It’s June and we’re all busy.  Surveyors all over the State are reporting that they’re as busy, or busier, than they were prior to the pandemic. That’s a good thing for everyone; there’s plenty of work to go around.

I had a good mentor early in my career who stressed attention to detail, especially when times are busy. It’s easy to fall into a trap of becoming complacent when we rush. We overlook things. We stop paying attention. Accidents happen. Those accidents may be as relatively harmless as forgetting to fill the water jug in the truck. Those accidents may have terrible consequences.

One time as I (working alone) was hurrying to set a control point on the side of a busy street, I parked the truck (a large Ford F150) in a position to partially block the traffic. I had quickly thrown the cones out and turned on all of the flashing lights I had. I grabbed a cotton spindle and hammer, set the point in the asphalt right in front of the truck, and painted it appropriately. The point was so close to the truck, in fact, that at one point, I’d set the hammer on the center of the front bumper of the truck because it was, conveniently, right there.

I was moving fast. Fast enough that I didn’t shut the truck off. The whole process took, maybe, two minutes, and close to half of that was putting out and collecting the cones. I grabbed the hammer, closed the rear shell, and jumped back in, and was about to head to my next control location.

It was at that moment I realized, in my hurry to get the job done, that I hadn’t been paying attention - I left the truck in Drive.  I’d set the emergency brake - like I had thousands of times before - but in my rush I got complacent (some may say lazy) and I neglected to take the truck out of gear. I parked the truck to protect me from the traffic, but the only thing protecting me from the truck was the emergency brake.

I released the brake and the truck lurched forward, into an intersection, with two minutes of pent-up energy.

I didn’t think much of it at the time, but so many "what if” scenarios have gone through my head in the years since. My vehicle parking habits are now so engrained - Park, E-Brake, Engine Off, Key-in-Hand, Open Door - it’s bordering genuflection. (Ask my wife; it makes her crazy.)

All that said, please remember the seemingly little, and easily forgotten, things as we go about all this work that we have to do.

On a personal level:  Stay hydrated. Wear sunscreen. Wear a hat and long sleeves. Keep watch on your other crew members to make sure they’re doing the same…and wear sunscreen. (Seriously! Wear it!)

On a local level: Remember it’s now fire season. Act accordingly, especially when working in dry, grassy areas. If you have it available to you, review Mike Quartaroli’s "Pre-Post Wildfire Disaster Survey Monument Preservation Guide.” It’s always better to know how to protect a monument before a disaster, than trying to figure it out during - or worse, after - the disaster.  (Ask me how I know.)  If you don’t have a copy of said "Wildfire Disaster Survey Monument Preservation Guide,” let me, Mikey Mueller (Monument Conservation Chair), or Mike Quartaroli know. We’ll get you a copy.

To quote Immediate Past President, Kevin Hills, "Remember, preparedness is not a one-time effort but an ongoing commitment to our own well-being and the preservation of our profession. By proactively preparing for fire and earthquake scenarios, we can mitigate risks, protect lives, and continue to serve our communities with resilience.”

On a Chapter level: Don’t forget your Chapter. It’s easy to do this time of year as we get busy. It’s difficult to get ideas for topics or speakers. We’re coming up to the end of the second quarter; Chapter reports and rosters are due to the Central Office soon. Don’t forget those either.

On a State Association level: Don’t forget your mentors. The Executive Committee is here to help you and your Chapter with all of the above.  Topics.  Speakers.  Monument Conservation. Let us help you make your Chapter stronger. Stronger Chapters make for a stronger Association. You name it, we can probably help you with it; and we want to.

….except for the sunscreen. You’ll have to apply that yourself. (Seriously! Wear it!)

Kevin Nehring

If you, as a Chapter Officer, Director, or member, have questions about anything related to the Association, please contact the Executive Committee.

Questions? Comments? Concerns? Contact me: Ca.PLS8200@gmail.com or 559-451-7112.

Clifford Waldeck, of Mill Valley, has been appointed to the Board for Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors, and Geologists. Waldeck has been a Substitute Teacher for Marin County School Districts since 2021 and Bay Area Business Development Lead with Indoff Inc. since 2017. He has been Owner of Clifford Waldeck Consulting since 2008. He oversaw Business Development and Community Outreach for Blaisdell’s Business Products from 2014 to 2017. Waldeck oversaw Business Development and was a Community Cultivator with Give Something Back Office Supplies from 2010 to 2014. He held several positions at Waldeck Office Supplies for a Small Planet since 1981 and was President and Owner there from 1997 to 2010. Waldeck is a member of the Southern Marin Fire Protection District Board of Directors and the Mill Valley Memorial Day Parade Steering Committee. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Mass Communications from the University of California, Berkeley. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Waldeck is a Democrat.  

