JP Robinette Joins Sites Project Authority as Engineering and Construction Manager
Robinette’s Addition Adds Momentum to the Advancement of the Sites Reservoir
Maxwell, Calif. – The Sites Project Authority Board of Directors is pleased to announce the selection of JP Robinette as the Engineering and Construction Manager for the Sites Reservoir Project. This is a new position in the project organization and one that will have growing responsibilities as the engineering for the roads and bridges, dams, and conveyance facilities associated with the project ramps up in the coming years. Mr. Robinette will assume this role in March.
JP Robinette is familiar to the Sites Project having worked as the Project Controls Project Manager for the past three years where he has held responsibilities for project operations functions, developed, and implemented financial and cost controls, prepared and revised project schedules, and led the development of the plan of finance for the project. In this new role, Mr. Robinette transitions to an owner’s role as an Authority Agent – Engineering and Construction Manager, which functionally reports to the Executive Director but contracts directly with the Sites Project Authority Board of Directors and operates as an independent contractor covering project departmental‐level responsibility. Mr. Robinette will be a member of the Senior Management Team for the Project and provide strategic and tactical leadership over the engineering and financing aspects of the Project.
In addition to his experience on the Project, Mr. Robinette served as a director with managerial and leadership responsibilities at Brown and Caldwell where has worked for the past five years as a senior project manager and principal in charge over several large public sector projects and programs.
“As a known and highly respected contributor to the project for several years, the Authority Board is confident this is the right choice for the project and with JP’s background and familiarity with the local community, we are further assured that the project engineering implementation will be mindful of local needs while achieving project performance goals,” said Fritz Durst, chairman of the Sites Project Authority.
The Project recently achieved the required level of feasibility as determined by the California Water Commission. Achieving this milestone means the project continues eligibility for $836 million of Prop 1 State funds. The project also recently reissued the revised draft environmental impact report, and under Reclamation’s leadership the supplemental draft environmental impact statement was issued for public review. In the coming year, the project is expected to progress with field studies and engineering evaluations to advance the design to a 30% design level by mid‐2023, achieve key inter‐agency agreements, and develop the final plan of finance.
“I’m excited to work more closely with the Authority to make this generational project a reality. Building Sites will require pairing a deep understanding of the engineering and business principles of project management with the ability to engage and listen to the people who know and work the land. I am thrilled to be a part of the team responsible for developing this infrastructure and building an organization to manage this asset for generations to come,” said incoming Engineering and Construction Manager JP Robinette.
Located 10 miles west of the town of Maxwell in rural Glenn and Colusa counties, the Sites Reservoir would be an off‐stream storage facility that captures and stores stormwater flows in the Sacramento River—after all other water rights and regulatory requirements are met—for release in dry and critical years for environmental use and for California communities, farms and businesses when it is so desperately needed.
Now more than ever, California needs to address its statewide water management challenges by implementing innovative solutions that address the need for a sustainable and affordable water supply. Sites Reservoir will provide a new water supply for both people and the environment, and significantly improve the state’s water management system in drier periods and restore much needed flexibility and reliability in the system.
Sites is an off‐river reservoir proposed north of the Sacramento‐San Joaquin Delta, where it would provide unique water supply and environmental benefits during dry and critical water years, and especially during extended drought periods. Additional information can be found at: https://sitesproject.org. Follow the Sites Project on social media @SitesProject.
