Snohomish County engineer of Little Bear Creek project wins state award

EVERETT — It is not much of an exaggeration to say Doug McCormick knows the 1,600 miles of Snohomish County roads like the back of his hand.

A staple in Snohomish County’s public works department for over three decades, McCormick, the deputy director and county engineer, was recently named County Engineer of the Year by CRAB. That acronym stands for the Washington State County Road Administration Board and has nothing to do with crustaceans, but everything to do with engineering.

Before coming to the county, McCormick spent five years with the state Department of Transportation. Tuesday will mark 34 years of service here for McCormick. Many of the roads he drives are roads he had a hand in improving.

His kids sometimes ask him: “Dad, did you do this road?”

McCormick, 62, started off as a design engineer for the county, then worked his way up. He spent time in the county’s public works environmental section as well. That gave him some background for one of the more unique projects Snohomish County completed last year, at Little Bear Creek near Maltby. The county took 17 acres of an old animal farm and turned it into wetland. The project is expected to save taxpayers about $30 million on environmental mitigation for future public works projects.

The wetland conversion cost a little over $4 million.

The American Public Works Association named the Little Bear Creek project of the year in the “environmental under $5 million” category.

“In probably about less than a week’s time, we made the decision that we should move forward and pursue purchase of this property and push forward with this mitigation site,” McCormick said. “We saw the upward potential of what we could benefit. … It probably cost us a little bit more than what we thought at the time. But I think our benefits are also a lot higher than what we initially estimated.”

McCormick received the award at the annual conference of the Washington State Association of County Engineers in late June.

“I’ve worked with a lot of awesome people in my career,” county Public Works Director Kelly Snyder said. “And Doug happens to be one of the very best that I’ve gotten to work with.”

McCormick credited former Public Works Director Steve Thomsen and former Deputy Director Owen Carter as mentors. Carter died from cancer in 2017.

McCormick said both were key in teaching him how to deliver on big capital projects. A lot more goes into construction projects than simply building them, he added.

McCormick is on the board of directors for both CRAB and the Washington State Association of County Engineers. He also holds positions with the Puget Sound Regional Council and Snohomish County Tomorrow.

“Doug knows every mile of the county road network as well as the history of the projects, the people who live there, how the communities have changed, and what options should be considered to improve public safety and prepare for growth,” Snohomish County Executive Dave Somers said in a press release. “He continually challenges himself and his teams to determine the best, most creative way to move a solution forward in ways that are innovative, efficient, and cost effective, helping to make Snohomish County the best place to live and work.”

Jordan Hansen: 425-339-3046; jordan.hansen@heraldnet.com; Twitter: @jordyhansen.