The May "Where in CA is This?” was of course the site of Candlestick Park, located in San Francisco's Hunters Point area. The stadium was originally the home of MLB's San Francisco Giants, who played there from 1960 until 1999, after which the Giants moved into Pacific Bell Park (since renamed Oracle Park) in 2000. It was also the home field of the NFL San Francisco 49ers from 1971 through 2013. The 49ers moved to Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara for the 2014 season. The last event held at Candlestick was a concert by Paul McCartney in August 2014, and the demolition of the stadium was completed in September 2015. Photo provided by Keith Nofield.

 We had several winners: William Tuck, PLS of Sphere Surveying and Mapping, Inc. said "It took some searching on Google maps, but this month’s photo is overlooking the old Candle Stick Park site with the Hunters Point Gantry Crane in the background.” Joe Cash, LSIT, at DWR said "I recognized the gantry crane as a likely landmark. suspected Bay Area north shore looking South because of the ships. Did a google image search with no luck. Used Lense to specifically look for the Gantry and found it at Hunter's Point. From there I lined up the docks, field (I guess this was the site of a stadium for a mercenary sportsball team?)  and figured that the picture was taken from Bayview Park. Google Earth seems to have some photogrammetric weirdness going on and I can't get the exact location to line up... Suspect the picture was taken with a zoom lens and the Earth isn't set to 1:1 for elevations?” The Masked Mapper: "Candlestick Park, I mean used to be Candlestick Park. I used to go to niner games. Season Tickets with the family. We did some work in for the sand plant, Martin Marietta, to the north of there. I did not realize they had taken it down. They should build something else. So many great memories were made there.” And the last was Ventura County Surveyor Dan Walsh: "The large crane at Hunters Point in the bay area is in the background of the photo. It looks like it was taken from the direction of the old location of Candlestick Park or up on a hill behind where the Park was.”

 Try to identify the location of this month’s photo. Please tell me how you identified the location. Submit your answer or submit your photo of a special location in California to: Rob McMillan

"I’m happy to share that I’m starting a new position as Program Director of the Surveying Operations at NV5! I am extremely excited for this top-tiered position, and look forward in being part of the active growth of NV5. Awesome clients. Fun projects. Tons of work. 100 offices. Strong mentorship. Deep backlog. Unbelievable growth opportunities (field and office). Superb Leadership. Great environment.”

Jeff Cannon reports "I’m excited to share that I’m starting a new position as Project Surveyor at Mark Thomas! I am thrilled for this new opportunity in my career.” If Jeff’s name sounds familiar, he was recognized in last month’s In the News for obtaining his California PLS. With licensure comes more responsibility and opportunity. See last month’s edition for Jeff’s details!

I’m happy to share that I’ve obtained a new certification: Professional Land Surveyor (PLS) from California Board for Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors, and Geologists! Having passed the exam has provided me with the opportunity to look back on my journey that began back in my days as a student at Cal Poly Pomona. It has been quite an adventure to reach this milestone, but the feeling of accomplishment is unparalleled. This would not have been possible without the support of my wife, daughters, parents, family, friends, colleagues, professors and the land surveying and civil engineering community. Each one played an important role in helping me navigate this odyssey. This achievement reminded me of the crucial role we educators play in shaping the lives of our students, emphasizing how our sense of humanity can shape their personal journeys. I hope that my achievement can serve as a source of inspiration for others, just as many have inspired me along my own path.

Sergio started in our industry drafting for his dad, Pablo Sanchez (PBS & Associates), at age 14. " He needed help, and I was willing to learn.”  At 16 Sergio started working in the field with his father and his crews. He graduated from Cal Poly, Pomona in 2002 and went to work at PSOMAS.  In 2005, he returned to PBS & Associates providing land survey support and services for city and county agencies as well as some engineering firms. In January 2009, Sergio founded SIR-GEO providing GIS services to his dad's clients and his own.  In September 2018, he received his FAA Part 107 sUAS certificate and added drone photography to the list of services, accumulating over 850 verifiable flight hours to date. In September of 2021, he returned to PSOMAS where he is currently working as a Project Surveyor and drone pilot.

Birk Ellis, a Transportation Surveyor at California Department of Water Resources, and long time well-known figure in the California Land Surveying community has passed the license exam for his California PLS. Birk previously worked at R.E.Y. Engineers, Mark Thomas, F3 & Associates, Leica Geosystems, Wood Rodgers, Morton & Pitalo, Inc., and Spink Corp/ Stantec. Birk is also an avid disc golfer, and member of the Professional Disc Golf Association.

