ARPA Awards

The Loulan and Nordberg Awards

George R. Loulan Award

Criteria

The George R. Loulan Award recognizes the efforts of a community leader active primarily in the private sector who has supported the efforts of ARPA, or goals which are also supported by ARPA, and whose involvement also meets the following criteria:

  • The candidate must be a vocal advocate of intercity, intra-state, or urban passenger rail service, as evidenced by one or more guest columns, letters to the editor, presentations, or speeches attributed to the candidate.
  • Vocal advocacy by the candidate must take place within the twelve months preceding the selection of the Award recipient.
  • The vocal advocacy and/or other pro-rail activities of the candidate must have been carried out in a manner directly impacting — or intended to directly impact — Arizona.

Background

George R. Loulan, 1913-1997, was one of the founders of the Arizona Rail Passenger Association and of our predecessor, the Rail Passenger Association of the Southwest. He was an active member of these associations for eighteen years and was ultimately designated a life member by the ARPA Board of Directors. For many years, George served as a de facto executive director of the association, and performed an essential role in publicizing our activities, growing our membership, fundraising, and consensus building with respect to issues such as regional rail and commuter rail, the promulgation of which have become principal goals of ARPA.

Past Recipients

2004
Peter Robbins, CEO, Sierra Madre Express
2003
L.S. “Jake” Jacobson, President and CEO, Copper Basin Railway
2002
Old Pueblo Trolley, Tucson, Arizona
2001
Dave and Linda Durbano, Verde Canyon Railroad
2000
William J. Post, Arizona Public Service
1999
Max Biegert, C.E.O., Grand Canyon Railway
1998
Jerry Colangelo, CEO, Phoenix Suns
1997
Eddie Basha, CEO, Bashas’ Supermarkets

Byron A. Nordberg Award

Criteria

The Byron A. Nordberg Award recognizes the efforts of a community leader active primarily in the public sector who has supported the efforts of ARPA, or goals which are also supported by ARPA, and whose involvement also meets the following criteria:

  • The candidate must be a vocal advocate of intercity, intra-state, or urban passenger rail service, as evidenced by one or more guest columns, letters to the editor, presentations, or speeches attributed to the candidate.
  • Vocal advocacy by the candidate must take place within the twelve months preceding the selection of the Award recipient.
  • The vocal advocacy and/or other pro-rail activities of the candidate must have been carried out in a manner directly impacting – or intended to directly impact – Arizona.

Background

Byron A. Nordberg, 1936-1997, was for may years an active member of the Arizona Rail Passenger Association and the Rail Passenger Association of California. A resident of Southern California, he was a principal in Nordberg Herzog & Associates, a transportation consulting firm which advocated the regional rail system that ultimately became Metrolink. Later he was a marketing representative for UTDC, the predecessor company of Bombardier, which built Metrolink’s cars, and for Metrolink itself. As a consultant, he provided a wealth of material pro-bono to ARPA, and assisted ARPA in Arizona displays of UTDC equipment. The data and the displays have proved essential to our making credible presentations to Arizona officials and business leaders.

Past Recipients

2004
Neil Giuliano, Former Mayor of Tempe
2003
Congressman Ed Pastor, Fourth Congressional District
2002
Skip Rimsza, Mayor, Phoenix, Arizona
2001
Ken Driggs, Regional Public Transportation Authority
2000
Peggy Bilsten, Phoenix City Councilwoman.
1999
Jack Tevlin, Phoenix Deputy City Manager
1998
Mary Peters, Director, ADOT
1997
Lela Steffey, State Representative

The ARPA Award Process

Nomination

  • Any ARPA board member or officer may nominate a candidate for these awards at an official board or executive committee meeting. All such nominations shall be documented by the secretary or executive director.
  • Any ARPA member in good standing may submit a written nomination of not more than 300 words documenting the specific achievements of the candidate, the promotional skills of the candidate, his or her accomplishments in the twelve months preceding said nomination, and other comments.

Selection

An awards committee appointed by the executive committee shall choose the recipient from the list of nominees by evaluating each in the context of the criteria specified above and determining which nominee most closely meets the greatest number of these criteria. The final selection of the candidate shall be approved by the board of directors by telephone poll, or, timing permitting, at the next scheduled meeting.

Presentation

The award will be presented to the recipient at a late Autumn event such as an open house or annual dinner.