Trailblazers
The 2024 Trailblazers in Building & Infrastructure
Meet the people helping us work, get around and live better
Roberto Perez, Maria J. Wing & Steve Park HRG Group; Paul Pugliese; Provided
Survey Pennsylvania's landscape of sprawling highways and bridges, office towers and gas pipelines and carpentry workshops. It’s impossible to miss: Pennsylvania's infrastructure sector hums with activity, spurred by local initiatives as well as federal investment. As this year's City & State Building and Infrastructure Trailblazers list reveals, the Commonwealth offers fertile ground for building all kinds of things – from diverse workforce development to novel sustainability initiatives and cutting-edge robotics and AI technology.
The honorees on this year's list are labor bosses and educators, attorneys and entrepreneurs, planners and architects…and, of course, engineers. Together, they lay the literal and figurative groundwork for industry of every kind.
Here, a look at the people responsible for Pennsylvania's evolving land- and streetscapes – and the industry within.
Carrie Amann
Since 2019, Carrie Amann has led the PA Workforce Development Association, an organization devoted to connecting commonwealth job-seekers and employers in building, infrastructure and other key industries. A veteran of the Governor’s Policy Office and the state Department of Labor & Industry, Amann works to align Pennsylvania’s workforce and economic development policy through initiatives like #ApprenticeshipPA, a collaboration to promote hands-on job training, and #FreeTheData, which shares critical data between local workforce boards to evaluate areas of need.
James Baney
James Baney is the environmental scientist behind the infrastructure at GreenUP, a Philadelphia firm that builds and maintains green stormwater installations. In his decade as the outfit’s senior technical director, Baney has supervised the construction and maintenance of projects for the School District of Philadelphia and the Philadelphia Water Department, as well as major infrastructure in the Capital Region and Washington, D.C. He is also a green infrastructure teacher with the National Green Infrastructure Certification Program and the Sustainable Business Network of Greater Philadelphia’s GSI Partners.
Paul Becker
Nearly three-quarters of a million natural gas customers in Southwestern Pennsylvania and beyond rely on the infrastructure supervised by Paul Becker, Peoples Gas’ vice president of construction and engineering. Becker, who holds an engineering degree from the University of Pittsburgh and an MBA from Duquesne, guides Peoples’ 20-year Pennsylvania infrastructure improvement plan, which involves upgrading 3,000 miles of aging pipeline. Becker is a gas industry veteran who has worked since 2011 for Peoples, a division of Essential Utilities.
Bob Begley
Construction workers who rely on JLG’s access lifts and other platform equipment can thank Bob Begley, who ensures a safe, modern pipeline of such indispensable devices. He joined McConnellsburg-based JLG Industries two years ago as director of product management for the company’s signature scissor, vertical and low-level access lifts; he is also responsible for long-term product planning and market strategy. Begley, a former U.S. Navy technician with an MBA, previously held business leadership roles with Volvo’s construction equipment division, Blaw-Knox Construction Equipment and Ingersoll Rand.
Romona Riscoe Benson
At PECO, Romona Riscoe Benson ensures the electric and natural gas utility is engaged with its Southeastern Pennsylvania communities. She serves as director of corporate and community impact for the $3.7 billion Exelon subsidiary, wielding an $11 million budget and coordinating corporate grantmaking, customer outreach for 2 million-plus PECO clients, and local workforce development. Benson has also taken the initiative in PECO’s diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, serving as a core member of the company’s Racial Equity Initiative and of PECO Women Connected.
Gina Bleck
Last year, architect Gina Bleck left a private contracting firm job to return to academia as the University of Pittsburgh’s vice chancellor for planning, design and construction. Bleck had previously spent a decade at Georgetown University, where she was university architect, and, prior to that, oversaw facility and design at Rutgers University. At Pitt, she leads a new office devoted to implementing the campus and institutional master plans, in partnership with the City of Pittsburgh and other local stakeholders.
Lisa Brozey
Based in Philadelphia, Lisa Brozey is a vice president at AECOM, the American multinational infrastructure consulting outfit with $14 billion in annual revenue. She joined the firm’s Conshohocken-based office a decade ago to lead an urban and transportation planning group and is a familiar figure at infrastructure conferences and events around the region. A wildlife science graduate of Penn State, Brozey began her career as an environmental scientist and has 30 years of experience in roles at the intersection of land, resources and infrastructure.
Mike Carroll
Mike Carroll, who most recently served as Democratic chair of the Pennsylvania House Transportation Committee, became the state’s latest transportation secretary last year. Shortly thereafter, he worked alongside Gov. Josh Shapiro to reopen I-95 in Philadelphia after a major fire; more recently, he announced $500 million in federal funds to bolster Harrisburg’s I-83 South Bridge over the Susquehanna River. First elected to the state House of Representatives in 2006, Carroll has also worked for PennDOT.
Christina Cassotis
As CEO of the Allegheny County Airport Authority, Christina Cassotis is spearheading modernization efforts to accommodate rising traffic at both Pittsburgh International and Allegheny County airports. Her priorities span infrastructure – including green-energy initiatives like a sustainable airport microgrid – and services such as on-site employee child care. Having led PIT to record growth, Cassotis envisions a wholly redesigned facility built by a more diverse workforce: She has championed a free construction training program, PIT2Work, and increased public bus service to underserved communities.
