We are pleased to announce Monte Reinders, PE of Jefferson County has been named the 2025 County Engineer of the Year.
Since 1967, the agency has presented the award annually to recognize outstanding performance in engineering expertise, leadership, community engagement and industry involvement. Mr. Reinders was nominated by Jefferson County Administrator Mark McCauley.
Mr. McCauley shared that “Monte is the consummate engineer and leader. Because of Monte, our Public Works Department punches way above its weight and accomplishes more work than any reasonable person could expect. I enthusiastically and heartily recommend [him for this award]. Jefferson County would not have the successful track record it has without him; we are so lucky to have him!”
During his 21 years of leadership in the Jefferson County Public Works Department, Mr. Reinders has successfully managed a variety of important county divisions and programs, often with very limited resources, and he has done “yeoman’s work securing grant funds for many capital projects" during his 21 years of leadership, according to Mr. McCauley. In addition to 400 miles of roads, 38 bridges, and approximately 2,500 culverts, Jefferson County is responsible for the Larry Scott Olympic Discovery Train and the Rick Tollefson Tri-Area Active Transportation Network.
Earlier this year, the county experienced a washout on the Upper Hoh Road, garnering regional attention and threatening potentially catastrophic economic impacts to the county’s local businesses and tourism. The county did not have adequate funds for the repairs and federal and state agencies were not coming through. Through Monte’s tireless efforts, Governor Ferguson was persuaded to free up funds for the repair, salvaging the tourism season and businesses on the western side of the county.
Spearheading the construction of a new wastewater treatment plant to serve the Port Hadlock Urban Growth Area was another recent demonstration of his effective leadership and stewardship. The critical project is an impressive engineering accomplishment, using a membrane bioreactor system to enable the county to increase the inventory of affordable housing. The project cleared the way for Habitat for Humanity to move forward on their plans to build 120-150 units of affordable housing in Port Hadlock, WA. Mr. Reinders assembled the project team from scratch, recruiting multiple retired engineers to return to serve on the key community project.
Additionally, Mr. Reinders has worked with the Board of County Commissioners to create a Transportation Benefit District in unincorporated Jefferson County to address insufficient funding, a significant accomplishment resulting in $1.1 million per year to strengthen the road maintenance program.
The award was presented during the Engineers Awards Banquet at the 2025 Washington State Association of County Engineers Annual Conference in Everett, WA. Nominations for the award were accepted across the state from county commissioners, councilmembers and the WSACE board of directors and, at the discretion of the review committee each year, may be divided into Rural and Urban categories. Jefferson County Commissioner Heidi Eisenhour was also in attendance to celebrate the presentation of the award to Mr. Reinders and another to Mr. Kuzma.
As I shared at the gathering of County Engineers from across Washington, this is one of my favorite parts of my job: recognizing county staff for their outstanding work in professional engineering. I was thrilled to present this honor to Monte. He was one of the first people I visited when I stepped into the county family and he was welcoming, incredibly knowledgeable, and I have been able to time and again rely on him for his thoughtful feedback, advice, and expertise in transportation policy. I have heard time and time again of his sterling reputation with his peers and have also experienced it firsthand - he is known, trusted and respected.
Please join me in congratulating Monte!
Jane Wall
Executive Director