As a celebration of all the public works professionals in Southeast Texas, BBI’s Jeremy Austin, PE attended the National Public Works Week (NPWW) Picnic on Wednesday, May 23rd at the City of Pearland’s Shadow Creek Ranch Sports Complex. The event was hosted by the Southeast Branch of the Texas Public Works Association (TPWA), which is part of the American Public Works Association (APWA). Co-hosts included City of League City, City of Houston, City of Missouri City, City of Friendswood, City of Webster, City of Alvin, City of Rosenberg, City of Pearland, City of Sugar Land, City of Lake Jackson, and City of Bellaire.
This year’s NPWW theme, “The Power of Public Works,” represents the idea of essential service, community, connection to quality of life and each other—all of which is embodied by the profession of public works and the professionals that practice it. Focusing on community building, it was TPWA’s goal to underscore the experience of each City’s commitment to excellence in service to the community.
Highlighted by a BBQ cookoff with teams from 11 cities, the City of League City took home the Grand Champion trophy by having the best total score in brisket, ribs, chicken, and dessert. BBI sponsored the cook team shirts and dubbed our amazing culinary masters “The Grillfathers.” Approximately 600 public works employees, consultants, and vendors attended the event.
The Texas Chapter is the largest chapter (1500+ members) of the 29,000-member APWA. To better meet the needs of their members, the State of Texas is divided into nine branches: Central Texas Branch (centered around Austin/Waco), North Central Branch (centered around DFW Metroplex), Paso del Norte Branch (centered around El Paso), Permian Basin (centered around Midland/Odessa), Rio Grande Valley Branch (centered around Rio Grande Valley), South Central Branch (centered around San Antonio), Southeast Branch (centered around Houston), South Plains Branch (centered around Lubbock), and West Central Branch (centered around Abilene).
For more information about the Texas Chapter of APWA, visit their website at http://texas.apwa.net/.