Jay Cleveland Jr.
Jay Cleveland Jr. serves as president and CEO of Cleveland Brothers, the construction equipment company his family founded in 1948. He leads a company that began with one Central Pennsylvania Caterpillar dealership and has grown its market across Pennsylvania and into West Virginia and Maryland. Caterpillar remains a key business for the company, where Cleveland has worked since 1988 – and where he recently welcomed fourth-generation family employees to a firm still expanding after three-quarters of a century.
Mark P. Compton
For over a decade, Mark Compton has overseen the state’s highways as CEO of the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission. Under his purview is the maintenance of the commonwealth’s network of toll roads, service plazas and fare-collection mechanisms. Compton has held a variety of public and private transportation leadership roles over his 30-year career, including with PennDOT and the International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association; he has also directed government affairs for American Infrastructure in Worcester Township.
Nicholas Cumins
In July, Nicholas Cumins became the first CEO in the history of Bentley Systems whose last name wasn’t Bentley. He previously served as chief product officer and COO for the Exton-based infrastructure engineering software company, which was founded 40 years ago by the five Bentley brothers. Cumins, a veteran of digital platforms and a former SAP executive, will carry out Bentley’s strategy around AI and novel technologies to upgrade infrastructure resiliency.
Chris Dawson
Chris Dawson oversees his eponymous Harrisburg architecture firm committed to reimagining aged and abandoned buildings for contemporary use. A case in point is the Lowengard Building, his AIA Design Award-winning, $3 million adaptive reuse of a 1917 downtown structure – and his firm’s future home. Dawson’s other projects include the $2 million overhaul of West Shore Theatre, a vintage moviehouse-turned-event space, and the newly accessible and family-friendly Hershey Public Library; both projects also garnered Design Awards from AIA, on whose Central PA board Dawson serves.
Sonia Di Valerio
After earning a reputation as a legal advocate for trucking and bus companies, Sonia Di Valerio recently left her Philadelphia law firm to become executive director of the Contractors Association of Eastern Pennsylvania. The Temple University-trained attorney now represents the region’s building industry in collective bargaining negotiations, helping resolve labor disputes and fostering strong industry relations. Under Di Valerio’s leadership, the association also serves as a liaison to agencies like PennDOT and SEPTA and coordinates with OSHA to improve workplace safety.
Tony Duran
Energy industry veteran Tony Duran has served as chief information officer since 2019 at EQT, the Pittsburgh-based corporation that is America’s largest producer of natural gas. He previously held the same role at Rice Energy, another Allegheny-region firm; prior to that, he spent 13 years in a variety of positions with National Oilwell Varco, a Houston-based oil-and-gas technology company. Duran, a computer scientist with an MBA from Wharton, also founded a technology incubator, PH6 Labs, in 2018.
Erin Dwyer
Erin Dwyer heads public affairs for the General Building Contractors Association in her hometown of Philadelphia, where she serves on the Philadelphia Housing Authority Board of Commissioners. Dwyer is currently guiding the association’s workforce pipeline initiative, introducing 25,000 school-aged students to the construction industry through career fairs, school and camp programming. She also spearheaded her association’s inclusion on the Philadelphia Joint Task Force on Regulatory Reform, which advises the mayor and City Council on improvements to the Department of Labor and Industry.
Kelly Edwards
A civic-minded Philadelphian, Kelly Edwards brings a passion for her hometown to her work managing SEPTA’s real estate operations. Currently, she’s intent on modernizing the rail network with ADA accessibility and upgraded stations through the Reimagining Regional Rail and Trolley Modernization programs. She also envisions end-of-line facilities for bus operators, compensating for the lack of dedicated restrooms and break areas on their routes. A champion of women in infrastructure careers, Edwards is a mentor for numerous women’s industry groups.
Irene Eells
For the past five years, Irene Eells has supported the growth of the commonwealth market at Johnson, Mirmiran and Thompson, a civil engineering firm with planning, design and construction projects throughout the U.S. Eells, who holds degrees in civil engineering and engineering management from Drexel University, is currently the senior vice president managing Eastern Pennsylvania. At the employee-owned firm, she is part of a team that provides services for numerous local, state and federal government agencies, along with private and industrial clients.
Todd Farally
Third-generation sheet metal worker Todd Farally mobilizes his constituents and bolsters labor-friendly candidates as political director of Local 19, where he is a 22-year member. Under his leadership, Local 19 saw 90% of its endorsed candidates win their elections in 2023; he has also collaborated with building trades officials to enact nearly two dozen ordinances governing responsible contracting. Farally is currently president of the Delaware County Central Labor Council and AFL-CIO chair for the Southeastern PA Area Labor Federation.
George Fernandez
Harrisburg social entrepreneur George Fernandez heads the Fernandez Realty Group, which he founded in 2021 to facilitate safe, affordable and uplifting living environments. His particular outreach to Latino, LGBTQ+ and other vulnerable communities is born of his own experience growing up in low-income housing. Fernandez owns and manages more than 25 properties in South-Central Pennsylvania, including Sycamore Homes, an affordable housing complex, and Woodward Lofts, a mixed-use development aimed at revitalizing its Harrisburg neighborhood.
