Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) District One began the final phase of improvements on US 98 from

State Road 60 (Van Fleet Drive) in Bartow to East Edgewood Drive in Lakeland in March 2013. This $19.4 million

widening project will provide improvements along a 3.4 mile stretch of US 98 from north of CR 540A to SR 540 in

Polk County.

The contractor, The Lane Construction Corporation, will make improvements that consist of widening US 98 from 4

lanes to 6 lanes, milling and resurfacing the existing roadway, replacing the bridges over Banana Creek, installing

new drainage pipes, improvements to Fort Fraser Trail, new street lighting, signalization, strain poles and mast arms

and placing new pavement markings and signs.

As part of this project, FDOT will realign some sections of the Fort Fraser Trail and install new underground drain-

age pipes. Widened concrete deck bridges will replace the current bridges over Banana Creek. Both sides of the

roadway will receive new lighting, and new signalization installed at CR 540A and CR 540 (Clubhouse Road), the

University of South Florida/Polk State College entrance, and at SR 570 (Polk Parkway). Expected completion is

spring 2015.

First Edition Page 2 On The Road With Billy

First Edition Page 2

Since returning to the department I have met with almost 130 department heads, managers and supervisors. As a

result of those meetings, my appreciation for the quality of our employees has grown exponentially. As many of

you may remember, I was in District Five for eight years and more recently in Central Office for seven years.

I was originally offered the position I applied for in District Five, when Ananth asked me to consider taking the

position as your secretary. Each day I leave my home in Orlando at 6:30 a.m. and I return home usually no earli-

er than 6:30 p.m. Even though my days are longer due to my commute, I can honestly say that I am honored to

be your secretary due to our employees’ commitment to our customers and the compliments I receive from the

local government staff and commissioners I meet with on a regular basis.

Your leadership team continues to work on the feedback we received from our last employee survey concerning

recognition, communication and management credibility. We used last summer’s District Step Up meeting to get

ideas from all of the supervisors and managers who attended on how we could improve in these three areas.

We have been meeting monthly to work on narrowing down those ideas to those which have the greatest prom-

ise of addressing the root cause of your concerns with recognition, communication and management credibility.

We expect to wrap up this effort during the next couple of meetings and plan to present our findings and recom-

mendations at the upcoming Town Hall meeting at the end of April.

As I shared in my e-mail during the week of the employee survey, one of my major goals for the district is to

have an environment where every employee feels safe in their position and in sharing their concerns or ideas for

improving how we conduct business and interact with our employees. Every employee plays a role in that effort

and for some of you, you may feel as though there is a risk in coming forward. I believe during the time I have

been here I have proven my commitment to each and every person who has come forward with a concern, in-

cluding the replacement of supervisors and managers at various levels within the district. No one, including me,

wants to resort to those actions in order to improve conditions for our employees, but in those cases where other

methods have been unsuccessful, we will do what is necessary for the interests of our employees.

What I ask of each of you is to work toward providing us constructive feedback on what we can do to make sig-

nificant improvements in your workplace during the coming year, and to be bold and innovative in providing ide-

as for how we can improve our services to our visitors and citizens and local government partners.

I know we have pride in being the Number One District, and we want to do everything we can to stay the

Number One District!!

www.dot.state.fl.us

Consistent, Predictable, Repeatable

We are already well into 2014 and I want to first thank all of you for the success we

had in District One in 2013. I have every confidence we will have another great year

and my goal is to continue to improve on how we lead the district in order to make

District One the best place to work in the state.

Please remember:

Governor Scott declares March as Florida Bicycle Month. Help us spread the word by sharing Governor Scott’s proclamation declaring

March as Florida Bicycle Month.

http://www.dot.state.fl.us/publicinformationoffice/Safety/newsreleases/030314Florida%20Bicycle%20Month.pdf

Frist Edition Page 3

11th Annual Black History Program – February 2014

The Honorable Jennifer Carroll graced us with her presence and wowed the audience with her infectious

smiles and candor. She shared some of her life stories from childhood, adolescence and adulthood.

She is definitely a true example of an American Dream comes true. She came to the United States from

Port of Spain, Trinidad West Indies as a young child with her adoptive parents.

