From Coast to Plains: WSB’s Commitment to North Dakota’s Future

September 12, 2024
By Anthony Sommerfeld, PE, Project Manager, WSB

In a nation as vast as ours, understanding and addressing the unique needs of every community is a formidable challenge. In North Dakota we face challenges with aging infrastructure and managing urban growth while preserving our rural landscape. It requires a blend of broad national experience with a deep, personal appreciation of local nuances. As WSB invests in our municipal service offerings in North Dakota, we bring with us a commitment that is twofold – leveraging our national knowledge to empower local communities, while rooting our efforts deeply in the local culture and needs.

Embracing our Local Roots

We understand that the heart of North Dakota isn’t just found in its expansive plains or the rugged badlands, but in the spirit of the people who call it home. As we continue to grow our presence in Fargo and Bismarck, our goal is to intertwine WSB’s comprehensive expertise with North Dakota’s local ethos. Our investment is not just about growing our firm, but about nurturing the communities we serve with tailored solutions that respect their heritage and ambitions.

A Personal Connection with Professional Depth

Choosing WSB means opting for a partner who not only offers a wide array of services but understands why each project matters on a personal level. Our decision to deepen our roots in North Dakota stems from a recognition of the state’s burgeoning potential and the unique challenges faced by its communities. Our engineers and professionals, many of whom hail from the region, bring with them not just technical expertise, but a personal investment in the community’s growth and well-being.

Understanding and Integrating into North Dakota’s Social Fabric

WSB’s approach is heavily anchored in the understanding that local insights lead to more sustainable and accepted solutions. Our team members, many of whom grew up in the very communities they now serve, bring a nuanced understanding of what it means to live and work in North Dakota. This intrinsic knowledge guides our projects, ensuring they not only address infrastructural needs but also enhance the community’s way of life.

The WSB Advantage

With WSB, communities across North Dakota can access a spectrum of services tailored to their unique environmental, economic, and social landscapes. From infrastructure engineering to environmental consulting, our offerings are designed to advance local priorities with national-level expertise. Now is an opportune time for local leaders to explore what a partnership with WSB could mean for their community’s future.

As we invest in North Dakota, our commitment is clear: to deliver not just projects, but progress. To not just work in North Dakota, but to work with North Dakota, understanding its heart, and enhancing its communities with every project we undertake.

Connect with Us at the North Dakota League of Cities Conference

We’re thrilled to announce that WSB will be participating in the upcoming North Dakota League of Cities Conference. Come find us at booth #44, where we’re eager to engage with you. I’m looking forward to exploring the unique challenges your community faces and discussing how we can tailor our support to meet your future needs.

Anthony Sommerfeld is a Professional Engineer specializing in municipal engineering, with over a decade of experience in design and construction. Throughout his career, Anthony has played a pivotal role in master planning and leading design teams for both new developments and reconstruction projects. His approach to each project combines innovation with goal-oriented perspective, and consistently seeking effective solutions. Anthony’s dedication and skill in managing complex projects have made him a valuable leader in the engineering community.

Funding for Water Service Line Replacement

September 16, 2024
By Justin Babcock, Water Service Line Program Leader, WSB

Introduction to Funding Opportunities

The Minnesota Department of Health has recently updated its guidelines on securing funding for replacing lead and galvanized water service lines. This initiative follows the comprehensive inventory phase and is a critical step towards ensuring the safety and quality of drinking water across the state. The available funds, as outlined by the Minnesota Drinking Water Revolving Fund, demonstrates a commitment to public health and infrastructure resilience.

Available Funding and Eligibility

The initiative offers a robust financial support structure. It includes a 100% grant for replacing privately owned portions of lead or galvanized water service lines. Additionally, it provides grants and a 0% interest rate loan for addressing the publicly owned segments. Remarkably, public water systems that are granted loans will receive further grants to repay these loans upon project completion.
Eligibility for this funding extends to a variety of water systems including:

Publicly owned municipal systems
Regional Water Systems
Privately owned systems in condominiums and manufactured home parks
Nonprofit, noncommunity systems such as schools, daycare centers, churches, and retreat centers

Project Eligibility and Prioritization

Priority is given to projects that enhance public health, ensure an adequate water supply, and assist financially needy communities. Eligible projects include those undertaken alongside watermain replacements or as stand-alone lead service line replacements.

Application Process

The process for cities to secure funding is methodical and includes several key steps:

Project Listing: Place the project on the Minnesota Department of Health’s Project Priority List.
Intended Use Planning: Ensure the project is on the Minnesota Public Facilities Authority’s Intended Use Plan.
Funding Application: Apply for funding from the Minnesota Drinking Water Revolving Fund.
It’s important for cities to adhere to the deadlines for these steps to ensure their projects are considered for funding.

