18 years). NOVA District includes Arlington, Fairfax, Prince William and Loudoun Counties and various Cities. During this time, he has worked on numerous roadway improvement projects which are delivered by P3,  Design-Bid-Build (D-B-B), Design-Build (D-B) or Locally Administered (LAP) delivery process.
 
For last 25 years, he has worked in Land Development Site Design and Highway Hydraulics/Drainage/SWM fields which includes extensive work in Counties of Prince George’s and Anne Arundel in Maryland. He also works in Floodplain and Scour determination and mitigation for bridges for VDOT.


 

Our Moderator

ACEC/MW Transportation Committee Vice Chair
James Thomas, P.E. - Supervising Engineer, Parsons Corporation

James Thomas, PE, is a Supervising Engineer at Parsons Corporation, a global Engineering Firm specializing in Critical Infrastructure and headquartered in Centreville, Virginia. He has over 17 years of experience designing and managing transportation projects throughout the United States and Canada for State and Local clients. James is a member of ACEC/MW and currently serves as the Transportation Committee Vice Chair.


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