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ASCE OC YMF Programs - Gerald Desmond Bridge Tour

By Josue Candelario On Friday, March 3rd the OC YMF hosted a technical tour on one of Long Beach’s iconic bridges, the Gerald Desmond Bridge. Gerald Desmond Bridge opened in 1968 connecting Terminal Island and Long Beach. Due to the increase in traffic and safety hazards the Long Beach Board of Harbor Commissioners moved to replace the outdated bridge. The new cable-stayed bridge will have two additional lanes with pedestrian and bicycle access. The project was awarded to a joint venture led by Shimmick Construction, FCC, and Impregilo. Construction began in 2013 and is scheduled to finish in 2018.

Law and CE News - SB-496 Signed Into Law Providing Indemnity Relief for Design Professionals

By: Collins Collins Muir + Stewart LLP Uncross Your Fingers – Governor Brown Signs SB-496 Providing Indemnity Relief for Design Professionals! Last week with optimism we reported that the California State Assembly passed Senate Bill 496 (“SB-496”) which sought to lessen the burden of indemnity provisions and the dreaded immediate duty to defend in public and private contracts involving design professionals. We are pleased to announce that on Friday April 28, 2017, Governor Jerry Brown signed the bill into law! SB-496 modifies Civil Code section 2782.8, adding protections to private contracts entered into by design professionals after January 1, 2018. Importantly, SB-496 limits the “duty to defend” to the comparative fault of the professional in private and public contracts.

EWRI Santa Ana River Parkway Extension Branch Lunch

By Portia Gonzalez, P.E. The ASCE Orange County Branch March luncheon meeting presented on the Santa Ana River Parkway Extension Project. The key speakers include Mr. Jeff Dickman, Planner with the Orange County Public Works; Mr. Jerry Flores, Associate Principal with AECOM, and Mr. David Jaffe, Senior Project Manager with Psomas.

OCEC - Seeking Officer Nominations for Upcoming Term

OCEC will be conducting the annual election of its Executive Committee members during the first week of June, 2017, and each of the OCEC members are invited to consider serving on the committee. OCEC is fortunate to have a dedicated group of leaders which is committed to seeing the success of the organization. While nothing beats the in depth experience in getting things done, many of the current Executive Committee members have served multiple terms and are ready to incorporate fresh ideas and energy into the group. With the help of new members serving alongside the more experienced members, OCEC is looking forward to see its phenomenal growth in future.

President's Message - The “I” Word

By Josue Vaglienty, P.E. ASCE is joining over 250 other organizations and affiliates of InfrastructureWeek.org this week in huge effort to reach out to legislators and the public at large to promote Infrastructure Week (May 15-19, 2017). The US Chamber of Commerce is also promoting Infrastructure Week (#TimeToBuild) and the importance of building and maintaining the country’s critical infrastructure. The emphasis is on the benefits of improved infrastructure: enhancing trade and a better business environment, safer means of transport, and providing more reliability for all users. There’s no question it is an important topic. The difficult part is finding the right solution to securing dedicated long-term funding for America.