Bruce W. Ficken
Bruce Ficken represents major industry clients in commercial and construction litigation and co-chairs the construction law group at Cozen O’Connor in Philadelphia. One of the very few construction litigators ever to be named a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, Ficken has served as lead attorney for more than 60 major U.S. trials. He also resolves disputes at home and abroad as an arbitrator for the American Arbitration Association and has written widely on construction law.
Justin Frank
As senior specialist and Pennsylvania area sales manager for L3Harris Technologies, Justin Frank recently helped secure a $16 million contract to build a critical communications system – and saved Lehigh County taxpayers $10 million from the next-lowest bid. Frank, who also teaches business at Rosemont College, has long contributed to public safety and technology infrastructure: He is a former Philadelphia Police sergeant and former chief deputy in the city’s sheriff’s office, where he developed software solutions that remain operational mainstays.
Elizabeth Gallagher
Architectural engineer Elizabeth Gallagher serves as executive vice president and north regional manager at Benesch, the national civil engineering and design firm where she has overseen projects for a decade. Under Gallagher’s leadership, Benesch has been consistently named a Top 500 Design Firm nationally by Engineering News Record. Gallagher, who heads operations and business development for Pennsylvania and five other states, was named a Notable Woman in Construction and Design by Crain’s Chicago Business in 2020, when she was based in Illinois.
Mark Gentile
Based in Pittsburgh, Mark Gentile serves as president of the Trumbull Corp., part of the PJ Dick, Trumbull and Lindy Group. He oversees a $3 billion heavy highway and civil construction outfit, with large-scale institutional and commercial projects across the mid-Atlantic region. Gentile joined the corporation in 1995 and has served as president for the past four years, leading Trumbull’s major infrastructure projects for the Pennsylvania Turnpike, the Maryland Transportation Authority and the Ohio DOT.
Andrew Gillespie
Andrew Gillespie is the executive director of transit and rail for Gannett Fleming, a 109-year-old Camp Hill civil engineering firm where he also serves as executive vice president. Gillespie joined the multimodal transit outfit nine years ago after nearly a decade with SEPTA, where he served as a chief engineer in the engineering, maintenance and construction division. A civil engineer by training, he currently manages high-profile transit projects across North America as head of the Transit and Rail Corporate Business Group.
Ron Grutza
For two decades, Ron Grutza has promoted the interests of Pennsylvania’s nearly 1,000 borough governments – from infrastructure upgrades to public safety and increased access to broadband internet. Grutza, who holds a degree in public policy from Penn State Harrisburg, had a hands-on legislative education working at the state House of Representatives before joining the association as a regulatory affairs coordinator in 2005. Earlier this year, he became senior director of government affairs, taking over from Ed Troxell.
Magdy M. Hagag
Magdy Hagag oversees the northeast region for Michael Baker International, the Pittsburgh-based engineering and consulting firm. An engineer by training, Hagag joined the firm more than a dozen years ago, overseeing project and quality management. Now a senior vice president, he is responsible for 400 employees and eight-figure transportation and infrastructure operations in seven states – including several major highway projects throughout the commonwealth in partnership with PennDOT.
Tabatha Harding
Tabatha Harding currently serves as president of her family’s manufacturing sales outfit, A.L. Harding & Co., which brokers architectural, acoustic and other products for the construction industry. Under her leadership, the Pittsburgh-area firm has built on four decades of relationships with contractors throughout Western Pennsylvania and West Virginia, sourcing products including interior and exterior finishes and noise-reducing paneling. Harding, who joined the firm in 2015 and became president two years ago, also oversees consulting services that include specialties like design, specifications and budgets.
Krista Heinrich
Drawing on over 20 years’ experience, civil engineer Krista Heinrich is a LEED-accredited professional and a senior project manager at Gilmore Associates in Ambler. She works with regional municipalities on initiatives like road upgrades, infrastructure improvements, storm sewer program compliance, and permitting around subdivisions, land developments and earth disturbance. Heinrich currently serves as the appointed municipal engineer of record for Whitemarsh and East Norriton townships. She holds an engineering degree from Drexel University and previously led operations and engineering for CMX and T&M Associates.
John Hill
With the skyline-defining FMC tower, which soars over Philadelphia’s Schuylkill River, John Hill literally left his mark on that city’s landscape. It’s just one example of the contributions Hill has made to the region’s built infrastructure, most recently as senior vice president for construction at Brandywine Realty Trust, where he has guided high-profile development at the Philadelphia firm for a decade. Hill, who began his career in Atlantic City, has a four-decade legacy of large-scale construction projects throughout the region.
Joseph P. Hofmann
Based in Lancaster, attorney Joseph Hoffman is a go-to legal resource for area employers seeking guidance on all manner of labor and employment issues. Hofmann, a shareholder at Stevens & Lee, advises employers on how to handle union organizing efforts, negotiate collective bargaining situations, and effectively deal with the inevitable grievances that arise in workplaces. He counsels companies in a variety of industries and public-sector clients such as school districts, townships, boroughs and other municipalities.
