Burbank’s Bonnie Teaford Named a Top Ten Public Works Leader

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Bonnie Teaford-2Burbank’s Public Works Director, Bonnie Teaford, P.E., was recently named to the American Public Works Association (APWA) 2014 Top Ten Public Works Leaders of the Year. Each Top Ten Leader will be honored during the Awards Ceremony of the APWA 2014 International Public Works Congress & Exposition taking place in Toronto, Ontario in Canada during August 17-20, 2014. Teaford will also be presented the award locally on Thursday, May 22, 2014 at 11:30 a.m. at the City of Burbank annual National Public Works Week picnic, located at Stough Park, in the 3000 block of Lockheed View Drive in Burbank, CA.

APWA annually recognizes ten of the most outstanding public works professionals from across the U.S. and Canada for their career-long dedication and service, professionalism and expertise in public works infrastructure. As one of the most coveted and prestigious awards presented by the association, the Top Ten Public Works Leader award is given to honor the public works professional’s career, in which he or she demonstrated excellence in public works, services and infrastructure in his or her community through advancement of public works services and technology.

As Burbank’s Public Works Director, Teaford leads, plans, directs, manages and controls the activities of 185 full-time Public Works Department employees, who provide essential services to the city’s 104,391 full-time residents and 100,000 workers who commute to businesses in Burbank. As Director, Teaford also develops, presents and monitors a $60 million-per-year operating budget and a capital improvement budget that ranges from $15 million to nearly $60 million each year. She manages and directs engineering, construction, and maintenance of 280 miles of streets and alleys; 366 miles of sidewalk, curb and gutter; 200 signalized intersections controlled by a centralized traffic management center; 61 miles of storm drains; 11 hillside flood-control debris basins; and 223 miles of sanitary sewers.

Teaford created and led a city-wide Infrastructure Subcommittee that included two elected Council Members and numerous other department heads to develop a first-ever comprehensive, multi-year Infrastructure Investment Plan to address decades of deferred maintenance for all city infrastructure, and convened an annual meeting with stakeholders to focus attention on the city’s unfunded infrastructure needs, which has led to a significant increase in pavement and facility investments.

She also developed a city-wide vertical construction program that successfully delivered four major civic facilities (the $38 million Community Services Building, the $8 million DeBell Golf Course Clubhouse, the $9 million Ovrom Park and Community Center, and the $8 million Verdugo Aquatic Center). She also served as executive project manager for the award-winning $ 9.5million Police/Fire Water Intrusion project, which required reconstruction of major building elements, while this critical facility continued its 24/7 operation.

Active in the APWA Southern California Chapter, Teaford has been an active member for fourteen years, and has served on the Southern California Chapter Board of Directors since 2008. “Through her leadership, enthusiasm and influence, Ms. Teaford is synonymous with APWA in the Southern California area. Elected officials, managers and frontline staff come together in whole-hearted and like-minded response support of Bonnie’s efforts of promoting APWA is commonplace. Bonnie is a role model of excellence and dedication,” said APWA Southern California Chapter President, Tony Antich, P.E., P.M.R.