Congratulations Dan! He is a Survey Project Manager with Pasco Laret Suiter & Associates. Mirabile previously worked for Rodgers Consulting and Christopher Consultants, Ltd.in MD, Randall Jones & Associates in TX, WWC Engineering in WY, And as a State Lands Intern with the Oregon Department of Forestry.

Yuen is a Project Manager with Sandis. He also holds an EIT Certificate as well as a B.S. in Civil Engineering from UC Davis.

Tiffany is a Transportation Surveyor with Caltrans. She previously worked as an Engineering Technician for Sutter County and an Assistant Land Surveyor for German Engineering.

Nathaniel is a Professional Land Surveyor for Trinity Valley Consulting Engineers, Inc., in Weaverville, California. He currently has the highest PLS number in California, with PLS 9928.

Congratulations Nathaniel, and to all the new licensees!

Is PLS 9864, Eric Wilson, Party Chief with R.E.Y. Engineers?

Is PLS 9899, David McEachern, Principle Eng. Tech. at Riv. Co. FC & WCD?

Is PLS 9904, Edward Napoles, Survey Technician at Blair, Church & Flynn?

Is PLS 9916. Carina Solorio, Assistant PM at Kjeldsen, Sinnock and Neudeck, Inc.?

Is PLS 9918. Adrian Foster, Transportation Surveyor at Caltrans?

Announcing the 2024 Geomatics Conference! Join us on Thursday, September 12, at Cal Poly Pomona’s Bronco Student Center for a full-day event from 8 AM to 5 PM, followed by social hours from 6 PM to 8 PM. Stay tuned for more details.

Questions? Please reach out to us at clsa@cpp.edu. Looking forward to seeing you there!

Will is the President of Original Survey Solutions in Redwood City, California, and is a past President of the Central Valley CLSA Chapter. Previous employers include BKF, Sandis, Kier & Wright, Kjeldsen, Sinnock and Neudeck, O'Dell Engineering, If Will’s name sounds familiar, he was recognized in last month’s In the News for obtaining his Nevada PLS.

You may recognize Dusting Gardner from his presentation at the 2024 WRSC. He says he is "Happy to be joining the team at SAM as a phase manager! Excited for brand new learning experiences and a chance to meet new surveyors.” A 4th generation surveyor, he has worked with the Phoenix and San Diego RICK offices, Nebraska DoT, and his family firm, Nasland Engineering. "It’s always a blessing to have great mentors and coworkers that you enjoy working with. I’m sincerely going to miss my RICK team and our field crews.”

Katrina posted on her LinkedIn page that she was "Turning in my paperwork this morning as an adjunct instructor at Reedley College this fall teaching Boundary Control and Legal Principles in their Land Surveying program.”

Sharing your extensive knowledge by teaching the next generation of surveyors is an extremely important and rewarding experience. Thank you!

CLSA e-News roving reporter Robert Hanley, PLS visited the Sonoma CLSA Chapter at Shiloh Park for their annual Summer BBQ Get Together. His report was "Had a great time. Wonderful people!” Although the report was short, he works for free, and what more do you need to know? With summer BBQs and events such as this happening at many CLSA Chapters throughout California, take the opportunity to visit a different Chapter. You will likely find the people welcoming, the food delicious, the discussions similar, and the camaraderie at the highest levels.

Former City of Modesto Party Chief Robert Ray announced "I’m happy to share that I’m starting a new position as Transportation Surveyor at Caltrans!” Ray will be working as a Transportation Surveyor in the R/W Engineering Branch in Stockton. Previously, Robert worked for Mid-Valley Engineering, David Evans And Associates, Inc., and URS Corporation. Prior to becoming a Chainman with , Survey Chainmansurvey Chainman, Ray served in the Us Army as a Heavy Wheeled Mechanic (63w).

 Jose Gutierrez, a Geomatics Engineering Student at California State University, Fresno has joined the Mark Thomas team for the summer. Jose says "I am grateful and excited for the opportunity to work at Mark Thomas! My goals are to continue learning and developing my career as a land surveyor while contributing to their overall goal of helping the world Move Forward.” Jose is the current CSUF CLSA Student Chapter Secretary, and VP of the Donations and Scholarships committee for the 2025 CSUF Geomatics Conference.

Airworks

Aerial Photomapping Services

Berntsen International, Inc.

BizWatt, LLC

Carlson Software

Leica Geosystems

Leja Surveying Corp.
 

Looq AI

Meridian Surveying Engineering Inc.

 Seafloor Systems

Tait & Associates

That CAD Girl