APWA Ohio Past Award Winners

An historical listing of past award recipients in Ohio is provided below. For more information about APWA’s current year’s awards, guidelines and nomination forms, visit the Awards home page.

• Top Ten Public Works Leaders of the Year
  • 2024 Joseph Fornaro, CPWP-M, Public Service Director, City of Kirtland, OH
  • 2019 Diana Clonch, Owner, DW Clonch, LLC, Columbus, OH
  • 1996 Alvin Wansing, PE, D.E.E., Utilities Director, City of Springfield, OH
  • 1990 William Klosterman, City Manager, Middletown, OH
  • 1986 Walter W. White, Superintendent, Water Pollution Control, Painesville, OH
  • 1984 Robert H. Kleinweber, Director of Public Works, Lakewood, OH
  • 1981 Robert F. Fisher, Director of Public Service, Canton, OH
  • 1980 Arthur D. Bird, Director of Public Works, Cincinnati, OH
  • 1967 Pearl E. Masheter, Director, Ohio Dept of Highways, Columbus, OH
  • 1966 Arthur D. Caster, Director of Water Pollution Control, Cincinnati, OH
  • 1963 Walter E. Gerdel, Commissioner, Div. of Sewage Disposal, Cleveland, OH
  • 1962 Edward J. Cleary, Executive Director & Chief Engineer, Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Comm., Cincinnati
  • 1962 William C. Wichman, Director of Public Works, Cincinnati, OH
• Public Works Project of the Year
  • 2022 Environment > $75 million, Lick Run Valley Conveyance System and Greenway, Cincinnati OH
    • Video: Drone Flyover, October 2021
  • 2021 Disaster/Emergency < $5 Million, Brent Spence Bridge Repair, Covington KY to Cincinnati OH
    •  Video: 6 Weeks in  6 Minutes- Emergency Repair Project Recap
  • 2016 Environment $25-75 million, Scioto Greenways, City of Columbus, OH
  • 2005 Disaster/Emergency <$ 2 million, River Road Bank Stabilization, City of Fairfield, OH
  • 2004 Historical Restoration >$10 million, Baldwin Water Treatment Plant Rehabilitation, City of Cleveland, OH
• Public Works Project of the Year Small Cities/Rural Communities
• Commendation for Exemplary Service to Public Works
• Distinguished Service to Public Works Award
• Exceptional Performance Awards
  • 2023 Chapter Journalism: Alison Haskins, APWA Ohio
  • 1998 Safety: Dr. Daryl Brock, Supt of Sanitation, City of Cincinnati
• Excellence in Snow and Ice Control Award
  • 2021 City of Columbus, OH
  • 2020 Franklin County Engineers Office, Columbus, OH
  • 2017 City of Montgomery, OH
  • 2015 City of Columbus, OH
  • 2013 Ohio DOT, Columbus, OH
• International Service Award
• Sustainability Practices Award
  • 2015 City of Columbus, OH – Get Green
• Technical and Management Innovation Awards
  • 2005 Technical, Cuyahoga River Restoration Project, City of Kent, OH
• Myron Calkins Young Leader of the Year Award
• Community Involvement Award
• Professional Manager of the Year:
  • Administrative Management
    • 2013 Sonja R. Simpson, ODOT Deputy Dir, Div. of Operations, Columbus, OH
  • Emergency Management
  • Engineering & Technology
  • Facilities and Grounds
    • 2019   Shannon Sorrell, Director of Parks and Recreation, City of Whitehall, OH
  • Public Fleet Manager
    • 2019 Rob Sizemore, Fleet Service Supervisor, Cincinnati, OH
  • Public Rights-of-Way
  • Solid Waste
    • 2009 Ronnie M. Owens, Commissioner, City of Cleveland, OH
  • Transportation
    • 2018   David Coyle, ODOT Assistant Dir. Field Operations, Columbus, OH
  • Water Resources
• Excellence in Education
  • 2024 Gary Browning, Operations Administrator – Utilities, City of Dublin, OH
• Harry S. Swearingen Award for Outstanding Chapter Achievement and Excellence in Chapter Service
• Presidential Award for Chapter Excellence (PACE)
  • 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022,  2023

•  Chapter Membership Achievement Award
  • 2008, 2016, 2020