The Arizona Association of County Engineers (AACE) recently announced its 18th Annual Esterbrooks Award winners and three employees from Maricopa County Department of Transportation (MCDOT) were chosen as award recipients:
- Degreed Engineer: Dave Fritz, Roadway and Drainage Engineering Branch Manager
- Engineering Support: John Counts, Traffic Studies Branch Manager
- Rising Star: Lesley Roman, IT Program Manager
Additionally, Reyes Lara, Roadway Operations and Maintenance Supervisor, was nominated for and received an Honorable Mention in the Operations/Construction Support category.
The AACE established the Annual Robert C. Esterbrooks Award Program to recognize individual county employees whose service fosters innovation, effectiveness, better communication and efficiency that results in a better product delivered to the communities they serve.
2018 Annual Robert C. Esterbrooks Degreed Engineer Award Winner: David Fritz
A long-time County employee, David uses his engineering talents, knowledge of the industry and understanding of roadway design to save the County time and money as well as improve the final roadway designs in a way that increases utility for all roadway users. David has an innate ability to take an operations issue and design a cost-effective solution quickly. He enjoys solving operational challenges with long-term solutions that provide maintenance cost-savings, staff time-savings and operational efficiency for roadway users.
2018 Annual Robert C. Esterbrooks Engineering Support Award Winner: John Counts
John began his career with MCDOT in 1980 as a slurry truck driver and over the years has advanced to become the Manager in the Traffic Studies Branch. John is immensely knowledgeable in traffic control and safety. He can be counted on to do the in-depth research on a topic before responding to citizens. This has helped Maricopa County ensure sound and consistent feedback. His expertise in traffic management solutions has provided significant contributions for the County now and into the future.
2018 Annual Robert C. Esterbrooks Rising Star Award Winner: Lesley Roman
Lesley joined the Infrastructure Technology Center (ITC) in July 2015 and has been pivotal in supporting MCDOT’s continuous improvement process. Lesley understands that while she provides support to the employees of MCDOT, her final customer is the public and stakeholders. She understands that by providing quality tools and innovative technological solutions, she is helping to enhance Maricopa County’s image to the public and its stakeholders. Lesley maintains high standards in quality from herself and everyone who works with her.
2018 Annual Robert C. Esterbrooks Operations/Construction Support Honorable Mention: Reyes Lara
After working for the county for nearly seven years, Reyes was promoted to MCDOT’s Northwest Maintenance Yard Operations & Maintenance Supervisor. Reyes has not only built trust among his employees but he has also improved trust within the communities he serves, including the more than 50,000 residents in the Sun City and Sun City West retirement communities that are adjacent to the yard. Reyes understands giving high-quality and efficient customer service not only fulfils the needs of the residents but is also providing a service to the County.
MCDOT thanks these employees for their dedication to fulfilling our core value of being service-minded team builders who get it done with a smile. Congratulations David Fritz, John Counts, Lesley Roman and Reyes Lara for receiving these prestigious awards.