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November 2018 Meeting- California Earthquake Authority (CEA)

11/1/2018

 
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Speaker:Janiele Maffei, Chief Mitigation Officer with the California Earthquake Authority.

Presentation
The California Earthquake Authority (CEA), a not-for-profit, publicly managed and privately funded entity, was created in 1996 by the State of California in the wake of the Northridge earthquake. This unique organization has a public mission to educate Californians about earthquake risk, offer insurance coverage and encourage residents to mitigate these potential risks.
 
Janiele Maffei, CEA’s Chief Mitigation Officer, will describe how her perspective and experience as a structural engineer plays a critical role in achieving CEA’s strategic goals to Educate, Mitigate and Insure. Working with a multi-disciplinary team of professionals and consultants, Ms. Maffei manages the Mitigation and Research departments. These efforts include the development of residential seismic retrofit standards, sponsoring building performance studies, and managing a seismic retrofit grant program in the state.
 
With an overarching goal to encourage Californians to act—specifically, mitigate and insure—before the next big one, Ms. Maffei will discuss CEA’s multi-disciplinary approach and the opportunities to impact behavior change.
 
Bio
Ms. Maffei is licensed as both a Civil Engineer and Structural Engineer in California with 36 years of experience in the design of new buildings, retrofit designs of existing buildings, seismic evaluations, seismic loss estimation studies, design of equipment anchorages, preparation of construction documents, and construction administration.
 
After fifteen years as a project manager and regional office director with Degenkolb Engineers, she opened her own practice where she managed complex design projects involving many disciplines.
 
In 2011, Ms. Maffei joined the California Earthquake Authority (CEA) as its Chief Mitigation Officer. In this capacity, she serves as the Executive Director of the California Residential Mitigation Program.  She was a Board Member and Chair of the Economic Development Committee for the Oakland Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, and was Chair of the Technical Advisory Committee for the Piedmont School District Measure E Seismic Retrofit Program.
 
As Executive Director of the California Residential Retrofit Program, Ms. Maffei has been responsible for developing policies, plans, and incentives for retrofitting wood frame residential construction throughout California in order to, along with insurance, mitigate the consequence of a major earthquake in California.
 
Her professional leadership positions include:  Structural Engineers Association of Northern California, Board of Directors; Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (EERI), Northern California Chapter, President (2010-2011); and EERI, Board of Directors, Secretary and Treasurer (2012-present).

Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge

10/4/2018

 
Project Description

The newly completed State Route 1 Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge—a vital link between Big Sur and other communities in Monterey County (Caltrans District 5) – was damaged beyond repair from a landslide due to heavy rains which began in early January 2017. Through innovative design and collaboration, the new $24 million single-span bridge was built and opened to the public in 8 months when a project of this magnitude would normally take 8 years. Due to the severe impact to the community of losing this bridge, Caltrans was able to accelerate the project by ordering the steel in advance, accelerating the design, and using an innovative way to “launch” the assembled steel girder bridge into place.

This national, multi-award-winning bridge was recognized as an Accelerated Bridge Construction project—new to California and the Big Sur Community. Constructing the actual structure across the canyon presented unique challenges: working across the deep canyon, dealing with an active landslide, and needing to complete construction quickly. Dozens of bridge workers worked long hours, 6-7 days a week, to complete the project. The structure features fifteen 62-ton steel girders (fabricated in Vallejo) that span the rugged 310-foot canyon. Eliminating structural vulnerability to future slide activity, the design avoids use of support columns. The new bridge includes 12-foot lanes and 5-foot outside shoulders, making it accessible for all travelers.

Speakers:

Bob Riggins, Jr., MNS Engineers
Assistant Structures Representative
Bob Riggins is a highly experienced, hands-on professional construction manager, assistant structures representative and inspector with over 32 years of heavy bridge and highway project experience. In addition to construction management and inspection, Bob has worked as a project superintendent and project manager for private contractors on numerous bridge and freeway projects throughout California, Oregon, Arizona, Idaho, and Utah. Bob acted as the Assistant Structures Representative on the Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge Emergency Replacement Project and was responsible for the daily planning, inspection and coordination with the contractor onsite. Some of his most notable projects include the Salinas River Bridge Widening and Prunedale Improvement projects for Caltrans District 5, the historical restoration of the Hassayampa steel truss bridge for Yavapai County in Arizona, and the Twin Bridges on Interstate 5 over the South Umpqua River for the Oregon Department of Transportation.

When not at work, Bob and his wife love to travel. Part of traveling includes riding their motorcycles across the country thousands of miles each year along with their dog and visiting national parks and historical sites.

