The 2026 Trailblazers in Construction

Construction is not just a thriving industry in New York, it’s the key to addressing some of the state’s most pressing issues. It is at the core of every debate over the state’s housing crisis, with advocates calling for ways to increase the number of affordable housing units statewide. New York City area airports continue to be reimagined as the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey progresses on plans to make the city’s front door as attractive as possible – from revamping terminals to untangling the maze of roadways servicing John F. Kennedy International Airport. The Port Authority is also embarking on an ambitious new capital plan that will further modernize the downstate transportation network, with a new commuter bus terminal, seaports of the future, improved bridges and tunnels, and upgrades to the PATH system. Commuters will see other upgrades too, as work continues on the Gateway project to build a new rail tunnel under the Hudson River, which will one day lead to a newly redesigned Penn Station. City & State’s Trailblazers in Construction highlights many of the key players in this vital industry.

George Washington may have chopped down a cherry tree, but his bridge is nowhere near falling down. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey has been rehabilitating the iconic bridge, and Ahern Painting Contractors has been part of the multibillion-dollar project. Kieran Ahern, the company’s president and CEO since 2017, has ample experience fixing up famous New York City bridges – including the Brooklyn Bridge, the Bayonne Bridge and the Verrazzano Bridge. He has also served as president of the New York Structural Steel Painting Contractors Association.

With the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey embarking on an ambitious new capital plan, M. Rizwan Baig is helping the bistate agency carry out this massive endeavor. The Port Authority’s 12th chief engineer, Baig worked his way up from chief traffic engineer. He has played a role in numerous Port Authority projects, including the redevelopment of all three New York City area airports, the transition to cashless tolling and the construction of the AirTrain at Newark Liberty International Airport.

Yenisei Bell, an expert in architecture, engineering and construction, founded the design and construction management firm YGB Design Group in 2023. Bell has used her background in innovative design as an architect to establish herself as a leader in growing housing. She has worked on New York City’s Build it Back program and with the New York City Department of Design and Construction, the New York City School Construction Authority and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. She’s president of the Greater New York and Long Island chapter of the National Association of Women in Construction.

Leading the Laborers’ International Union of North America in New England and New York, Donato Bianco has redoubled the construction industry labor group’s engagement and advocacy efforts. Bianco launched LIUNA’s Laborers Rising program, spurring increased member involvement in union, political and community activity. He has also been driving a number of policy proposals, such as the state Roadway Excavation Quality Assurance Act of 2023, while also expanding LIUNA’s activity in the renewable energy sector and weighing in on state Department of Transportation budgets.

Michael A. Capasso’s C.A.C. Industries has had a hand in some of the largest and most defining construction projects in New York City in recent years, from Hudson Yards and the expansion of the Second Avenue subway to Battery Park resiliency projects and the East Side Coastal Resiliency Project. Capasso, who has built his firm into a major infrastructure and heavy civil construction contractor, has also transitioned C.A.C. to an employee stock ownership structure. He also serves on the U.S. Department of Transportation Advisory Board.

Before he became a labor leader, Sam Capitano started out mixing mortar. He’s a longtime member of Cheektowaga’s Laborers’ Local 210, where he was elected business manager in 2007 and saved its pension fund from insolvency after its assets were lost in the Bernie Madoff Ponzi scheme. He has served as a special international representative for the New England region for Laborers’ International Union of North America and leads the Upstate New York Laborers District Council. Capitano is also on the board of the Erie County Harbor Development Corp.

Since he took the reins of the New York City District Council of Carpenters last year, Paul Capurso has deepened the union’s impact – in the construction industry, on the campaign trail and in shaping public policy. A Staten Islander who worked his way up the union ranks, Capurso has recently backed job-creating casino projects while arguing that residents – not developers – should shape the future of New York City neighborhoods. He supported the OneLIC Neighborhood Plan, which passed last year. He’s also the chair of CCA Metro, which coordinates labor-management partnerships.

