Redwood City – The County’s Department of Public Works (DPW) will celebrate National Public Works Week with a display of their rugged trucks and equipment this Wednesday, May 22, on the County Center campus.
This is a great opportunity (especially for the little ones) to meet the crews that help keep miles of public roads clean and safe and much, much more. Kids (and adults) can get selfies with machines that clear drainage ditches and unblock sewer lines and can meet the crews that respond when the weather is at its worst while checking out the Storm Response Unit.
“Our employees’ hard work and dedication are the backbone of this department. Residents may not always know exactly what they do but the fact that they help keep our community safe, healthy and accessible is a testament to the important contributions they make every day,” said DPW Director Ann Stillman.
The display will be located near the public parking garage (behind 501 Winslow St.) this Wednesday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
And for some fun back home, DPW has also created coloring pages, a maze and scavenger hunt.
At its May 7 meeting, the Board of Supervisors issued a proclamation designating May 19-25, 2024 as Public Works Week and recognizing the department’s many accomplishments.
At the County of San Mateo, DPW serves the unincorporated areas of the county, maintaining roads, sewers and streetlights just to name a few responsibilities. It also oversees the county’s two local airports in San Carlos and Half Moon Bay.
Need a sandbag during storm season? Visit DPW’s sandbags page to learn how to pick them up from one of DPW’s corporation yards. If you’ve ever visited one of the County’s more than 70 facilities — that’s over 4 million square feet of office buildings, garages and much more — give DPW’s Facilities Division a thank you for the polished floors, clean windows and all they do to maintain and operate them.
Much of DPW’s work may go quietly unnoticed but public works staff illustrate this year’s theme of “Advancing Quality of Life for All” by:
- Designing and managing public infrastructure;
- Serving as a first responder in natural disasters like flooding and landslides;
- Reviewing maps and performing field surveys;
- Rehabilitating airport runways and creating a free STEM aircraft building program for teens;
- Keeping the County’s buildings clean and functioning;
- Providing sewer collection services in 10 districts and water service in two.
Learn more about the Department of Public Works at https://www.smcgov.org/publicworks
Michelle Durand
Chief Communications Officer
mdurand@smcgov.org