When Rich Baier came to Alexandria in 2000, the city had few bike lanes and no BikeShare. Monroe Avenue Bridge was a twisted jag that created gridlock on Jefferson Davis Highway. The idea of dedicated lanes for transit would have seemed alien. Now the longtime director of the Alexandria Department of Transportation and Environmental Services is stepping down to take a position as director of public works for Sumpter County, Fla.
"It's bittersweet," said Baier, who is paid $167,000 a year here in Alexandria. "My parents will be an hour and a half away, but it's hard because my kids grew up in Alexandria."
Since Baier was first hired in 2000, Alexandria has doubled its recycling rate from 25 percent to 50 percent. City leaders say that's largely because Baier worked to make recycling a priority. He also brought pedestrian countdown signals to Alexandria, the first city in the region to have that technology. Later this week, as he says goodbye to the city, Baier will take part in cutting a ribbon on the region's first dedicated lanes, a new project that connects Braddock Road to Crystal City.
"There are probably more people that have Rich Baier's personal cell phone number than any other department head in the city," said Deputy City Manager Mark Jinks. "It's because he gave it to them, and he said if you have an issue you call. He didn't always agree, but he was always available."
A NATIVE OF Pittsburgh, Baier took an interest in roads as a college student at the University of South Florida. While studying civil engineering and mechanics, he started working with Professor Myron Haden on something called "cathodic protection." Essentially, that's a process of using a sacrificial metal to take the pounding abuse from Florida saltwater. Baier said Haden made the classes interesting, and it sparked an interest he maintains today.
"I remember Richard as a student who was very personable and inquisitive," said Haden, who now runs an engineering firm in Tallahassee. "He was a pleasure to have in class and a pleasure to have involved in the professional societies."
By the time Baier got a master's degree in industrial engineering, he was already working at the Florida Department of Transportation. He eventually worked his way up to becoming a division chief, then took a job with the city of Clearwater. Then, in January 2000, the city of Alexandria hired Baier and the rest, as they say, is history.
"Sure I didn't agree with him about everything," said Yvonne Weight Callahan, former president of the Old Town Civic Association. "But my garbage was always picked up by competent people."
ASKED ABOUT his memories of Alexandria, he said he enjoyed sparring with council members on the dais and working with civic leaders in the streets. He acknowledged that he was sometimes the focus of bitter commentary on everything from pollution to bike lanes. But when he looks back, Baier said in a cell phone interview from Florida this week, he does not recall the complaining and the bad times. Instead, he thinks of a city where people care enough to complain.
"Alexandria is really unusual because people get involved in and they stay involved," said Baier. "They give years of their lives to projects and programs."