Chesterfield’s Department of Public Services Receives 100th APWA Accreditation

Chesterfield’s Department of Public Services Receives 100th APWA Accreditation

The Chesterfield, Missouri Department of Public Services has recently become
the 100th agency in North America to be awarded the prestigious status of Accreditation by the American Public Works Association (APWA). The APWA Accreditation program recognizes public works agencies that meet or exceed the national requirements of the management practices, established through industry standards, as contained in the Public Works Management Practices Manual. The APWA Accreditation plaque will be presented to the Department of Public Services at the Chesterfield City Council meeting at 7:00 p.m. on Monday, June 15, 2015, at the Chesterfield City Hall, 690 Chesterfield Parkway West, in Chesterfield, MO. 63107.

The City of Chesterfield’s Department of Public Services, comprised of the Public Works Division, the Planning and Development Services Division, and the Parks, Recreation, and Arts Division, began formally working towards Accreditation in January, 2012.

Chesterfield’s Department of Public Services received full compliance in 356 of the 362 applicable areas of practice. “We are thrilled to be the 100th agency in North America, and the first in the St. Louis metropolitan area, to be accredited. Achieving APWA Accreditation shows we have dedicated all of our divisions to concepts of improvement and in-depth self-assessment of Department policies, procedures and practices. The heroes of this prestigious APWA award are the Public Services staff whose mission is to provide services and programs that contribute to making Chesterfield a great city,” said Chesterfield Director of Public Services, Michael O. Geisel.

 

















The City of Chesterfield’s mission is “maintaining a strong, vibrant community that encourages interaction among residents, businesses and civic organizations, which is accomplished through ongoing innovative approaches to community and neighborhood planning,” said Accreditation Manager, James A. Eckrich. The Department of Public Services is responsible for all public infrastructure including public streets, sidewalks, city owned buildings and facilities, vehicles and equipment, engineering design, construction management and inspection, as well as the Capital Improvement Program.

For the City of Chesterfield’s Department of Public Service’s Accreditation review, a team of public works professionals from Mohave County, AZ; Greeley, CO; Cherry Hills Village, CO; and Kansas City, MO, completed a thorough evaluation of operations during their May, 2015 site visit. “It’s great to have the Chesterfield Department of Public Services reach full compliance with their practices. I commend their continued and renewed commitment to the detailed review of the agency’s policies and procedures,” said APWA Director of Accreditation, Ann Daniels.

The Chesterfield Department of Public Services has the distinction of being the 100th Accredited Agency in North America and joins Columbia, Lee’s Summit, Grain Valley, Belton and Springfield as Accredited agencies in Missouri.

For more information about Chesterfield’s Department of Public Services, contact Director of Public Services Mike Geisel at mgeisel@chesterfield.mo.us, or Accreditation Manager, James Eckrich at jeckrich@chesterfield.mo.us. For more information about APWA Accreditation, please contact APWA Director of Accreditation, Ann Daniels at adaniels@apwa.net. For APWA media queries, please contact Laura Bynum, APWA Media Relations and Communications Manager at lbynum@apwa.net.

About APWA
The American Public Works Association (www.apwa.net) is a not-for-profit, international organization of more than 28,500 members involved in the field of public works. APWA serves its members by promoting professional excellence and public awareness through education, advocacy and the exchange of knowledge. APWA is headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri, has an office in Washington, D.C. and 63 chapters in North America.