Kevin Johnson
From highways and streetscapes to trails, parks and bridges, Kevin Johnson handles a myriad of transportation infrastructure projects for public-sector and private clients at Traffic Planning and Design, his Pottstown-based civil engineering firm. Currently president, Johnson founded the outfit in 1989 and has guided its evolution into a multi-service firm with 13 offices across the mid-Atlantic. Under his leadership, TPD was recently named among Engineering News-Record’s Top 500 Design Firms and The Zweig Group’s Best Civil Engineering Firm to Work For.
Dave Kaminski
Turner Construction Vice President Dave Kaminski is also the general manager for the venerable 117-year-old outfit, overseeing operations in Pennsylvania and Delaware. A civil engineer by training, he leads Turner projects such as the LEED-certified Drexel University Health Sciences building and the $900 million Geisinger Medical Center expansion. Kaminski has cultivated both new business and a culture of community philanthropy, leading Turner’s Philadelphia office to be recognized among the city’s Best Places to Work 2024 finalists by the Philadelphia Business Journal.
Mitch Kauffman
In 2022, Mitch Kauffman came to the Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology to develop a high-demand civil engineering construction technology program, where he serves as the inaugural instructor. Two years later, Kauffman is celebrating an impressive post-graduation employment rate, thanks in part to the collaborations he initiated with regional industry partners like Allan Myers, Brubacher and Schlouch. Kauffman is a 25-year veteran of the heavy civil construction industry, most recently as a project manager for Rogele in Harrisburg.
Michael Koerner
You could say Michael Koerner was tired of watching paint dry. After more than three decades in coatings technology with Dupont and other companies, in 2022, Koerner left paint behind to work for Aero Aggregates, a Delaware County company that produces lightweight construction materials from recycled glass. He now serves as a process engineer for the technology, known as foamed glass aggregates – bringing a lifetime of chemical engineering know-how to the (very lightweight) cutting edge of building supplies.
Amy Kronenberg
Leveraging two-plus decades in real estate development, Executive Vice President Amy Kronenberg of GMS Funding Solutions has facilitated financing for myriad public- and private-sector infrastructure projects. Among her achievements is Lancaster County’s Sixth Street Extension, an inter-municipal transportation project for which Kronenberg secured $4 million in grants to fund a public-private-nonprofit collaboration. She was also the force behind $5 million in grants enabling Franklin County’s multi-partner North Chambersburg Improvements Project, which involved both roadway and utility infrastructure.
Gregory Krykewycz
The growth and modernization of Southeastern Pennsylvania’s roads, bridges and transit infrastructure is top priority for Gregory Krykewycz, who serves as director of transportation planning at the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission. After previously working on pedestrian, bicycle and transit planning, Krykewycz now leads transportation strategy for the federally designated agency, using data to balance the needs of an evolving economy with concerns around sustainability, equity and community health. He has also taught planning and design at the University of Pennsylvania, his alma mater.
Marc Kurowski
A ubiquitous figure in Capital Region civic and infrastructure circles, Marc Kurowski is the CEO of K&W, the civil engineering and site design firm he founded. He is also the longtime chair of the Capital Region Water Board and the board vice chair for the Harristown Development Corp. At K&W, Kurowski has spearheaded major developments including, most notably, Hersheypark’s $20 million “Chocolateworld” revitalization and the Historic King Mansion in Harrisburg, an estate-turned-event venue.
John LaProcido
Architect John LaProcido provides the Strategic Planning vision behind such projects as the new global headquarters of Air Products, which he designed on a 53-acre Lehigh Valley campus. An expert in planning large-scale, multi-use facilities, LaProcido is a senior principal leading the Strategic Asset Planning Segment at Stantec's Philadelphia Arch Street office, formally known as L2P prior to its acquisition in 2022. He has also chaired the Borough of Haddonfield Planning Board and served on its Historic Preservation Commission.
Stephanie Larkin
In charge of education, safety and workforce development for Associated Builders and Contractors’ Keystone chapter, Stephanie Larkin promotes new on-ramps to the state’s construction industry, as well as training, safety and workforce development across a 33-county footprint. She has grown ABC Keystone’s pre-apprenticeship program and its camp introducing teenage girls to the full scope of commercial construction, from sheet metal and electrical to carpentry and plumbing skills. Larkin previously led the PA Workforce Development Board.
Beau Lazzo
Beau Lazzo manages the construction equipment division at the Swank Construction Company, where he began his career as a laborer barely a decade ago. With a degree in construction management from the Pennsylvania College of Technology, Lazzo has built his building career at the century-old New Kensington-based heavy highway construction outfit. Having worked his way up through project management, he is now responsible for the machinery that builds roadways, bridges and other major projects.
Robert E. Latham
Robert Latham has represented the highway and transportation construction industry in Harrisburg and nationally for 42 years – most recently as executive vice president for the Associated Pennsylvania Constructors. In this role, he heads operations, serves as the group’s chief spokesperson and lobbyist, and is a driving force behind the Keystone Transportation Funding Coalition. Latham has served on numerous governor-appointed transportation commissions, recently advised the Shapiro transition team on transportation and infrastructure, and is the immediate past president of the Camp Hill School Board.
