[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 143 (Monday, September 16, 2024)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E897]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





                HONORING THE LIFE OF WILLIAM TRAVIS, JR.

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. JARED HUFFMAN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, September 16, 2024

  Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today with Congresswoman Barbara Lee 
to honor William Travis (Travis) who passed away at the age of 81 on 
April 24, 2024. Travis was a leader in environmental conservation who 
spent decades supporting the preservation and health of the San 
Francisco Bay.
  Born and raised in Allentown, PA, Travis went on to study 
architecture at Pennsylvania State, earning an undergraduate degree in 
1967 and a master's degree in regional planning in 1970. His early 
career included a position as bay design analyst for the Bay 
Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC), developing the first 
master plan of the East Bay Regional Parks District, joining the staff 
of California Coastal Commission, and then returning to the Bay 
Conservation and Development Commission in 1985 as Deputy Director. In 
1995, he assumed the role of Executive Director, a position he held for 
16 years.
  During his tenure with BCDC, Travis served as chair of the Shell Oil 
Spill Litigation Trustee Committee, disbursing over $15 million to 
restore natural resources, and in the late 1990s, served a critical 
role in the public acquisition of 10,000 private acres of salt 
evaporation ponds on the bay's shoreline, which are now being returned 
to wetlands. Lending his expertise on sea level rise adaptation, Travis 
lead BCDC in 2011 to become the first state agency in the United States 
to develop regulations to combat sea level rise.
  Beyond his environmental work for the state, Travis was deeply 
involved in the East Bay community. He worked as a consultant for the 
Oakland Athletics, served as chair of Berkeley's Downtown Area Plan 
Advisory Committee, and lectured at the University of California, 
Berkeley. After retiring and receiving a Parkinson's disease diagnosis, 
Travis continued to lead the effort for a transit-oriented housing 
development at the North Berkeley Bay Area Rapid Transit Station. After 
a long campaign, the project will be breaking ground on 750 residential 
units in 2025.
  Travis was married to his wife, Jody, for 47 years. Together they 
raised their daughter, Katherine. Being her parent inspired the couple 
to write, Katherine's Hope, a memoir on international adoptions. Travis 
credits his passion for environmental preservation and stewardship in 
large part to his daughter and a hope for her future.
  Known for his serious and effective professionalism balanced by sharp 
wit and humor, and the breadth and depth of his environmental career, 
Travis was a tireless advocate for our environment and the health of 
future generations. His legacy in the Bay Area cannot be understated. 
Mr. Speaker, we respectfully ask that you join us in expressing our 
appreciation for his decades of good work and condolences to his family 
and friends.

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