In sharing her life experiences, the audience could see through their “mind’s eye” the rearing by her parents,

some of the decisions she made for herself and meeting her husband Nolan Carroll and the building

of her family with three children, Nolan II, Nyckie, and Necho.

Former Lieutenant Governor Carroll amazed us when she talked about her military duties as a former Navy

jet mechanic and naval aviation officer. She shared some of the adversities she faced and also shared

with us one in particular where there was a difficult experience with co-workers

which she described as a “teachable moment.”

She was Florida’s 18th Lieutenant Governor, the first female and the first Black person elected to the

position statewide. She was a small business owner, a state legislator for seven years, former Executive

Director of Florida Department of Veterans’ Affairs responsible for over 1.8 million veterans.

She retired from the Navy after 20 years.

There were many accolades to share in her biography and a lifetime of information as well.

She is currently working on her autobiography.

You can learn more about the Former Lieutenant Governor,

The Honorable Jennifer S. Carroll by visiting her website at:

A Decade of Celebrations

We’ve celebrated Black History Month at the District Headquarters office with a program for over ten years. In 2014 we thought it fitting to spotlight the past ten years while celebrating this year with the Former Lieutenant Governor Jennifer Carroll.

Very special thanks to everyone who contributed to the success of each program.

Front row, left to right: Dawn Gallon, Cynthia Sykes, Caryn Ruth

Former Lieutenant Governor Jennifer Carroll, Cheri Kelley and Cyntrena Durant

Back row, left to right: Dee Whiters, Jackie Brown, Vanessa Clayton,

Shuana Dupree and Steven Andrews

www.Jennifercarroll.com

After speaking the

Former Lt. Gov.

received the

“Key to the City”

of Bartow from Vice

Mayor Pat Huff (left)

and

A Certificate of

Appreciation from

Cheri Kelley (right)

The Former Lieutenant Governor at Highways to Tomorrow Child Development Center

The Former Lieutenant Governor at District One Headquarters Mike Rippe Auditorium

First Edition Page 4

A Blast From our Past - the L.B. Brown House museum By Cheri Kelley

The Black History Program Planning Committee presented “History in our Hometown,”

in 2011featuring the Historic L.B. Brown House Museum in Bartow. Lawrence Bernard

Brown was born into slavery in 1856. He built the house for his family in 1892. Clifton

Lewis, the curator was the guest speaker. Mr. Lewis shared a history lesson about the

house, L. B. Brown’s life from being born into slavery to becoming one of Polk County’s

most successful entrepreneurs. Mr. Lewis shared information about the Brown family.

In September, 2010, Director John W. Franklin from the Smithsonian Institution National

Museum of African American History of Culture visited the historic house.

On a beautiful morning in December, 2013, two of the original foundation pillars bearing

the initials LBB were raised in a ceremony. One of the pillars will be transported to

Washington for the inaugural display at the Smithsonian Museum. Many residents from

Bartow and nearby cities, Representative Ben Albritton, Congressman Dennis Ross and a

number of local elected officials attended the event. Some local ministers who attended

were requested to pray during the ceremony.

The Smithsonian Institute’s Black History Museum opens in 2015 when visitors can see

some of the pieces from the Bartow house among the artifacts. Attending the ceremony

was quite an emotional moment for me. I can remember in the late 1980s sitting in the

living room of the home having conversations with Mrs. Louvenia C. Brown Thomas,

one of the last surviving daughters of L. B. and Annie Belle Brown. The historic home is

where the annual L.B. Brown Festival on L.B. Brown Avenue held in February. You can

call Bartow City Hall to request a tour of the museum.

First Edition Page 5

Dear Mr. Odom,

I wanted to write to extend my sincere thanks to the FDOT Road Ranger program.

On Saturday, December 7, my husband and I and our three children were returning to our home in Orlando. We had gone to Lakeland to cheer a

friend on in her mud run and to have lunch with her and her son to celebrate her completing her race. On our way home, after being on I-4 for only

maybe 10 minutes or so, our front passenger tire shredded. It happened so quickly and we were traveling so fast that my husband could barely get

the van pulled over to the side of the road – but thankfully he slowed us down and got us on the grass on the right of the freew ay. We got out to

inspect the tire and my husband immediately got to work putting the spare on. To add insult to injury we had stopped with our shredded tire right

in front of a red ant hill. My husband got the jack out but we were on the grass so the jack was really just sinking. Then he tried to get the spare tire

out from underneath our van and it was stuck. Just then our Road Ranger appeared.