PJ Lavelle
Over 15 years with the public strategy firm of Malady & Wooten, PJ Lavelle has brought his expertise in economic development, energy, transportation and utility issues to client advocacy before both state and local governments. Lavelle was previously a senior policy adviser to Pennsylvania House Democratic leadership, helping pass such key legislation as former Gov. Ed Rendell’s Energy Independence Strategy and the Rebuilding PA infrastructure investment package. A Lackawanna County native, Lavelle has also worked for the Pittsburgh City Council.
Ellyn Lester
When Ellyn Lester’s students at the Pennsylvania College of Technology consider the built environment, they need look no further than the impact of their assistant dean of construction and architecture. Lester’s recent grants are funding numerous planned campus improvements, including construction of a Clean Energy House, a materials library and industry showroom at the Carl Building Technologies Center, and a new space for the Architecture Program. She also guides hands-on student construction as project manager of the Greater Lycoming Habitat for Humanity/Penn College House Project.
Marc Lucca
More than 1.5 million Pennsylvanians get their drinking water and wastewater services from Aqua Pennsylvania, the Essential Utilities subsidiary supervised by Mark Lucca. He joined the utility in 2007 and became president nine years later, guiding several acquisitions and expanding service through market extensions – as well as a new program for low-income families. Lucca, who holds environmental engineering degrees along with an MBA, previously served as general manager for the Marina Coast Water District in California.
David MacNamara
Businesses across the country trying to figure out where to locate their facilities turn to David MacNamara, a director with KPMG’s site selection and project Development Group. Based in Philadelphia, MacNamara works with medium- and large-sized clients of any range of industries across the U.S., advising them on locations that will facilitate business expansion. MacNamara, who holds both a JD and a master of laws from Villanova University, has built his entire career at the global consultancy, moving from KPMG’s tax division into location services and economic development.
Thomas Madigan
With nearly four decades of experience representing construction managers, general contractors, engineers and manufacturers, Tom Madigan leads the Construction Practice Group at Buchanan, Ingersoll & Rooney’s Pittsburgh office. Most recently, he handled legalities around the University of South Florida’s new campus football stadium, a $200 million manufacturing facility, and a series of mixed-use developments on Pittsburgh’s North Shore. Regularly recognized in The Best Lawyers in America and Pennsylvania Super Lawyers for Construction Law and Construction Litigation, Madigan currently chairs the Marshall Township Board of Supervisors.
Amal Mahrouki
Amal Mahrouki leads advocacy and industry engagement for nearly 3,000 commonwealth architects and design professionals as director of legislative affairs for the American Institute of Architects - Pennsylvania chapter. Working with organizations representing both architects and interior designers, Mahrouki negotiated new state continuing education and certification standards; she also helped secure state legislation bringing her industry’s liability exposure in line with national standards. Recognized as one of Central Penn Business Journal’s Top Lobbyists, Mahrouki is also the founder of Demystified Advocacy, a digital engagement platform.
William N. Malin
William Malin joined Carroll Engineering Corp. in the 1980s, shortly after earning his civil engineering degree at the University of Delaware. He now manages day-to-day operations as a senior vice president at the Bucks County engineering consultancy, where he supervises the Water & Wastewater Services and Municipal departments and serves on the company board. Along the way, Malin has become an integral part of the Philadelphia-area outfit’s infrastructure team, bringing important perspective on policy, finance and municipal strategy.
James Martin
With 35 years of experience in the passenger railcar industry, STV Senior Vice President James Martin leads the firm’s Vehicles Center of Excellence. Under his leadership, STV is the primary engineering services consultant for an $800 million SEPTA subway-car upgrade and a $5 billion, 73-vehicle Amtrak project. Martin also guides STV’s management of zero-emission electric-bus transitions for transit agencies nationally, from Los Angeles to New Jersey. He recently marshaled STV volunteers for Philadelphia’s ACE Mentor Program, which connects high-school students with architecture, construction and engineering professionals.
Owen McCormick
McCormick is a well-known name in Erie Region infrastructure circles, thanks most recently to construction executive and civic leader Owen McCormick. He heads the Joseph McCormick Construction Co., his family’s 128-year-old Erie asphalt paving and heavy highway firm. In addition, McCormick has served on the board of directors for the Erie County Redevelopment Authority, the Erie Western Pennsylvania Port Authority and other regional planning and development organizations.
Thomas Melcher
Thomas Melcher champions the region’s infrastructure workforce as business manager for the Pittsburgh Regional Building & Construction Trades Council. Melcher, who is also a longtime member of Iron Workers Local 3, has prioritized recruitment and training to cultivate the next generation of Allegheny-region builders and technicians. He has held leadership roles with Pittsburgh Works Together, a multi-industry workforce coalition, as well as the Pennsylvania AFL-CIO and the Builders Guild of Western Pennsylvania.
Brandon Mendoza
Last year, Brandon Mendoza took over public and government affairs for the Master Builders’ Association, the voice of construction in Western Pennsylvania. Previously, over five years as executive director for NAIOP Pittsburgh, he revitalized that chapter of the national commercial real estate association – most notably by securing a cap on Pittsburgh development review fees. Named NAIOP Corporate Executive Director of the Year in 2020, Mendoza is also a familiar figure on the Pittsburgh Business Times’ Power 100 List.
