Kathleen is happy to be back in Placer County after studying Architecture and City Planning at Harvard University and the University of Pennsylvania. Since she started at PCTPA in June, Kathleen has been working with Senior Planner Aaron Hoyt on the Highway 49 Sidewalk Gap Closure Project. Her work on maps and graphics supports an application PCTPA is using to try and obtain competitive state funding through the Active Transportation Program (ATP). If PCTPA is awarded funding from this source, it would open up the opportunity to construct sidewalks along Highway 49 between Dry Creek Road and Interstate 80. These sidewalks would improve connections for pedestrians, cyclists, and drivers in the region.
As she settles into her new position, Kathleen is looking forward to working with residents to update PCTPA’s Regional Transportation Plan (RTP). Kathleen is excited about this opportunity as it allows the region to reflect and reevaluate transportation priorities for the next twenty years in order to create a system that works for the community.
“Looking back, I realize now that PCTPA’s projects have had an impact on my daily life,” said Kathleen. “I grew up in Roseville, and I will never forget how much time it used to take me to get onto I-80 before the Douglas and Sunrise Boulevard tunnel was built. I also remember how hard it used to be to cross Old Highway 65 when I visited friends in downtown Lincoln before the Lincoln Bypass was built.”
When asked about why she loves working on transportation projects, Kathleen says, “A lot of our public space is dedicated to transportation – our roads, sidewalks, train tracks, and highways really add up. Working on a transportation project means working to improve a huge part of people’s day-to-day experience in the places where they live. I feel really lucky to be at PCTPA during such an exciting time; many of the projects I get to work on are going to make such a big difference.”
In Kathleen’s free time she enjoys planting roses, vegetables, and herbs with her grandma in Sun City Lincoln Hills. She likes to watch home improvement shows on HGTV and put new skills to the test by gardening, crafting, and remodeling. She enjoys listening to podcasts like The Daily, This American Life, Planet Money, and My Favorite Murder. She is also an aspiring chef and has recently been cooking up Thai dishes. If you have any podcast or recipe recommendations, feel free to send them her way at khanley@pctpa.net. She has so many favorite places in Placer County that it’s hard for her to narrow it down to just one, but lately Loomis is her literal “go-to”. She loves visiting her friends’ property they’ve warmly named “The Farm.” It has shown her the beauty and uniqueness of Placer’s more rural parts.