The New York City electrical contractor TAP Electrical Contracting Service, Inc., has served the region since 1969. Jeffrey Cardillo has guided TAP Electric through significant project delivery across New York City's transit infrastructure, including electrical work at Grand Central Terminal, 34th Street–Penn Station, and ongoing Boldyn Networks projects delivering wireless coverage across 281 subway stations. Cardillo, an industry veteran and a second-generation owner of TAP Electric, delivers complex electrical and communications systems. He also supports Make-A-Wish and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

A self-described “infrastructure nerd” Ali Chaudhry is the chief infrastructure development officer at Hornblower Group. Hornblower operates the NYC Ferry, which runs a growing transportation system across the city’s waterways. Chaudhry brings in-depth experience to Hornblower, having served as deputy secretary for transportation and deputy secretary for economic development under then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s administration. Among the projects Chaudhry has worked on in the public and private sectors include the Gov. Mario M. Cuomo Bridge and the redevelopments of LaGuardia Airport, John F. Kennedy International Airport and Penn Station.

The longtime business manager of International Union of Operating Engineers Local 14-14B based in Flushing, Queens, Edwin Christian in January took on another critical role as IUOE’s international chair. The veteran industry player, who represents operators of cranes and other major construction equipment, has been on IUOE’s board of trustees since 2021 and is also president of both the New York City Coalition of Operating Engineers and the New York State Conference of Operating Engineers. Christian has also served on the New York City Talent and Workforce Development Board.

Louis Coletti is one of the most knowledgeable construction experts in New York. The former head of the Building Trades Employers’ Association, Coletti remains very much in the construction policy mix as a senior adviser in Davidoff Hutcher & Citron’s government relations, construction law and real estate law practices. Coletti has shaped construction and capital process reforms, supported the emergency cleanup response to Superstorm Sandy, drafted legislation to create the New York City School Construction Authority and chaired building code amendment commissions for four mayors.

Representing more than 600 companies, John T. Cooney Jr. is a leading construction advocate in the Hudson Valley. The four-decade industry veteran is also a management trustee on multiemployer union benefits programs and joint labor-management funds, including the New York State Laborers-Employers Cooperation and Education Trust. He has called for more funding for the transportation capital program to mitigate rising costs due to inflation. He also serves on the boards of the Westchester County Association and Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress and is a treasurer of the New York Roadway and Infrastructure Coalition.

A widely respected government affairs professional, Charlie Diamond brings a wealth of experience as he engages with state agencies on regulatory and legislative matters affecting the construction industry. Diamond is a former member of the state Racing and Wagering Board who served as director of racing promotion and development for the state Gaming Commission and was a congressional aide earlier in his career. Diamond’s clients include American Rock Salt Company and Troy Sand and Gravel. He was instrumental in advancing the 2022 Buy American Salt Act, which encourages the purchase of locally mined rock salt.

James Eisenberg has spent nearly a quarter century at Urban American, a sponsor, owner and operator of multifamily properties active in four states, serving as the company’s president since 2023. Eisenberg, a U.S. Army veteran and graduate of Ranger School, has helped the New York-based real estate company renovate thousands of apartment units and upgrade the affordable housing supply. The company, which also operates in New Jersey, Colorado and Texas, is bullish on its real estate prospects in New York, citing opportunities to provide affordable housing to New Yorkers and strong investment opportunities.

If Mike Elmendorf had his way, every road and bridge in New York would be in good working order. Last fall, he joined Gov. Kathy Hochul to announce $800 million in new funding for the state transportation capital plan that should result in 2,100 additional lane miles of paving. Elmendorf is also focused on increasing safety measures in work zones and fully funding the SUNY capital plan. He is part of a coalition pushing Rep. Nick Langworthy’s bill to exempt federally funded projects from the state Scaffold Law.

Semiha Ergan is bringing artificial intelligence to the forefront of New York City’s construction, climate and building industries. The director of the Building Informatics and Visualization Lab at NYU’s Tandon School of Engineering, Ergan is building out an artificial intelligence and robotics toolkit for the city’s construction industry. The initiative includes an inaugural project through the New York City Smart City Testbed program to use an AI-driven drone and robotic inspection system to automate building inspection and support Local Law 97 compliance. She is associate chair of the school’s Department of Civil, Urban and Environmental Engineering.

