City of New Orleans Forms Partnership with MWH to Accelerate Post-Katrina Rebuilding Effort.

NEW ORLEANS -- Mayor C. Ray Nagin today announced that the City of New Orleans has signed an agreement with MWH, a global engineering firm with a local presence since 1979, to manage and expedite the repair and reconstruction of police and fire stations, streets, recreation centers, court buildings, museums, libraries, parks and other projects.

"As I have said before, 2008 will be the tipping point in our recovery," said Mayor Nagin. "After two years of hard, strategic work, we are poised to undertake an unprecedented level of building activity. Our planning process is complete and our funding is beginning to materialize. It is now essential that we also put the staffing and expertise in place to ensure that these projects can move as efficiently as possible as we continue the most historic rebuilding effort in our nation's history. This partnership provides that vital support."

MWH will advise and assist the City in overseeing the assessment, rehabilitation, replacement and strategic improvement of City buildings and infrastructure following hurricanes Katrina and Rita. This work represents an integral step in the implementation of the Citywide Strategic Recovery and Rebuilding Plan, which is based on the Unified New Orleans Plan and the city's first phase recovery strategy based around 17 target recovery zones.

This partnership represents just one part of well over $1 billion in recovery projects that the City of New Orleans will be undertaking. This is in addition to at least $10 billion dollars worth of infrastructure investments expected to be made in the region by entities such as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans, the Recovery School District, the Louis Armstrong International Airport and others.

"MWH will provide the City of New Orleans with the project management services that are essential to the continued movement of our recovery," said Dr. Edward Blakely, executive director of the Office of Recovery and Development Administration. "They will enable us to continue the revival of our city that is so critical to our citizens and visitors."

MWH has extensive experience in the management of large, complex capital improvement projects for municipalities across the U.S. and around the world. For example, beginning in 2004 and culminating last year, MWH helped the City of Kansas City, Mo., complete approximately $1.2 billion in capital improvement projects, including major redevelopments such as Kansas City's downtown entertainment district, the Bartle Hall Convention Center Expansion, the Sprint Center arena and multiple police and fire stations. As a result of their efforts, the City of Kansas City and MWH were honored by the United States Conference of Mayors with the distinguished 2006 Award of Excellence in Public/Private Partnerships.

"We are extremely pleased to have this opportunity to continue helping the City of New Orleans and its citizens recover from the aftermath of hurricanes Katrina and Rita," said MWH President and CEO Bob Uhler. "We're committed to New Orleans and look forward to doing our part to help renew this great city by assisting in the delivery of high-quality projects as quickly and cost-effectively as possible."

MWH has been operating in New Orleans for nearly 30 years. The company has performed a variety of work for the city and other clients in the area, including the Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans. As manager for the Sewerage and Water Board's Sewer System Evaluation and Rehabilitation Program, MWH is overseeing more than 200 projects with a pre-Katrina value of $631 million.

In the immediate aftermath of hurricanes Katrina and Rita, MWH supported the City of New Orleans' emergency storm drain cleaning and debris removal efforts. MWH also inspected New Orleans' sewer and water distribution systems and facilities for damage.

About MWH

Headquartered in Broomfield, Colo., MWH is a private, employee-owned firm with more than 7,000 employees worldwide. The company provides water, wastewater, energy, natural resource, program and project management, consulting and construction services to industrial, municipal and government clients in the Americas, Europe, Middle East, India, Asia and the Pacific Rim. For more information about MWH, please visit the company's Web site at www.mwhglobal.com.