It was perfect timing. He instructed us to move our van to the concrete shoulder, helped my husband (back at the red ant hill) locate the tool need-

ed to loosen the spare (it had fallen out of the jack bag into the grass), released our spare (which of course was out of air , because we really couldn’t

catch a break), filled our spare up and helped my husband change our tire. At every turn we encountered another problem and yet none of it fazed

our Road Ranger – not even the fact that it was incredibly hot for this time of year (I am surprised he and my husband didn’t me lt). This man was

so wonderful and helpful and friendly to us. I am so embarrassed that I didn’t even get him name. I was just so concerned about our kids’ safety,

with all of the cars whizzing by and us being so far from home, that while I certainly thanked him (and another Road Ranger h e had called for help

when the tool was MIA), I didn’t even thank these amazing men by name. Road Ranger #1 even entertained our boys (7, 7, and 3) through the trunk

of the van WHILE he was working to loosen our spare. They were all captivated by how cool this “superhero” was who had come to r escue us! One of

my older boys has now decided he wants to be a Road Ranger when he grows up.

My husband and I are just so thankful to these men for helping our family. And thank you as well for your work in providing thi s important and

much-appreciated service to Floridians and others who travel throughout our beautiful state.

Sincerely, Angela C. Browning

Albert Rosenstein BeeVee Ragan Belinda Torres Bill (William) Fuller Bill (William) Jones Bill (William) Shuping Bill Williams Billy Donegan Billy Hattaway Blas Molina Brenda Thissen Brandon Moeller Brian Price Brittany McLochlin Bruce Surrency Carl Harman Carl Metz Charlene Mullis Charlie Cooper Charles Flake Charlotte Price Cheri Kelley Cheryl Sanchious Chris Dooley Dan Rutkosky Dave Morgan David Smith Dean Gunther

Doug McClintock Eric Crews Faye Bingham Gary Beagles Geneva Winningham Gerard Moliere Greg Weich Henry Hall Janet Middleton Jay Saxena Jeff Cooper Jeff Winningham Jim (James) Jacobsen JoAnn May John Kinnett Johnny Perry Jon Sands Joshua Funk Katherine Chinault Kathy Cothern Kati Sherrard Kellie Spurgeon Kevin Salsbery Lesia Cannon Lorraine Hunter Mark Peronto Mark Semone Matthew Weaver

Mike (Michael) Williams Michelle Peronto Mike Ebersole Mike Holmes Pete (Pedro) Faz Providance Nagy Rachel Richardson Richard Cason Richard Dyson Richard Johnson Robert Hill Rodney Pocevic Ronald (Ken) Campbell Ruthie Chunn Sharon Harris Shawn Connolly Shayla Blackmon Sim Jones Stanley Holdman Steve (Walter) Crowell Steve Womble Terry Buckley Tim Funk Tracy Padula Walter Bollinger Wayne Shelton Wendy Sands Wilfred Acevedo-Diaz

First Edition Page 6

DID YOU KNOW?

The name Punta Gorda, means, "fat point" when

translated from Spanish.

The name was given to the city because a

broad part of the land in Punta Gorda

sticks out into Charlotte Harbor.

The harbor itself is somewhat unique, as it is the

point where Peace River meets the Gulf.

D-1 keepS Stepping up!

Congratulations to all “spotlight” employees

First Edition

Page 7

Billy Hattaway, District One Secretary joined former Representative Gary Aubuchon and Cape Coral Bike-Ped organizers

Mike Swanson and Craig Dearden on the 100-mile segment of the 23rd

Annual Tour De Cape. The Tour included several

distance rides; 15, 30, 60 and 100 miles. The ride was held on Sunday, January 19th at 8 a.m.

Secretary Hattaway is an avid bike rider. He accepted an invitation from the City and Cape Coral Bike-Ped coordinators

to join Mr. Aubuchon on the longest ride of the annual event. District One covers 12 counties in Florida, and Secretary

Hattaway and district staff have been supportive of the Cape Bike-Ped bike effort.