John Evers is on a mission to bolster New York’s economy by investing in an efficient and effective transportation system. As the leader of the American Council of Engineering Companies of New York, an association of 300 engineering and related firms, Evers has defended the congestion pricing program in Manhattan and pushed for increased funding for surface transportation and mass transit in New York. Evers has also been addressing an engineer shortage via new workforce development and scholarship initiatives as well as advocating for work zone safety improvements and procurement reforms.

The first woman to lead the Subcontractors Trade Association, Felice Farber has been a key advocate on legislation affecting her 350 union subcontractor members, including a modification of the general obligations law to limit retainage to 5% in private construction contracts that was enacted late last year. She also spearheaded a technology expo and training and peer mentoring initiatives. Last year, she praised Gov. Kathy Hochul and state legislative leaders for passing a fully funded capital plan for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, saying it would create jobs and allow for more predictable work for subcontractors.

Rose Fathers is an expert in the conception and implementation of partnerships and programs to build workforce development pipelines in the construction industry. She’s the director of business services at Building Skills NY, a construction workforce development nonprofit that helps underemployed and unemployed New Yorkers get training and has landed jobs for more than 2,700 individuals. Fathers says that the organization’s employer partnerships and innovative mini hiring fairs benefit job candidates, along with the skills training offered by the organization.

Heather Fuhrman is on the front lines of the battle to protect lower Manhattan from the growing risk of severe flooding. Fuhrman, the senior vice president of design and construction at the Battery Park City Authority, is leading the North/West Battery Park City Resiliency Project, a key part of the Lower Manhattan Coastal Resiliency Project. She previously held leadership roles at Cumming Group and MNLA, where she worked on projects including Hudson River Park and the East River Esplanade.

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani kept on Michael Garner as the city’s chief business diversity officer, a role in which the veteran government official has been focused on awarding more contracts to minority- and women-owned business enterprises, or MWBEs, through the city’s procurement process. During his tenure in the Adams administration, Garner surpassed the city’s goal to have 30% of city contracts be awarded to MWBEs. During fiscal year 2025, New York City awarded $6.9 billion in contracts to certified MWBE firms, the most awarded in the program’s history.

As the leader of the Long Island Contractors’ Association for two decades, Marc Herbst has been a champion of infrastructure investment, workforce development and industry advocacy. Herbst, who previously served in the Assembly and was director of transportation planning at the state Thruway Authority, has been pushing for the state to include more Long Island projects in the Transportation Improvement Program, recently securing two key safety and congestion projects. He’s also president of the New York Roadway and Infrastructure Coalition.

Settlement Housing Fund is focused on developing new housing to address the homelessness crisis and to bring stability to families across the five boroughs. Since 2023, James Huang has led its construction efforts as the organization’s first director of construction, and he now oversees some 20 projects totaling over $800 million. The organization is also behind Coney Landing in Coney Island, its first supportive housing project that will help members of the LGBTQ+ community, and Melrose Concourse in the Bronx, which will include housing for formerly homeless families.

With the Metropolitan Transportation Authority embarking on the implementation of an ambitious $68 billion capital plan, Tamisha Lansiquot is in a pivotal position in the transit agency’s Construction & Development section. The 20-year industry veteran has made strengthening engagement between the MTA and the construction industry one of her top priorities, including raising performance standards. She is committed to expanding the opportunities for minority- and women-owned businesses to be a part of the capital plan. She has also digitized the performance evaluation program.

A woman-owned firm dedicated to serving the Bronx, Bronx Pro Group develops and manages buildings and rehabilitates distressed properties. Samantha Magistro leads Bronx Pro Group in a number of innovative development projects, including Melrose North, which includes 103 units reserved for chronically homeless people and survivors of domestic violence, and 1017 Home St., a former church converted into apartments for older adults. Magistro is also the board chair of the New York State Association for Affordable Housing, a prominent trade association representing the affordable housing industry.

Elisabeth Martin really loves books. The experienced architect in library design was formerly with MDA Design Group, where she collaborated with H2M on the expansion of the Oceanside Library in Nassau County. She oversaw library development and construction at the New York City Department of Design and Construction and served as director of planning, design and facilities for the Brooklyn Public Library. She is a member of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions’ Library Design Section and is a jury member of its Public Library of the Year Award.