David Galarza, PE, Caltrans
Structures Representative, D5 North
David Galarza graduated from Cal Poly with a BS in Architectural Engineering. Upon graduation he worked for medium sized A&E firms, including the Watry Group and Faye Bernstein and Assoc. where he collaborated on the design of several post-tensioned parking structures, the San Francisco International Airport ART system, the seismic retrofit of several historic buildings in San Francisco, and several Caltrans bridge phase 1 seismic retrofits. In 1998 he had the opportunity to work for Caltrans as a consulting assistant Structure Representative, inspecting and administering bridge construction contracts along the Cabrillo Highway in Monterey County. He enjoyed the field work so much he left the private sector and pursued his career with Caltrans as a Structure Representative in northern District 5. Over the past 20 years, he has worked on a multitude of maintenance, new construction, and retrofit projects. Some of his most notable projects include: San Miguel Canyon O/C, US 101/156 Interchange, Highway 1/17 Merge Lanes, North Soledad Overhead Emergency Response, Prunedale Improvement Project, Mal Paso Electrochemical Chloride Extraction, Route 68 Salinas River Bridge Seismic Retrofit / Widening, and Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge Emergency Replacement Project.

In his spare time, David enjoys family activities in the Monterey area including mountain bike riding, hiking, and going to the beach.

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Fall Social - Night of Wine and Spirits

9/15/2018

 
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DETECTING POTABLE WATER LEAKS AND WATER USING SATELLITES

7/23/2018

 
Utilis developed a unique and patented technology to deliver data used system surveys and for leak detection in urban potable water networks, using airborne mounted sensors. The analysis is based on a primary algorithm that detects underground leaks through the analysis of micro spectral satellite imagery.  The presentation will cover the technology, market situation, Utilis value proposition and review several case studies.
 
Our Presenter:  James has spent over 30+ years driving disruptive innovation into new markets.  In all cases he has studied and reviewed each element of an ecosystem to best understand how to employee new technologies into traditional workflow and improved efficiencies, while providing value to customers. In both start-ups and Fortune 50 companies, James’ key mission is market adoption and to achieve a deeper foothold into new markets.  In the case of Utilis, he has mapped the water utility market and associated ecosystem to ensure the disruptive innovation for spacial remote sensing is imbedded in workflow for system maintenance and leak detection services.  Water systems are seeing significant benefits by employing Utilis' innovative and cost-effective approach to surveying and fixing leaks within their systems.

The Five W’s of Public Outreach for Major Transportation or Infrastructure Public Owner Projects

6/7/2018

 
The Presentation will cover lessons learned and gained from smaller projects for local agencies and cities all the way to working on mega transportation projects such as the California high speed rail and the BART extension to San Jose.

The five W’s of Outreach will be addressed:
● What are Common Outreach Don’ts
● Why is Public Outreach Important
● Who Performs Public Outreach
● When are Meetings Held
● What are proper Outreach Documents

Our Presenters: Mr. Vargas has over 26 years of diverse experience. In 2004 he co-founded VSCE, a consulting firm to provide Construction Management, Program Management, and Public Relations services. He has worked for large and small private consultants in the areas of transportation, program development, and infrastructure construction.

Cheryl Chambers brings extensive experience in forging partnerships with civic, business, and community leaders while serving as an advocate for firms through community outreach and government relations. Cheryl’s business experience has been involved extensively in the telecommunications industry interacting with local governments, state commissions and the FCC.

Drones are Taking Over the WORLD (or at least Engineering)!

4/12/2018

 
Presentation by: Joshua Wagner
The Southbay Engineers Club is pleased to welcome Joshua Wagner to speak about Unmanned Aerial Vehicles technology. The advent of affordable Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) technology has given rise to new methods of obtaining and analyzing data across a broad spectrum of engineering applications. Accurately geo-referenced high-resolution imagery and high density, photogrammetrically derived point clouds lend themselves to developing a holistic approach to evaluating infrastructure and terrain through both qualitative and quantitative means.  By conducting repeatable programmed flights over time, UAV-obtained datasets provide a robust method of evaluating asset conditions over time.

Our Presenter:
Joshua Wagner is the Manager of UAV and Remote Sensing Services for Cal Engineering and Geology. He has drawn upon his education and background in geology and GIS to develop and grow successful UAV programs on both the east and west coast. His experiences include the utilization of UAV’s for assessment of vertical rock slope stability and rockfall hazard analysis; inspections of high-voltage transmission lines and communications towers; 3D model development of a deformed high-voltage transmission line tower deformed by land movement; change detection surveys, and more. He has worked alongside and for public agencies and private organizations including major electric utilities, oil and gas midstream divisions, water districts, and more.
 
Please note that the meeting day has moved to Thursday!
 