Secretary Hattaway, Mr. Aubuchon, the Cape Coral Bike-Ped team and other City staff were available for a brief press

event and photos as they expressed their support for bike-ped activities like this one, and the community benefit it

provides.

The morning was crisp with a forecast for sunshine and blue skies, ideal for participating in the Tour de Cape, the 23rd

bike ride event sponsored by Cape Coral Parks and Recreation. Bicyclists gathered at the Cape Harbor. With so many

draped in fluorescent yellow green jackets, it looked like bees buzzing! There was a nip in the air as jovial crowds

laughed and clicked-clacked around waiting for all the volunteers to get in place so the ride could begin.

Dan Moser with Bike Walk Lee (BWL) stood proudly by his BWL booth people steadily stopped by to examine the

myriad of safety resources and to ask him questions. Secretary Hattaway arrived early wearing his Share the Road

jersey and joined Mr. Aubuchon. They spoke with the media and local groups then snapped photos with passersby who

exclaimed is that Billy!?! before the pair made their way to the start line to begin their sixty-mile journey. Vitor Suguri,

an intern with the Southwest Area Office (SWAO), was part of the Secretary’s’ peloton, enjoying the refreshing air gen-

erated by the physics of pedaling at great speeds.

I, on the other hand, headed out to enjoy the 30-mile route at a slower pace hoping to spot a Burrowing Owl (I spotted

none).

While some were getting in a workout and others were reuniting with old friends, I thought back to my teenage and

young adult days reminiscing about my own journeys around Worms, Germany and the casual thirty-mile expeditions

with my mom that took us from the Duval County line to Camp Blanding. Because the selected Cape Coral routes were

comfortable and scenic, it made for a wonderful Sunday morning in Florida!

By Providance Nagy

First Edition

Page 8

Transit users save $9,953 annually Submitted by Richard Shine

Published by Metro Magazine

The American Public Transportation Asso-ciation’s (APTA) January Transit Savings Report shows that individuals who ride pub-lic transportation instead of driving can save, on average, more than $829 this month, and $9,953 annually.

The savings are based on the cost of com-muting by public transportation compared to the cost of owning and driving a vehicle which includes the Jan. 16, 2014 average national gas price and the national unre-served monthly parking rate.

APTA releases this monthly Transit Savings Report to examine how an individual in a two-person household can save money by taking public transportation and living with one less car.

The national average for a monthly unre-served parking space in a downtown busi-ness district is $166.26, according to the 2012 Colliers International Parking Rate Study. Over the course of a year, parking costs for a vehicle can amount to an aver-age of $1,995.

Dawn M. Gallon, (Distr ict Secretary’s Office)

Graduated on December 14, 2013 from

the University of South Florida with a

Bachelors of Arts Degree in Interdisci-

plinary Social Science with Concentra-

tions in Sociology and

Gerontology.

Dawn’s continued education plans include

pursuing a Masters Degree in Sociology.

Farewell to Richard Cason

I am genuinely thankful and most honored to be named District Employee of the month.

As for my retirement from DOT District One, it has been most humbling last couple of days. The acknowledgement, sincere

affection and well wishes from my fellow employees overwhelmed me.

Although I am truly excited about this “new season” in my life, I find myself saddened by my departure from the wonderful

co-workers I am leaving. I’ve made plans and have plenty of projects to keep me busy for quite a while.

I know already this change will be a major adjustment. Not to change my routine, but adjusting to the fact that I am leaving a

family of wonderful and dedicated people.

My immediate plans are to work on several home projects for the next few months, and then I have some cattle fences to rebuild.

This should keep me busy through the spring and into summer. My wife Sondra (the switchboard operator) and I have planned a

two week vacation to Virginia and Washington D.C.

Thanks again to everyone; I truly wish all the best for FDOT District One.

Have a great 2014!

Sincerely,

Richard G. Cason

Warren McLaughlin works in the Mater ials/Goetech section

on the drill crew. His section designs foundations and perform the

soils investigation. A lot of our work is done near inlets, rivers,

canals & creeks for bridges. He shares recent pictures:

The first picture was taken in Okeechobee on the L-63 canal at SR

710, they just pulled the drill rod out from sampling at 150’ when

an osprey that had been fishing nearby landed on the rod.