Adrienne Miles
As DEI manager for UPMC, Adrienne Miles works to ensure that Western Pennsylvania’s largest private employer reflects the increasing diversity of its region – and fosters an inclusive culture for nearly 100,000 employees and thousands more patients at the $23 billion health system. Miles guides policies and initiatives intended to diversify both recruitment and suppliers – including collaborating with the Pittsburgh Probation Office to facilitate training through the UPMC Corporate Construction program, which funnels formerly incarcerated Pennsylvanians into union construction jobs at UPMC facilities.
Stephen Muck
A major figure in Pittsburgh-area building and robotics circles, Steve Muck is the chair and CEO of Brayman Construction Corp., a heavy civil and deep foundation contractor. The serial entrepreneur also founded and chairs Advanced Construction Robotics, a startup that harnesses AI-powered robots to assist in construction tasks, and was recently named to the board of the Pittsburgh Robotics Network. Muck also heads the bridge-building firm Advantage Steel and Construction, Specialty Underwater Services, which specializes in marine construction, and Grouse Ridge Capital, an investment outfit.
Richard Muttik
As business manager of IBEW Local 126, Richard Muttik leads a Collegeville-based union representing electrical infrastructure workers across Pennsylvania, Delaware and the Eastern Shore of Maryland. Muttik, a two-decade member of and longtime leader at the local, promotes the expansion of opportunities and benefits for his member linemen, tree trimmers, utility operators and maintenance workers. Under his guidance, Local 126 also recruits the next-generation infrastructure workforce through an apprenticeship program.
Chuck Niederriter
As chief operating officer for the Golden Triangle Construction Co., Chuck Niederriter handles day-to-day operations for one of Western Pennsylvania’s most venerable building outfits. He is the longtime COO of a business that has grown since its founding in 1952 and remains among the region’s few women-owned construction firms. Under Niederriter’s purview are a range of diversified services, including general contracting for heavy and highway as well as utility construction.
Jon O’Brien
Builders throughout the commonwealth tune into the Building PA podcast to hear Jon O’Brien’s thoughts on the industry. That’s because O’Brien is also executive director of the Keystone Contractors Association, representing more than 400 commercial construction outfits throughout Pennsylvania. Until this year, the University of Pittsburgh history and journalism graduate also led the General Contractors Association of Pennsylvania; prior to that, he directed industry relations for the Master Builders’ Association of Western Pennsylvania.
John O’Quinn
Last year, John O’Quinn was recognized for his four decades of contributions to the steel bridge industry with the Alexander D. Wilson Memorial Award from the Steel Bridge Task Force, a prestigious national coalition. O’Quinn began as a welder and is currently president of Lancaster-based High Steel Structures, one of North America’s largest steel fabricators of bridge components. He has long been involved with the industry nationally, serving on the board of the American Institute of Steel Construction and the National Steel Bridge Alliance’s Executive Council.
Steve Park
Steve Park, a public-private partnership attorney, is a co-leader of Ballard Spahr’s Infrastructure Group and a partner in the Public Finance Group. He routinely advises public entities, developers, contractors and financial outfits in matters involving a range of large-scale transportation, infrastructure and utility projects. Park also serves as counsel to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation for the Major Bridges P3 Initiative, and counsel to Amtrak in connection with station redevelopment projects – including Philadelphia’s 30th Street Station, Baltimore’s Penn Station and Chicago’s Union Station.
Pat Pasquariello III
Pat Pasquariello III’s fourth-generation Gladwyne construction outfit, P. Agnes, has been responsible for many of Southeastern Pennsylvania’s major developments over the past 106 years. Most recently, he has presided over major renovations and expansions for Jefferson University’s Aramark kitchen facility, the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education and its track and field complex, and Drexel University’s Kline School of Law. Last year, Pasquariello was recognized with the Distinguished Director Award from the General Building Contractors Association.
Roberto Perez
As CEO of HRP Group, Roberto Perez supervises the division’s capital investments – and has grown its assets to nearly $3 billion since assuming the role in 2018. Under his leadership, HRP has spearheaded one of Pennsylvania’s most transformational projects: South Philadelphia’s 1,300-acre Bellwether District. Having come from Chicago-based Hilco Real Estate, Perez recently cemented his Philadelphia connections by joining both the PECO board and Mayor Cherelle Parker’s Business Roundtable.
Carl Pereira
Carl Pereira serves as president of his family’s 50-year-old construction services business, J.M. Pereira & Sons. Based in Middleton Township, Pereira oversees a full-service concrete contracting operation with residential and commercial projects throughout Southeastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Northern Delaware. Under his leadership, the family outfit lays the literal foundations – including flooring and stairs – for scores of houses, office buildings and large-scale industrial and commercial developments.
Roosevelt Poplar
Roosevelt Poplar ushered in a new era in more ways than one last fall when he was elected president of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #5, the Philadelphia police officers’ union. He is the union’s first Black president in decades and a fresh face following the departure of his predecessor of 16 years, John McNesby. A longtime union leader and a police officer for three decades, Poplar is tasked with building a relationship with a new mayoral administration and with boosting recruitment amid staffing shortages.
