John Saia

Mr. John Saia became the New Orleans District’s Deputy District Engineer for Project Management (DDPM) and Chief, Planning, Programs and Project Management Division in July 2001.  The New Orleans District has a staff of over 1300 and has a Civil Works program with an annual budget of over $500 million.  As the District’s senior civilian he advises the District Commander, serves as Chairperson of the Project Review Board, and as primary spokesman with sponsors and Congressional offices on projects and programs.

Mr. Saia has been with the Corps over 30 years and held the DDPM position in the Sacramento District for 6 years and Savannah District for 6 years.  He has extensive experience managing civil works, environmental, and military construction projects.  Other positions he has held include Civil Works Project Manager, Special Assistant to Chief of Planning, Chief, Plan Formulation, and Chief, Programs Management Office.

Mr. Saia graduated from the University of Miami, Florida, in 1968 with a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering.  He received a master’s degree in civil engineering from California State University, Sacramento, in 1976, through a Corps planning graduate study program.  In April 1988, he became one of the first civilian Deputy District Engineers in the Corps.

He is a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers, Society of American Military Engineers, and Project Management Institute (PMI).  He has written several published articles and made numerous presentations at professional meetings on project management.  In addition, he has served as Chairperson for Government Specific Interest Group of PMI.

Mr. Saia’s wife Elizabeth is from Mobile, Alabama.  She formerly worked at the Corps’ Mobile District.  They have four children and three grandchildren.

Natural Hazards in Coastal Louisiana Afternoon Panel Presentation

The Louisiana coastal wetlands, 20,000 square miles from Texas to Mississippi, protect an internationally significant commercial-industrial complex from the destructive forces of storm-driven winds and tides.   The degradation of the Louisiana coast makes us vulnerable, not unlike an incident under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.  Ironically, response to the degradation of our coast line entails the use of some of the same technologies as these incidents.  The lunch presentation will discuss the historical and future federal and state roles in the Louisiana Coastal Area Near-Term Ecosystem Restoration Plan.