[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 74 (Monday, May 7, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E974]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               HONORING DAVID KNIGHT UPON HIS RETIREMENT

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                          HON. LYNN C. WOOLSEY

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                          Monday, May 7, 2007

  Ms. WOOLSEY. Madam Speaker, I rise today to commemorate the impending 
retirement of David Knight as the Sonoma County Director of 
Transportation and Public Works, and to celebrate the time he has spent 
as a public servant for the people of the County. Dave has been 
Director of the Department for over 4 years, following a 10-year tenure 
as Deputy Director and has been with the Department for a total of 28 
years.
  During Dave's time with the Department, Sonoma County has changed in 
many ways, and many of the improvements we have seen have been 
accomplished with his valuable guidance and leadership. When he first 
arrived at the County in 1979 as a young transportation planner, Dave 
was tasked with developing a new transit system. I was pleased to work 
with Dave to help bring sustainable and environmentally sound 
transportation programs and projects to our community. With Dave's 
help, Santa Rosa's bus fleet has evolved from one with just a few, 
diesel buses, to a fleet that is entirely powered by Compressed Natural 
Gas. It is still one of a relative few fleets in the State that are 100 
percent alternatively-fueled. While the need for a cleaner environment 
and energy independence has been apparent to most of us for some time, 
few transit agencies have been as responsive in addressing these 
imperatives, as has Sonoma County Transit under Dave's leadership. And 
now, the County is beginning to use methane gas captured at a County 
landfill to power County cars with the hope that it may one day be a 
source for our buses and other fleet vehicles.
  That Dave has been a forward-thinking leader in public works can be 
evidenced in other ways, as well. Along with Marin County officials, 
Dave and other Sonoma County leaders recognized the benefits of public 
ownership of the Northwestern Pacific Railroad right-of-way; worked 
years ago to get it into public hands before its cost skyrocketed, and 
this corridor will almost certainly now be used to operate the SMART 
(Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit) rail system which will relieve 
congestion, clean the air, and improve the quality of life of all those 
who must now depend on the horribly congested Highway 101.
  And under Dave's stewardship, a network of intermodal facilities and 
park and ride lots have been built that are also enhancing transit and 
car-pool opportunities for the citizens of Sonoma County, and in so 
doing, relieving congestion on Highway 101.
  That Dave is among the nation's more innovative municipal public 
works directors would come as no surprise to those who know him. He 
received a masters degree in Urban and Regional Planning and was an 
early advocate of sustainability, which he defines, as well as anybody 
I've heard, as ``making sure that what we do today doesn't reduce 
opportunities for people in the future.''
  Sonoma County has been fortunate that David Knight has spent most of 
his career working closely with our Board of Supervisors in helping to 
fashion and implement so many municipal improvements. We will miss him, 
but know that along with Pat, his wife of 28 years, he will enjoy an 
active retirement residing in the County and continue to contribute to 
the civic fabric that makes Sonoma such a wonderful place to live and 
work . . . thanks to Dave!

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