Staying Informed

The Minnesota Department of Health proactively sends notifications about the funding process to relevant municipal officials. This ensures that all potential beneficiaries are well-informed and can prepare their applications in a timely manner.

Partner with WSB for Expert Support

At WSB, we understand the complexities involved in navigating these funding processes. Our team of specialized grant writers and consultant engineers is equipped to guide communities through every step of the funding journey—from advancing projects on the priority list to coordinating compliance with fund requirements during and after construction.

Our experience ensures that your projects not only gain the necessary funding but are also executed efficiently and successfully. Partnering with WSB means ensuring that your community’s water service lines are safe and sustainable, thus protecting public health and securing a resilient infrastructure.

Justin is a municipal graduate engineer that leads our MN lead service water line program at WSB and has presented at local seminars on the topic. His experience includes field engineering, estimating, material testing, and roadway design.

[email protected] | 262.853.8276

Sustainable Road Design with Federal Funding

September 16, 2024
By Derek Schmidt, Sr Project Manager, WSB

Once in a lifetime federal funding is providing once in a lifetime opportunities for sustainable road design projects across the country. With passage of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and Infrastructure and Jobs Act (IIJA), now is the time for counties, cities and transportation agencies to redesign and redevelop deteriorating roads and bridges to meet sustainability goals. The IIJA is providing $550 billion in new infrastructure investment through 2026 and another $5 billion from the IRA.

However, in order to capitalize on these historic investments, new infrastructure projects need to be designed and constructed with environmental sustainability top of mind. For example, new projects need to ensure they meet standards that may have not existed when the original road or bridge was built like accommodating animal habitats or minimizing pollutants from transportation.

With that in mind, here are some ways counties, cities and transportation agencies can make their roads and bridges projects more sustainable and take advantage of increased federal funding.

Project Sustainability Scoring

To ensure a project qualifies for federal funding, it must be scored. Stronger scores give a project a greater chance at receiving funding.

The available grants also have strict requirements that must be adhered to. For instance, the IRA is providing $3.2 billion for projects that improve walkability, so transit improvements like bike lanes and pedestrian paths have a greater opportunity to secure funding that align with those funding goals. Other ways to achieve stronger scores include using locally available building materials to cut down transportation distances which lowers costs and limits vehicle pollution.

Decreasing Costs and Environmental Impacts

Not only is accounting for environmental impacts a way to improve the odds of securing federal grant fundings, but also a way to decrease overall costs. For example, projects can achieve greater sustainability by reducing transportation distances, using local landfills for waste and using locally available materials like sand. Reducing distances and trips not only cuts down costs but lowers vehicle pollution and a project’s footprint.

Rethinking sustainable road design can also create more environmentally friendly options that better meet community needs. The curb to curb spacing in older, rural roadways, for example, tend to be unnecessarily long. A redeveloped road with a space of 80 feet from curb to curb can be cut down to only 40 feet with the inclusion of expanded green space. This will reduce the overall pavement area, create a road that better fits the demands of the community and increase the overall green space. Ensuring roadways are designed and built to meet traffic needs and improve sustainability features cut down pavement costs and improve a project’s sustainability.

How WSB Can Help

WSB’s team of experts can help your community or agency navigate the influx of federal funding and help secure funding for your sustainable transportation project. With the use of new technology like multidimensional modeling and design, communities and transportation agencies have all the data they need at their fingertips. WSB helps communities and transportation agencies find the best possible design, leverage federal funding opportunities, improve traffic flow, increase the wellbeing of residents and protect the environment one roadway at a time.

Derek is a senior project manager with experience on numerous high profile projects including interstate, trunk highway and major county projects. Derek has the knowledge and background to carry any project from beginning to end and is very experienced in leading large teams.

[email protected] | 612.518.1643

Funding for Transportation Projects – Lessons Learned

September 16, 2024
By Mary Gute, Sr Transportation Planner, WSB

It’s been almost 3 years since the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), aka Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) was passed by President Biden in November 2021. The law authorized $1.2 trillion for transportation and infrastructure spending between 2022 – 2026.

Since 2021, there have been multiple solicitations for federal programs delivering transportation infrastructure funding. Several things have become apparent to those who’ve applied or considered applying for these funds, including:

Extensive competition for funds. Many times more dollars are requested than are available and only a small fraction of applications are funded.
Completing applications is complicated, time intensive, and requires specialized skill sets (e.g., ability to complete benefit/cost analyses that comply with federal guidance). Time intensive for staff or a consultant to do the work.
Timelines to develop applications are tight; usually just 30-90 days after notifications of funding opportunities are released.

Given this reality, it is important to go into pursuit of IIJA funds with eyes wide open. Below are some ideas for venturing into IIJA funding or if you’re planning to re-submit a previously unsuccessful application.