A key leader at the transportation infrastructure firm Halmar International, Kevin Martin has driven some of the largest projects in the downstate region. He has brought his collaborative approach to Halmar’s work on the Second Avenue subway, the Penn Station Access project and the Long Island Rail Road’s third track expansion, as well as subway station upgrades to ensure Americans with Disabilities Act compliance. He has also helped win major airport contracts, including a partnership with Skanska on a $1.24 billion overhaul of roadways, utilities and the ground transportation center at John F. Kennedy International Airport.

Jim Mason Central and Western New York Regional Manager, North Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters

Jim Mason / James Mason Jim Mason climbed the union and construction ranks before taking on his new role as a regional manager for the North Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters. As president of Local 277 in Syracuse, Mason has represented carpenters’ interests in the negotiations to bring Micron to the region and is preparing for a doubling of the local’s membership with Micron’s construction of a major semiconductor manufacturing facility. Mason also is chair of NASRCC’s Carpenters Labor Management Program and a member of the board of Operation Oswego County.

Chris McDermott brings deep experience overseeing major capital projects to his work at AECOM. McDermott oversees a portfolio exceeding $40 billion at the civil engineering firm, including New York City’s borough-based jails, the New York City Housing Authority’s Comprehensive Modernization program and the Willets Point redevelopment in Queens. He has also worked on airport terminal redevelopments and the World Trade Center transportation hub reconstruction. McDermott is active with a number of industry groups, including serving as co-chair of the New York Building Congress’ Public Building & Procurement Committee.

When industry contractors, engineering associations, manufacturers and suppliers want to see changes to New York City’s plumbing codes, they know that April McIver will ensure it’s not just a pipe dream. The Plumbing Foundation City of New York’s executive director championed legislation that passed in the New York City Council last year and went into effect in February that requires a licensed master plumber or supervised journeyman to conduct gas piping inspections for buildings and makes other changes to crack down on unlicensed work.

As the vice president of operations at Skanska USA Civil, Jessica Miller is working on some of the largest infrastructure projects in New York. For the past year, Miller has been advancing design-build capabilities at Skanska and driving projects like the improvement of the Livingston Avenue Bridge, an Albany area rail bridge. She oversaw the historic demolition of the Kosciuszko Bridge connecting Brooklyn and Queens and is leading the $460 million Hunts Point Interstate Access Improvement Program, with the goals of improving traffic flow and air quality in the Bronx.

Jordan Morris is on a mission to set a new standard for efficiency, cost certainty and accountability in the New York City construction industry. In her role as chief operating officer of construction at Charney Companies, Morris is engineering a strategic shift to an in-house owner-builder model. She is applying this to the firm’s 175 Third St. project in Brooklyn, a 1,000-unit apartment development spanning 1.2 million square feet. The former Lendlease project executive has deep expertise in construction and developing innovative strategies to deliver projects.

Last year, Joshua Nelson was promoted to a new role overseeing ports and terminals in the U.S. at Hatch, a professional services firm specializing in mining, energy and infrastructure. Nelson, who has been at Hatch since 2017, is leading the design of Maryland’s Sparrows Point Container Terminal, which broke ground in May and will be the first new container terminal on the East Coast in decades. A veteran of the New York City Economic Development Corp., Nelson led EDC’s recently released Manhattan Cruise Terminal Master Plan.

Dwayne Norris is committed to expanding workforce development opportunities in the clean energy industry to underserved communities in New York. Through Soulful Synergy, which he co-founded and also serves as chief operating officer, Norris has brought vital training and employment opportunities to over 14,000 individuals and counting. Among the classes offered by Soulful Synergy are programs on clean energy work, safety guidelines and federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration requirements.

Joshua G. Oberman is a real estate and construction attorney in New York City and on Long Island, with a long career advising contractors, developers and homeowners. He’s a leading expert on New York Real Property Law 881, which allows for court-ordered licenses to access adjoining properties during construction. He has navigated a range of matters – commercial disputes, union negotiations, insolvency – on behalf of clients. He is a past president of the New York City Surety Association and serves on the board of the Construction Financial Management Association’s New York City chapter.