Eric Remetta
At the Pennsylvania Laborers Training Center - Eastern Region, Eric Remetta supervises the technical education of future construction workers. Remetta is the training director for the Harrisburg facility, an educational branch of the Laborers International Union of North America, which trains novices in areas from pipeline construction to lead and asbestos abatement. Remetta, a U.S. Navy veteran, is also a longtime member of LiUNA Local 158 in Harrisburg.
Matt Rucci
A political junkie since his Upper Darby childhood, Matt Rucci is currently an associate at Greenlee Partners, the lobbying outfit where he serves as the firm’s practice lead for Transportation and Infrastructure. Prior to joining Greenlee Partners in 2021, he was a research analyst on the state House Transportation Committee for that chamber’s Republican Caucus. Rucci, who holds a master’s of public policy from Elizabethtown College, also served as deputy political director for Scott Wagner’s gubernatorial campaign.
Atif Saeed
As CEO of the City of Philadelphia’s aviation department, Atif Saeed has led the Philadelphia International and Northeast Philadelphia airports through a post-pandemic recovery, with concessions and passenger volumes both on the rebound. Saeed also oversees more than 1,000 city employees between the two airports and is preparing the city’s gateways to welcome arrivals for the next FIFA World Cup, America’s 250th birthday and the MLB All-Star Game. He previously held leadership roles within the Metropolitan Airport Commission of Minnesota.
Chris Sandvig
Chris Sandvig leads efforts to make the commonwealth’s transportation system more equitable and accessible. As the founding executive director of Mobilify Southwestern Pennsylvania, Sandvig helped secure $5 million in federal funds to upgrade transit in low-income communities; he also leveraged $500,000 in philanthropy to bolster Pittsburgh’s $30 million East Busway project. With degrees in engineering and public policy from Penn State and Carnegie Mellon, Sandvig brings a wealth of insight to the annual Pittsburgh transportation conference he spearheaded, TransportationCampPGH.
Jeffrey Scarpello
Last fall, Jeffrey Scarpello lured over 10,000 attendees to Philadelphia for the National Electrical Contractors Association’s annual convention. It was a measure of his effectiveness at NECA, where he has led the Penn-Del-Jersey chapter for 22 years – and represents management regarding benefits and pensions for thousands of Pennsylvanians. A former prosecutor and partner at Fox Rothschild, Scarpello has long been active with the boards of Philadelphia’s Police Athletic League and Temple Law Alumni.
Kevin Schreiber
Kevin Schreiber, a former state representative, has led the York County Economic Alliance since 2016. Under his leadership, the alliance launched a child care initiative that raises $3.5 million annually to support working parents. Schreiber, who previously directed economic and community development for the City of York, has also partnered with county government to expand broadband Internet access – and launched the BLOOM Business Empowerment Center to support minority- and veteran-owned small businesses.
Jignesh Sheth
Jignesh Sheth serves as senior vice president and chief medical and information officer at The Wright Centers for Community Health and Graduate Medical Education, where he completed his internal medicine residency (he is also board-certified in addiction medicine). Sheth recently led the transformation of 10 Wright Center buildings into a network of comprehensive community health centers. The India-born physician, who holds a master’s in public health, also upgraded the organization’s electronic health records system and pioneered a telemedicine model.
Rosanna Smithnosky
Civil engineer Rosanna Smithnosky, who has worked on some of the commonwealth’s most ambitious public infrastructure projects, currently leads Susquehanna Civil, a York transportation engineering outfit. Smithnosky joined the firm in 2014 and became president six years later, overseeing work for the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission, PennDOT, SEPTA and the City of Lancaster. The University of Pittsburgh graduate has also worked in design and project management roles with, among others, the URS Corporation.
James Snell
Labor leader James Snell has become an increasingly ubiquitous and indispensable part of Philadelphia’s infrastructure landscape. In addition to serving as business manager of Steamfitters Local 420 – where he began as a fitter and worked his way up through leadership – Snell represents the Philadelphia Building Trades on the Philadelphia Port Authority Advisory Committee and, along with Local 420, on the Zoning Board of Adjustments. He is also a longtime AFL-CIO and National Steamfitters delegate on behalf of his 350,000-plus member plumbers, welders and HVAC technicians.
William Sproule
As executive secretary-treasurer of the Eastern Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters, William Sproule leads a dynamic union with strong forward momentum. Under his leadership, the EAS Carpenters partnered with Lyft to increase access to its programs; it also celebrated the first graduating class at its recently-opened Commercial Dive Center. Sproule, who served on Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker’s transition team earlier this year, recently hired a new political director to ensure his 42,000 members’ interests are represented in a critical election year.
Kyle Stewart
Kyle Stewart joined Crown Castle’s Pittsburgh office six years ago as a government relations specialist and now serves as public policy manager for the Houston-based telecommunications infrastructure corporation, where he has worked on both the network and tower permitting teams. Stewart also chairs the nationwide Fiber Broadband Association’s State Policy Committee and helped lead a national campaign to reduce barriers to broadband deployment across the country. In addition, Stewart is an Allegheny County committeeperson, serving as secretary for the 19th Ward’s executive leadership team.
