Thu-Loan Dinh Named Assistant Commissioner of Infrastructure Design

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Thu-Loan Dinh Named Assistant Commissioner of Infrastructure Design

To oversee $4 billion portfolio including cutting edge coastal resiliency, green infrastructure and cloudburst protection programs

Ian Michaels, michaelia@ddc.nyc.gov, 646-939-6514

(Long Island City, NY – March 3, 2023) Commissioner Thomas Foley of the NYC Department of Design and Construction (DDC) announced today that Thu-Loan Dinh has been named Assistant Commissioner of Infrastructure Design, where she will oversee an annual capital program comprising more than 120 capital projects and valued at approximately $4 billion.

Assistant Commissioner of Infrastructure Design Thu-Loan Dinh

Assistant Commissioner Dinh was previously Director of Design for DDC’s Coastal Resiliency Program, where she was responsible for a $2 billion portfolio of cutting edge coastal protection projects including East Side Coastal Resiliency (ESCR) and its companion project Brooklyn Bridge-Montgomery Coastal Resiliency (BMCR). Together the two projects are creating a 3.2-mile-long flexible flood barrier on the east side of Manhattan from the Brooklyn Bridge up to East 25th Street, protecting more than 150,000 residents from future tidal flooding and coastal storms while enhancing numerous parks and open space areas with better recreational opportunities.

In her new role, Assistant Commissioner Dinh will continue DDC’s traditional duties installing new water mains and sewers for the NYC Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) while also building streets, sidewalks and new public plazas for the NYC Department of Transportation (DOT). She will also continue work in vital new programs in DDC’s Infrastructure Division related to coastal resiliency and green infrastructure intended to reduce the effect of cloudbursts on City neighborhoods.

“Thu-Loan Dinh has extensive experience in our massive coastal protection programs, one of the fastest growing parts of our infrastructure portfolio, where she has shown remarkable technical and management ability while also empathizing with the needs of local residents as we expand recreational access in their communities,” said DDC Commissioner Thomas Foley. “We welcome her expertise as she tackles new challenges related to stormwater management and DDC’s more traditional role building streets, sewers, water mains and public plazas.”

“In this new role I intend to use advanced engineering to build resilient and sustainable infrastructure that will serve New Yorkers well for decades, anticipating future events and addressing them proactively,” said Assistant Commissioner Thu-Loan Dinh. “Our plazas, roadways, green infrastructure and more should be simple yet complex enough to allow for modifications to be made over time as we continue to understand the impacts of climate change in our communities.”

Assistant Commissioner Dinh is a licensed professional engineer in the State of New York and holds a B.S. in Civil Engineering from the University of California, Irvine, where she specialized in environmental hydrology and water resources. She has been at DDC since January 2017, where in addition to her work on ESCR and BMCR, she also has contributed extensively to future coastal resiliency projects intended for Red Hook, Brooklyn as well as to protect Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan.

Prior to coming to DDC, Assistant Commissioner Dinh was a Project Manager for The RBA Group in New York, where she managed projects including DDC’s work to improve drainage and street conditions in Broad Channel, Queens. Prior to that she held various engineering jobs in California and also interned in the Public Works Department of Newport Beach, CA.

About the NYC Department of Design and Construction
The Department of Design and Construction is the City’s primary capital construction project manager. In supporting Mayor Adams’ long-term vision of growth, sustainability, resiliency, equity and healthy living, DDC provides communities with new or renovated public buildings such as firehouses, libraries, police precincts, and new or upgraded roads, sewers and water mains in all five boroughs. To manage this $15.5 billion portfolio, DDC partners with other City agencies, architects and consultants, whose experience bring efficient, innovative and environmentally conscious design and construction strategies to City projects. For more information, please visit nyc.gov/ddc.