[President Perspective] [Meet the Member] [Monthly Meeting]
It is always a little surprising to see something featured in two completely different magazines at the same time. This month's ASCE Magazine cover article, the Caltrans District 7 Headquarters, is also highlighted in this month's Sunset magazine. ASCE Magazine praised the site's engineering achievements. Sunset looked at those achievements, and praised them as art.
Most of the population see art and engineering as complete opposites, relying on incorrect stereotypes. However, I know of several engineers who have a very strong artistic side; and most engineers have some degree of artistic intuition (whether they know it or not). As proof, let's remember that Julia Morgan, of Hearst Castle fame, started out as a civil engineer!
A good artist needs to be creative and imaginative. Aren't these also traits of a good civil engineer? We are called to think of inventive solutions to address what looks like mundane problems. Just think of the last time you had to make something fit into the existing infrastructure - it probably took some creative manipulation. Civil engineers don't just crunch numbers. They design and construct projects for the public, and part of that is making the end result aesthetically pleasing. Even before something is built, engineers can tell what will be aesthetically pleasing by imagining the result and transferring it to a set of plans. Doesn't this sound like the traditional definition of art?
While expecting our son, my husband and I (at one of those uncomfortable family gatherings) were told snidely: "Don't be too disappointed if your child turns out to be an artist." The group was greatly amused, since they assumed this would be disastrous to a couple of engineers. Little did they know, we would be thrilled!
-Valerie Beard, P.E.
Let's get to know Victor Devens this month! He is the associate engineer for development projects for the City of Arroyo Grande. He is a jack-of-all-trades, seeing the proposed development from the application stage through preliminary engineering, design, construction and sale. Victor attends planning commission meetings, staff meetings, and recordings, writes staff reports and performs project plan checks.
Some of Victor's current projects include Cherry Creek Estates on the southeast side of AG, which is in the preliminary stages of performing environmental and hydraulic studies, and a proposed redevelopment in the east corridor to build some commercial facilities and condominiums. Obtaining clearance environmentally and through the Planning Commission can be a significant challenge for developers, especially with the habitat in Arroyo Grande and the fact that the city is approaching build out. One thing that Victor has noticed is the Planning Commission's increasing interest in the details of the engineering analyses associated with the projects. Designs must now meet high quality standards, which battles with the monetary driving force for development.
Prior to working for Arroyo Grande, Victor was a construction inspector with MWH on the Lopez Dam Seismic Retrofit project. This job was unique in that interviews were conducted on-site and he was actually working for two offices, Walnut Creek, CA and Bellevue, WA, here in SLO County. He enjoyed being outdoors, working with the contractors and learning about engineering geology and structural reinforcement while also performing typical inspection tasks like taking samples and performing various material tests.
Unfortunately, Victor was not able to work under licensed engineers during his stint with MWH, but he has now spent enough time with Arroyo Grande to sit for the PE exam in October. His academic journey began at Atascadero High School and continued at Cuesta, where he completed his general education. Victor is one of those rare individuals that actually benefited from a visit to the career counselor, and after an analysis of his abilities, he chose Civil Engineering and graduated from Cal Poly in December of 2001.
Victor grew up in the Carissa Plains before moving to Creston while in high school, and he still enjoys hunting and hiking. He has also acquired some woodworking tools, and often acquiesces to the idea of "if you buy it, he will build it" for his buddies. One thing Victor would like everyone to know is that he knows more words than just "no" even though the developers he works with may disagree. I guess we all just better know the right question to ask!
by Courtney Howard
The Woodlands project in Nipomo is a master planned community approved by the Board of Supervisors in 2002 as a Specific Plan with a Tentative Map and Development Plans. The overall project is owned by Woodlands Ventures, LLC and consists of 957 acres subdivided into 1220 residential single family lots ranging in size from 4,200 sf to 23,000 sf, 16 business park parcels, a multi-family residential parcel allowing up to 100 units, 10 commercial parcels within the village center, 2 resort parcels to include a community center and a resort hotel, a wastewater treatment facility, water tanks/booster pumps, 45 holes of golf and various parcels for parks, open space areas, buffers and habitat preservation.
This multi-disciplined project is a good example of how local engineers, surveyors, planners and landscape architects can work together to successfully construct one of the largest projects in SLO County history. Please join us on June 16 at A.J. Spurs for an overview of the project design and construction by former ASCE Chapter president Brad Brechwald of the Wallace Group. A tour of the Woodlands construction site will follow the presentation. All are welcome. Hard hats are required for some portions of the construction site.