Razi Hosseini oversees an important part of the municipal government of San Antonio, Texas: public works. It involves the building and maintenance of roads, bridges, sidewalks and drainage, along with building and renovation of fire stations, parks and libraries.
The San Antonio Department of Public Works consults extensively with affected communities before embarking on new projects. It also recognizes and respects the people ultimately paying the bill: taxpayers.
“We always put the community’s needs upfront because we are really just managing their project; it is their project at the end of the day.”
“We always put the community’s needs upfront because we are really just managing their project; it is their project at the end of the day,” Hosseini, Director/City Engineer of the Public Works Department, tells The CEO Magazine.
“As the taxpayer, they are paying for the roadways, sidewalk construction and maintenance of traffic signals.”
Bond Vote Validation
All city governments require public works departments to carry out the mundane but essential task of building and maintaining infrastructure. Hosseini wants to do it efficiently while focusing on safety and respecting the taxpayer.
A professional engineer by training and a land surveyor, Hosseini has spent more than three decades in the San Antonio municipal government – now overseeing the public works department and its US$137 million budget in 2024 for repairing streets and sidewalks.
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He takes special pride in public approval for bond programs undertaken by the city every five years. The bond raised US$1.2 billion for 183 projects in 2022. Voters approved this with more than 70 percent support.
The challenge is vast in San Antonio, America’s seventh most populous city, which is famous for its River Walk and being home to the Alamo. It boasts 6,760 kilometers of roadways and more than 1,400 signal lights – in addition to sidewalks, bike paths and an underground drainage system.
Under Hosseini, innovation – especially digitization – has been at the forefront of the Public Works Department, which has moved ahead on digitization with its traffic lights. The signals now have battery backup to avoid outages during power failures. They also include sensors to gauge the traffic coming in each direction and detect pedestrians.
“We are very strong on resiliency because that’s where we can make a big difference.”
AI is also being incorporated in the design process of city projects. An example, Hosseini says, is designing the city’s drainage system to withstand a 100-year event, to make sure it is not flooded.
“We are very strong on resiliency because that’s where we can make a big difference,” he says.
A commitment to ESG principles goes together with innovation in San Antonio. Hosseini points to requirements for contractors to incorporate recycled materials in projects and carry out recycling in its work for the city. Other initiatives include constructing low-energy buildings, installing lighter color roofing and providing bike racks.
Even with concrete, the city is experimenting with a lighter color coating to reflect heat. It’s also focusing on landscaping and planting trees to provide more shade and improve air quality.
“We do very high efficiency installations and whatever is really available, we use it,” Hosseini says.
Being Available
As a manager, Hosseini leads by example. He labored from the office daily during the COVID-19 pandemic – even during its darkest days as staff worked remotely.
“I believe you have to be available for staff providing, guiding and making sure they understand you are available for them,” he says.
Hosseini instils the ethos of ‘I’m not your boss’ with staff. He sees himself as more of a big brother and believes that people are more productive when they’re comfortable.
“I seek their input because a lot of time they have better ideas than I do,” he says.
“The challenge is, how do you instil that from a director level and how do your team underneath you live these core values?”
He also always tells them to find a way to assist the community when they’re asking something.
“It is an issue for the resident. It may not be a big deal for us because we do that every day, every week, every month. But it must be an issue for them because they’re calling us,” he says.
Hosseini promotes integrity in the department, too – with staff and suppliers. The city looks for integrity in its tendering process and has found it in firms such as legendary San Antonio builder E-Z Bel Construction.
“There are a number of core values that the department lives,” Hosseini says. “They are integrity, teamwork, innovation and professionalism.
“The challenge is, how do you instil that from a director level and how do your team underneath you live these core values?”