Blane Stoddart
Since 2009, Blane Fitzgerald Stoddart has headed BFW Construction Project Managers, bringing decades of real estate and construction experience to projects like Jefferson University’s $762 million Honickman Center. He is known as a champion of affordable housing, such as another of his recent projects, Bethel Village, a $19 million, publicly financed Harrisburg senior community. A vocal proponent of diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts in Pennsylvania’s construction and real estate industries, Stoddart also co-founded the CEO Access Network at The Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce.
Ryan Surrena
Much of Pennsylvania’s recent transportation infrastructure – like the state Turnpike Commission’s Beaver Bridge project and terminal upgrades at the Pittsburgh International Airport – is under the supervision of Ryan Surrena, the president of Fay S&B USA. With a Penn State degree in structural design and construction management, Surrena has built his career at Fay, a 75-year-old engineering and construction subsidiary of S&B. Surrena worked his way up from project management and now oversees Fay’s large-scale projects like the Shell cracker plant and key commonwealth roadways.
David N. Taylor
Three decades into his tenure leading the Pennsylvania Manufacturers’ Association, David Taylor remains a highly effective advocate for the commonwealth’s business interests. The Central Pennsylvania native, who also chairs the Pennsylvania Leadership Council, is currently crusading against proposed climate-focused energy policy that, he argues, would harm key industries. Taylor holds leadership roles with numerous state and national manufacturers’ organizations and is board president of Reach Cyber Charter School, an online public school whose STEM-forward curriculum is a pipeline to the next generation of manufacturers.
Vince Tutino
As president of Lindy Paving, Vincent Tutino leads Western Pennsylvania’s largest asphalt paving contractor and manufacturer – a division of The Lindy Group of family-owned infrastructure companies. Tutino oversees projects worth billions in heavy highway construction, including contracts with both the Pennsylvania and Ohio Departments of Transportation; under his leadership, Lindy Paving has garnered multiple quality awards from the National Asphalt Paving Association. A major donor to Gov. Josh Shapiro, Tutino advised the governor’s transition team on infrastructure and transportation issues.
Ron Wagenmann
At the Philadelphia civil engineering firm of Boles, Smyth Associates, Ron Wagenmann brings a public policy and urban planning background to his role as a transportation specialist and public coordinator. Wagenmann, who has a master’s in public administration from Penn State, previously served as a township manager for Lower Paxton and Upper Merion townships. His government perspective helps facilitate bridges, trails and other public projects, including work on the Fort Washington Cross County Trail and Philadelphia’s Chestnut Street Bridge.
Jennifer Waters
Over nearly a quarter-century, Jennifer Waters has helped steer the growth of Urban Engineers, the Philadelphia multi-service construction and environmental consultancy where she is vice president and Philadelphia regional leader. Waters first joined the firm after studying environmental systems engineering at Penn State; she also holds a master’s in engineering management from Drexel. Her skills and local knowledge have been integral to the success of the firm, which now counts 15 regional offices throughout the U.S.
Chad Wattendorf
Construction and engineering firms around the globe turn to the technical tools Chad Wattendorf promulgates at Oracle, where he is the global product strategy director. Based near Philadelphia, Wattendorf worked for years on product design with Oracle’s construction and engineering division, where he helped create popular cloud-based project and portfolio management platforms. The onetime English and philosophy major began as a technical writer for Lucent before transitioning into engineering and technical design roles.
Markus Weidner
A specialist in the interplay of engineering and technology, Markus Weidner currently serves as chief innovation officer at Pennoni, the Philadelphia-based engineering and design consultancy. Weidner began his career at the company, building the IT division over a 14-year stint before returning in 2017 to lead Pennoni’s technology and digital practices (he also manages its real estate and its vehicle fleet). Weidner holds a civil engineering degree from Temple University and a master’s in management information systems from Temple’s Fox School of Business.
Bart Wilson
Bart Wilson heads the transportation division of PennStress, a South-Central Pennsylvania subsidiary of the McInnes Group, a corporation that specializes in precast concrete manufacturing. Based in Roaring Springs, Wilson coordinates projects that include major infrastructure for the Department of Transportation in Pennsylvania and four other mid-Atlantic states. Among the transportation initiatives Wilson has supervised are I-78 bridge upgrades in Berks County and toll plaza columns along the Pennsylvania Turnpike.
Maria J. Wing
With a focus on transportation and infrastructure, Maria Wing counsels and supports governmental entities – including SEPTA – as a Philadelphia-based advisory specialist leader on Deloitte’s Government and Public Services team. She previously served as deputy chief executive officer of the Delaware River Port Authority, a bi-state transportation agency with responsibility for four bridges and a transit line. A graduate of Yale and Tulane Law School, Wing began her career as an attorney with Stradley Ronon, where she specialized in real estate development, corporate governance and compliance.
Wally Zimolong
Attorney Wally Zimolong is perhaps best known for his culture-war crusades against conservative bugaboos like progressive school curricula and mail-in ballots; this year, he’s sounding alarms over election integrity. But the Villanova-based trial lawyer is also one of the commonwealth’s top construction attorneys, with a long history of representing real estate developers, contractors and other industry clients. Zimolong is also a prominent conservative strategist who has been both behind the scenes and in the spotlight: He was the 2008 Republican nominee for his Philadelphia congressional district.
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