Employee news
New employees
Duane Lillyblad
Metro State Aid is pleased to welcome Duane Lillyblad to the construction unit, backfilling the contract specialist position left vacant by Kyle Puent, who has taken a project manager position with the federal aid unit. Duane will focus his efforts on construction and contract oversight in the Metro District on projects let by our local partners. Some of his duties will include: attending preconstruction conferences and weekly meetings, reviewing and approving change orders, answering contract administration and construction questions, materials reviews, permit compliance, final inspections, and training.
Duane brings over 23 years of experience in construction and contract administration, surveying, and design. He's worked for the Minnesota DNR, Ramsey County Public Works, MnDOT, and a private land surveyor. Duane earned an associates in civil technology and land surveying from the Dunwoody Institute. In addition, he served in the US Navy.
In his free time, Duane enjoys spending time with his family in the outdoors, and coaching youth sports.
Sarah Braaten
Metro State Aid welcomes Sarah Braaten to the State Aid team. Sarah is replacing Cindy Yost, as the Metro District State Programs Manager. Sarah comes to MnDOT from the Teachers Retirement Association, where she was the member benefits supervisor. Sarah will soon be graduating with a master’s degree in public administration this December.
Sarah and her husband love German Shepherds and have a nine-year-old pup (Ozzy) and a three-year-old pup (Lucy) Sarah enjoys cooking for family and taking trips up north in her camper. She is excited for her new role and looking forward to contributing her best to the team.
Awards
Girma Feyissa
Girma Feyissa
State Aid would like to congratulate Girma Feyissa on receiving the 2024 Toward Zero Deaths (TZD) Engineering Star Award.
Girma Feyissa has been the State Aid Traffic Safety Engineer since 2020. To advance MnDOT’s core value of safety, he frequently presents at TZD conferences, county board meetings, and other roadway-safety-related workshops at the national, state, and regional levels.
Through collaboration with the Office of Traffic Engineering, the Department of Public Safety, Federal Highway Administration, and city and county partners, Girma has catalyzed notable safety improvements on local roads, resulting in approximately $20 million per year awarded to local agencies to reduce fatal and life-changing crashes. He also champions statewide efforts such as the County Road Safety Plans and local roads traffic safety regional workshops.