Dec 2, 2007 12:39 pm US/Eastern
Director Of Public Works Dies From Stroke
BALTIMORE (WJZ) ―
Baltimore's Director of Public Works, George L. Winfield, has died at the age of 64. Winfield suffered a stroke three weeks ago.
Richard Sher reports Winfield's career with the Department of Public Works began in 1973. He was named the director of the 3,500-employee D.P.W. by then Mayor Martin O'Malley in January 2000.
Shirley Williams, Deputy Director of the Department of Public Works said, "He was a kind and gentle leader with a firm and steady hand. We share his loss, our loss, with his family and the citizens of Baltimore."
Winfield guided the agency through some of its most important and monumental projects.
Winfield was appointed on Jan. 4, 2000 and sworn in by Mayor Martin O'Malley on March 3, 2000. He was re-appointed and sworn in by O'Malley on April 6, 2005.
Among the agency's tasks, D.P.W. is responsible for trash removal, cleaning of streets, alleys, and other public spaces including the Inner Harbor, graffiti removal, maintenance of City buildings and its fleet of vehicles, providing drinking water and removing and treating wastewater for most of the metropolitan area.
Winfield pushed ahead the long-awaited $30 million renovation of Loch Raven Dam which garnered ten regional and national awards for excellence including "Project of the Year." He also spearheaded the $15 million renovation of Lake Montebello which was completed in August 2007. He was instrumental in the City's approval of a cost-saving landfill gas-to-energy project, a "green" initiative, between the City and the U.S. Coast Guard.
Under Winfield's leadership, the city's Spring and Fall clean-ups began and have continued to thrive. To date they have attracted over 65,500 community volunteers and have removed 18,000 tons of debris from city streets, sidewalks, alleys and lots.
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