Paul Ochoa brings extensive experience in New York City’s operational and infrastructure agencies to his new role as commissioner of the Department of Design and Construction. He joined the department in May after spending nearly four years as executive deputy commissioner of the city Department of Transportation, where he oversaw its budget and $34 billion, 10-year capital plan. Ochoa has emphasized speeding up the Department of Design and Construction’s timeline for projects, his top goal at the agency. Ochoa also previously served as chief strategy officer for the city Department of Sanitation and director of city legislative affairs in the mayor’s office.

John O’Hare is the longtime leader of the Building Contractors Association, which represents unionized construction contractors in the New York City area. Last year, O’Hare helped unveil the HOPE/LIVES initiative to educate construction workers about the dangers of opioids and to place Narcan at job sites. The initiative was launched through the NYC Building & Construction Industry Safety Fund, a joint effort of the Building Contractors Association and the Building and Construction Trades Council of Greater New York that began in 2017. Last year, O’Hare applauded project labor agreements signed under the Adams administration.

Larry Pappas has seen Forte Construction Corp. expand its footprint as it delivers transit and other vital infrastructure projects across the New York City metropolitan area. Forte is a delivery partner for major governmental entities, including the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Amtrak and the New York City Housing Authority. Pappas has led accelerated company growth recently, tripling organizational capacity and contract volume while maintaining rigorous safety standards and execution. Pappas, a trained civil engineer who co-founded Forte in 2010, recently established a $100,000 scholarship fund at his alma mater, The Cooper Union.

As the leader of the New York Electrical Contractors Association, Peter Rescigno represents over 150 unionized electrical contractors in New York City, Westchester County and Fairfield County, Connecticut. Rescigno’s tenacious advocacy has ensured his members are involved in infrastructure projects large and small, including renovations at John F. Kennedy International Airport and LaGuardia Airport as well as the new JPMorgan Chase headquarters at 270 Park Ave. Priorities on his perennial legislative agenda include workforce development, worker safety and fair business practices. He’s also an effective negotiator, recently concluding talks with IBEW Local Union No. 3.

Following almost eight years as a member of the New York City Council, Carlina Rivera is now hyperfocused on affordable housing as leader of the New York State Association of Affordable Housing, a major trade association. A member of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s housing transition committee, Rivera has argued that preserving existing housing stock, zoning and providing wraparound services are essential to fulfilling the mayor’s ambitious housing agenda. Rivera notched a recent win when the state budget included SEQRA reforms that aim to streamline housing development.

As New York’s deputy secretary of state for planning, development and community infrastructure, Kisha Santiago oversees a number of grant programs that fund redevelopment in communities statewide. Among them is the Downtown Revitalization Initiative, which provides $10 million grants to smaller cities for downtown projects, and the NY Forward initiative, which is similar in design but focused on villages and smaller rural communities. She helped develop both programs, including in her previous role as assistant secretary for housing in the Cuomo administration, and so far the programs have disbursed $1.4 billion collectively.

BRAVO Group, a partnership between Velocity Architecture & Engineering Group and Bradford Construction Corp., is led by the noted construction executive Ehab Shehata. Building on Shehata’s background in the sector, BRAVO has been engaged in a number of high-profile projects across the New York City region. BRAVO has brought its architecture, engineering and construction management expertise to such projects as K-12 and higher education facility upgrades, developments at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, the Terminal One redevelopment at John F. Kennedy International Airport and the modernization of the Bronx Supreme Court’s elevators.

Anthony Villa was promoted to a new post last year as the Eastern New York regional manager for the North Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters, a 30,000-member labor union covering New York and New England. Villa continues to serve as president of Carpenters Local 290 on Long Island while expanding his scope to the Hudson Valley, Albany and Plattsburgh following the retirement of NASRCC veteran Bill Banfield. He’s also a delegate and executive board member with the Building & Construction Trades Council of Nassau & Suffolk Counties and the Long Island Federation of Labor.

A state Department of Transportation staffer for more than two decades, Stephanie Winkelhake plays a critical role overseeing the delivery of the agency’s multibillion-dollar capital program. Winkelhake, who rose through the ranks from a highway design engineer to chief engineer for the entire department, has sought to boost the ranks of civil engineers in the state, reaching out to high schools to promote civil engineering as a career path. Winkelhake has been involved with such projects as a new terminal at Watertown International Airport and an innovative Binghamton-area bridge using recycled glass waste as a cement alternative.

The 2026 Trailblazers in Construction

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