Does your project align with program goals? In addition to criteria related to state of good repair and safety, these transportation funding programs include criteria related equity and environmental justice; climate change, resilience, and the environment, and economic impacts and job creation. Even top tier projects won’t be funded if it doesn’t score well against the majority of a program’s merit or project outcome criteria.

If your project, as it now stands, won’t score well on some of these criteria, is it possible to make adjustments for a more competitive application? Can your community commit to using more sustainable building materials that would align with environmental criteria? Is it possible to incorporate more elements that could be used by bicyclists or pedestrians? Or would it be possible to commit to hiring a certain percentage of disadvantaged business enterprises when constructing the project? Please be aware that if your application includes these elements and you receive funding, your agency will be expected to include them when developing and constructing the project.

Does your project have a defensible and high Benefit- to Cost Ratio? Many projects struggle with achieving a competitive benefit to cost ratio that withstands the scrutiny of federal reviewers. Often, submitted benefit cost analyses are adjusted downwards after being submitted. It’s imperative that applicants submit projects with defensible and high ratios (at least 1:5). If your project isn’t meeting these metrics, can it be adjusted to remove some project elements that are not helping the ratio, but are driving up the cost?

Are you waiting to submit your project until closer to 2026? If so, know that solicitations for some programs are now coming out for multiple years at a time. This means that even though we’re not even half-way through the law’s 5-year timeframe, some programs will have just 1-2 additional solicitations. It is also worth noting that available funding for some programs is considerably less than initial solicitations.
The IIJA program provides local communities with funding to complete important infrastructure projects. However, as we’ve learned, it can take considerable time and resources to develop a competitive application. Deciding to pursue these funds should be done so with realistic expectations and sound strategies.

WSB has experts in project funding to help you evaluate and submit applications. If you’d like to discuss project funding needs, please contact Amber Adams or Mary Gute for transportation specific projects.

Mary has more than 20 years of progressively complex transportation planning and project management experience, gained from working on a variety of transportation projects for modes including roads/bridge, transit, and trails. Several these projects have included environmental documentation considerations – either pre-NEPA, or through NEPA and/or MEPA processes.

[email protected] | 612.741.7055

WSB hires Shawn Poe, strengthening leadership in Colorado

September 4, 2024
Poe’s leadership will solidify the firm’s municipal service offerings in the Colorado/California region.

Denver, Colo. – Fast-growing firm WSB today announced the hiring of Shawn Poe. Based out of the firm’s Denver office, Poe has been strategically selected as director of municipal services to strengthen the service offering across the firm.

In this role, Poe will lead the firm’s efforts in expanding services to municipalities in Colorado. He will grow and strengthen relationships with public agencies not only in the state of Colorado, but in regions Shawn is familiar with and WSB supports.

“I was looking for an opportunity to grow with a firm, and WSB perfectly aligned,” said Poe. “I was drawn in by how visionary the firm is, and I value building relationships and supporting communities. I look forward to bringing my experience to WSB to build what’s next in infrastructure.”

Poe comes to WSB with nearly 30 years of experience in the public and private sectors in both Colorado and Texas. Throughout his career, he has supported communities across the nation as a city engineer and a director of public works. His involvement in professional organizations, including his role as a former president of the APWA Texas Chapter and current role on the board of the APWA Colorado Chapter, make him an asset to WSB.

“Shawn’s experience is going to directly benefit our clients,” said Monica Heil, vice president of municipal services. “He can advocate for and understand the needs of our public infrastructure. Shawn’s guidance will expand our services in the Colorado municipal market, allowing us to most efficiently and effectively support communities.”

The firm first entered the Colorado market in 2017. After recent acquisitions, WSB continues to grow nationally, expanding service offerings and building relationships with communities from coast-to-coast.

WSB Receives National Award of Merit in Transportation

September 4, 2024

Each year, the Design-Build Institute of America (DBIA) recognizes outstanding projects in various disciplines that exemplify the principles of Design-Build Done Right®.

DBIA recently announced that the Minnesota Department of Transportation’s (MnDOT) $75 million Highway 52 Zumbrota to Cannon Falls Design-Build project received the 2024 National Award of Merit in the Transportation (Other than Aviation) category. WSB supported MnDOT and this project through the Alternative Delivery General Engineering Consultant Contract (GEC) developing the Contract bidding documents and as the Owners Contract Administration Verification team providing quality management, contract administration, inspection, materials testing and plant inspection.

As a result, this project is automatically a nominee for the DBIA National Award of Excellence in the same category. Only one winner is selected for this award making it the highest honor in each category. Merit winners and Excellence winners will be announced during the awards program at the 2024 Design-Build Conference & Expo in Dallas, TX on November 7.

Click here for more information on the project.

Click here for DBIA’s full announcement.