Thursday, April 12, 12:00 PM - 1:30 PM
Spin-a-Yarn
45915 Warm Springs Blvd  Fremont, California (510) 656-9141
 
RSVP now on the SBEC website, www.southbayengineersclub.org/meetings
Lunch is $30 (members); $40 (non-members)
Annual Membership is $27 at http://www.southbayengineersclub.org/membership.html
2017-18 Annual Membership Free for Public Agencies!!!
Questions? Contact Southbay Engineers Club President Adam Nelkie
e-mail address: anelkie@cityofpleasantonca.gov, (925) 931-5675

VTA Measure B Project Update - Postponed to May 3rd, 2018

4/1/2018

 
On November 8, 2016, the voters of Santa Clara County approved Measure B, a 30-year, 1/2 cent sales tax measure that will fund numerous transportation projects and services.  The measure is projected to generate $6.3 billion that will be distributed across nine program categories:
  • Local Streets & Roads
  • BART Phase II
  • Bicycle/Pedestrian
  • Caltrain Grade Separations
  • Caltrain Corridor Capacity Improvements
  • Highway Interchanges
  • County Expressways
  • SR 85 Corridor
  • Transit Operations
Collection of the tax began on April 1, 2017, but a lawsuit and subsequent appeal has held up the distribution of funds to Santa Clara County cities and projects.  Jane Shinn will present an overview and update of the 2016 Measure B Program, what is happening with those funds, when they might be free and how she is ensuring that they will be used in ways that are true to VTA Board-adopted guidelines and the intent of Santa Clara County voters.

Jane Shinn is a Senior Management Analyst at the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA). She
is effectively a Swiss-army knife for VTA, working on several varied and high-profile agency efforts. She
is currently managing and moderating the demands of 15 eager jurisdictions as she develops and
administers the 30-year 2016 Measure B transportation sales tax measure. Jane has been integral in the
development of VTA’s Strategic Plan and has explored equity issues relating to VTA’s express lane
program. She has also helped balance the books at VTA, managing grant programs, ensured contract
and funding compliance and monitored agency budgets.
Jane is a graduate of the Mineta Transportation Institute, located within the Lucas Graduate School of
Business at San Jose State University, and an alumna of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
She is a member of the Santa Clara County Joint Lifeline Transportation Committee, the San Francisco
Bay Area chapter of WTS and SPUR San Jose.


Cultural Resources and Permitting

3/2/2018

 
​Ms. Siskin will focus her presentation on the highlights of collaborative efforts between cultural resources consultants and engineers to address Section 106 and Caltrans (FHWA Requirements) including: 1) establishing the Area of Potential Effects: how, what, and why (with case studies); 2) the value of early field meetings and consultation with stakeholders, particularly with Tribal Groups, Caltrans, local agencies, and project engineers (with case studies); and, 3) cultural resources types and why finding them isn’t a show stopper. 

Ms. Miller will give a presentation focused on programmatic permitting for wetlands and endangered species. She will touch on California Department of Fish and Wildlife routine maintenance agreements and master 1600 and 2081 permits, United States Army Corps of Engineers master individual permits with and without section 7 consultation, Habitat Conservation Plans, and Aquatic Resource Plans. Ms. Miller will also discuss the ramifications of recent court decisions affecting permitting of Fully Protected species.

Overview of FEMA and FHWA Disaster Recovery Process

2/2/2018

 
​Mallika Ramachandran is a professional civil engineer with over 30 years of experience in the private and public sector. She is also certified as a LEED AP and QSD/QSP.  At Napa County she has navigated through the Napa 2014 Earthquake, the 2017 Storms and the October 2017 Fire disasters.  As a technical expert and advisor she also assisted City of Livermore through their 2017 Storm recovery process. Mallika will be giving a quick overview of the FEMA and FHWA disaster recovery process with focus on the emergency permit process and coordination with regulatory agencies for emergency repairs.

Update of Subdivision Map Act and Significant Land Use Legislation and Case Law

1/19/2018

 
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Presentation
​The Subdivision Map Act is a state law that is implemented and enforced by cities and counties as the primary mechanism by which they regulate and control the subdivision of real property in California. The goals of the Map Act are to (i) encourage orderly community development for the benefit of adjacent landowners, prospective purchasers, and the public, (ii) control and regulate the design and construction of improvements, (iii) ensure that the areas dedicated for public purposes will be properly improved by the subdivider so that such areas do not become an undue burden on the taxpayer, and (iv) protect the public from fraud.  Matthew Gray will present significant land use legislation and case law to explain how cities and counties will be affected by recent updates to the Subdivision Map Act.
 
Presenter
Matthew Gray focuses his practice on land use entitlement processing, environmental compliance, and real estate transactions. He represents a range of local agencies, real estate developers and landowners in all stages of the land use entitlement and development process. He assists clients in negotiating and securing approval of development agreements, general plan amendments, specific plans, zoning, subdivision approvals, and annexation of property into cities and special districts; regularly appears before planning commissions and city councils; and advises clients on compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act and other federal and state regulatory programs during the development process. Matt also has experience negotiating affordable housing agreements, complex mitigation fee agreements and conservation easements; forming land-based financing mechanisms, including Mello-Roos Districts; securing cancellation or termination of Williamson Act contracts on agricultural lands; advising clients on issues relating to water supply; and using the initiative and referendum process in the land use planning context. Matt negotiates purchase and sale agreements; site development agreements; CC&R's and easement agreements; and related transactional documents in connection with mixed-use, commercial, and residential development projects.

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