Richard Todd Girdler

*** ** **** ******

Topeka, Kansas 66606

785-***-****

ad1x9i@r.postjobfree.com

Current Career Goal

After thirty years of public service working in the transportation and land use planning fields, my career goal now is to obtain employment in the private sector in a sales, customer service or management position. I have always enjoyed the part of my planning career that involved dealing directly with the public and finding ways to address their issues. I believe I would enjoy a private sector job now and for the last dozen years of my work life before I retire. During my earlier years when still in school I did work in retail sales and customer service. I did enjoy that and was good at it. I believe I would like to use my active listening and problem solving skills in a job where I can match up a customer’s needs with products and services that meet those needs. I would also like to have a job where I can have the daily or weekly satisfaction of helping a customer find what they need and get that delivered to them. In my past planning career the results of my work were often not seen for years, and I would now like to do something different with more immediate feedback. I would also like to work in government again if the job involved helping customers on a daily basis. I do enjoy interacting with people directly and helping them so they are happy.

Employment History

Custodian 2022

Topeka-Shawnee County Public Library

Topeka, Kansas

Responsibilities: working on a team within the Maintenance Department to keep the library clean and well maintained.

COVID Screener 2021-2022

Allied One Source-KDHE

Topeka, Kansas

RESPONSIBILITIES: working on a team to administer PCR COVID Test to the public at drive-up and walk-up locations.

Maintenance 2 2017-2021

Topeka Public Schools

Hummer Sports Park

Topeka, Kansas

RESPONSIBILITIES: working as a crew member to maintain and clean various facilities used for football, soccer, baseball, softball, track & field, swimming & diving and special outdoor events.

Substitute Teacher 2015-2017

USD 501 Topeka Public Schools

Topeka, Kansas

RESPONSIBILITIES: working as a substitute teacher of all subjects for grades Kindergarten-8th Grade and for Social Studies and English for grades K-12 as requested and available

MPO Senior Transportation Planner 2008 - 2015

Lawrence-Douglas County Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO)

Lawrence, Kansas

RESPONSIBILITIES: acting as the senior MPO staff person and running the operations of a small one-county MPO, administration of the region's Consolidated Planning Grant for MPO operations, managing the regional transportation planning process and coordinating that process with local land use planning activities, creating budgets and quarterly billing reports and progress reports for the MPO program, many other activities related to MPO work.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS: managed the restoration of the Lawrence MPO to a state of good standing with KDOT and USDOT officials, re-designated the MPO to have a composition of mostly local elected officials, improved and updated several MPO documents (Transportation Improvement Program, Unified Planning Work Program, Metropolitan Transportation Plan, Public Participation Plan, committee bylaws, Coordinated Public Transit-Human Services Transportation Plan, etc.), reviewed and commented on numerous traffic impact studies and site plans to note impacts on the region’s transportation system and to heighten the awareness of bike-pedestrian-transit concerns; many other improvements to the MPO.

MPO Manager/Transportation Planner/Comprehensive Planning Manager 1998 -2008

Metropolitan Topeka Planning Organization (MPO)

Topeka, Kansas

RESPONSIBILITIES: managing the regional transportation planning process and conducting that process in conjunction with State and Federal transportation officials, performing duties as the chief MPO staff person and the only full-time MPO staff member in the region, other duties similar to the activities in Lawrence.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS: moved the MPO from a state of near-decertification to a state of improving health, rebuilt the MPO’s working relationships with the staffs at KDOT and the area’s USDOT offices, other improvements to the MPO operation in the Topeka Area.

Transportation Planner 1993 - 1998

City of Yuma – community development department

Yuma, Arizona

RESPONSIBILITIES: review of the regional land use plan and other comprehensive planning documents, coordination of City plans with regional and State plans, representing the City at various plan or project coordination meetings with State and/or Federal officials, preparing and making presentations about City plans to the City Council and various other groups, consulting with other City officials and developers concerning the land use and transportation impacts of proposed projects, coordinating City transportation and land use planning efforts with City engineering standards and capital improvement program development, writing and administration of grants, reviewing site development plans, participating in zoning code and other development related code revisions, other duties as assigned.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS: creation of the City’s first ever Bicycle Plan - 1995 Yuma General Plan-Bicycle Element (winner of Arizona APA Special Recognition Award and Arizona Bicycle Task Force Silver Spoke Award), creation of new General Plan - Circulation Element (Major Roadways Plan), approval of Transportation Enhancement Grants and State Parks Heritage Trails Grants, construction of the first phase of the East Main Canal Pathway.

Associate Planner – Transportation 1987-1993

Herkimer -Oneida Counties Transportation Study (MPO)

Utica, New York

RESPONSIBILITIES: coordination of regional transportation planning efforts with planning studies undertaken by the New York State Department of Transportation, development of the Regional Aviation System Plan for the Herkimer-Oneida Counties Region, development of the regional Transportation Improvement Program, development of regional transportation plans and related documents, processing abandoned railroad property reviews, preparation of transit studies, transit grant administration including the sub-allocation of operating assistance to four transit providers in the region, urban area traffic accident data analysis, and other various duties as assigned.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS: creation of the area’s first Regional Aviation System Plan, Suburban Route Analysis for the Utica Transit Authority, administration of federal transit grants, completion of Transportation Improvement Programs and Unified Planning Work Programs, and the identification of accident hotspots for different types of accidents.

Sales and Other Related Work Experiences

Throughout my life I have sold things ranging from newspapers and lawn mowing services in my youth, fast food and many items at a pharmacy counter during high school and college, lots of Boy Scout popcorn with my son, and ideas for bikeway projects in the form of grant proposals to the State DOT and USDOT staffs that resulted in millions of dollars of pathway building in both Arizona and Kansas. In addition to the sales activities, I have also stocked and inventoried various items in a pharmacy, department store and warehouse settings. I have also loaded and unloaded many trucks with items ranging from household furnishings to gas tanks used by hospitals and other industries. Park maintenance (mowing, building repair, playground repair, landscaping, etc.) are also part of my work history. More recently, I have obtained an insurance agent license which I will employ in the near future to start my own business as opportunities arise.

Certifications and Education

2017–present Insurance Agent (Life & Health) License - Kansas

2012–2017 Certified Transportation Planner – American Planning Association

1996–2017 American Institute of Certified Planners

1986 Master of Arts - Urban Studies/Specialization in Transportation Management and Policy

University of Maryland College Park, Maryland Research Assistant 3.8 GPA

1984 Bachelor of Science - Geography/Concentration in Urban Geography

Frostburg State College Frostburg, Maryland Magna Cum Laude various academic honors 3.7 GPA

Contact this candidate