The second was taken on Lake Hancock in Polk Co. That project

is for a proposed multi use trail around the lake.

A variety of palms and trees were planted at the I-75 and US 301 interchange in

Manatee County. Royal, Silver Bismarck, Fishtail, African Oil, Triangle, Montgomery

and Foxtail palms will be planted at this gateway into Manatee County.

The landscaping also includes Floss Silk, Royal Poinciana and Jacaranda trees.

First Edition Page 9 Landscaping Project on I-75 at US 301 in Manatee County

First Edition Reis And Lewis Square Off In Battle Of The Bulge Page 10

By: Blake Edwards

Page 11

First Edition First Edition

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Producing precast products By Jay Saxena

First Edition Page 12

District Materials Structure’s group recently hired a Con-

crete Precast Specialist for their Ft. Myers Branch Materi-

als’ Office. This position was previously located in the

Tampa Branch Materials Office.

The employee who previously held this position would

travel from Tampa to Ft. Myers and surrounding areas for

regular inspections, monthly inspections and quarterly

inspections of various concrete precast and incidental pro-

duction facilities. These products include mechanically

stabilized earth walls (these are visible on the sides of

highway overpasses), noise reduction walls, concrete

pipes and storm water drainage products among several

others.

These trips were required to inspect and maintain the pre-

cast and incidental product quality control programs. On a

typical work day as much as 5 to 6 hours were consumed

on the road traveling to reach these production facilities.

With normal breaks and lunch break, our productivity

was less than what it would be without travel.

This not only seemed to be a less efficient use of man-

power resources but also that of other resources such as

vehicle and fuel. Relocation of this position at the Ft.

Myers Branch Materials Office has effectively eliminated

the long travel time. This has resulted in an improved pro-

duction capacity for the Concrete Structures Group and

an overall efficient resources management in reduced di-

rect and indirect costs.

The additional time available to devote towards product

inspection and quality assurance, now allows the District

Materials Research Office to provide a higher level and

quality of service to our customer base.

Financial Services staff “stepped it up” with paint one recent evening in

Lakeland.

A rather bold idea, true, but also a great opportunity. Just as they do each and

every work day, they gave painting their best effort and rose to the challenge.

You see the final results. Impressive … yes …especially the

farther you get from them.

Financial Services Staff

Has Fun With Paints

First Edition Page 13

Let’s Welcome The Graduate Level Interns to District One

Baby’s Name: Bentley Franklin Apple Proud Parents: Aron Apple and Jessica Coakley Proud Grandparents: Richard and Lori (Apple) Benton - Design Date of Birth: January 8, 2014 Location: St. Luke's Hospital, Maumee, Ohio Time of Birth: 8:50 a.m. Weight: 8 lbs., 14 oz. Length: 20 3/4 inches

Name:

Frank Norberto Unit Location:

Design & Construction

College/University:

Florida Gulf Coast University

Major:

Civil Engineering

Hometown:

Naples

Name:

Jeffrey Papner Unit Location:

Environmental Management

College/University:

Florida Gulf Coast University

Major:

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Hometown:

Fort Myers

Name:

Zachary Stone

Unit Location:

Materials

College/University:

Florida Gulf Coast University

Major:

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Hometown:

Bonita Springs

Name:

Vitor Suguri

Unit Location:

Southwest area Office

College/University:

Florida Gulf Coast University

Major:

Masters in Public Administration

Hometown:

Fort Myers

Name:

Zachary Roach Unit Location:

Traffic Operations

College/University:

Polk State College

Major:

Engineering

Hometown:

Auburndale

Name:

Capone Ryan

Unit Location: Program Management, Financial & Procurement Services

College/University:

Florida Southern College

Major:

Business Administration

Hometown:

Winter Haven

The Department’s Internship Program offers students an exciting insider’s view of the transportation industry and an opportunity to develop skills

and techniques directly applicable to their professional development. Interns are students enrolled in an accredited university or college. They are

temporary employees of the Department in funded positions that require a maximum of 20 hours of work per biweekly pay period. The program

operates on an academic year and interns may participate for a maximum of three semesters. In addition to ongoing supervisory feedback, an

assessment of the intern’s experience will be provided by the Department supervisor during an exit interview at the end of each semester.