Bill Text: VA HJR159 | 2014 | Regular Session | Enrolled


Bill Title: Commending John E. Forrest.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Passed) 2014-01-23 - Bill text as passed House and Senate (HJ159ER) [HJR159 Detail]

Download: Virginia-2014-HJR159-Enrolled.html

HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 159
Commending John E. Forrest.

Agreed to by the House of Delegates, January 17, 2014
Agreed to by the Senate, January 23, 2014

WHEREAS, John E. Forrest, a devoted and influential public servant, is retiring from service to the Commonwealth from his most recent position as director of the Department of General Services' Division of Real Estate Services; and

WHEREAS, John "Ernie" Forrest's career with the Commonwealth spans over 43 years, including service to the Virginia Department of Highways (now the Virginia Department of Transportation) and the Department of General Services (DGS), interrupted only by a period when he was a small business owner; and

WHEREAS, as director of the DGS Division of Real Estate Services, Ernie Forrest has been responsible for overseeing management of the Commonwealth's diverse real estate portfolio, including transactional and strategic planning services that support the respective missions of all state agencies and make it easier for the private sector to conduct real estate-related business with the Commonwealth; and

WHEREAS, Ernie Forrest was instrumental in the planning and conversion of the Commonwealth's Real Property Management Program into today's independent Portfolio Management Program; and

WHEREAS, Ernie Forrest was named the first director of the Bureau of Real Property Management when it was formed under the DGS Division of Engineering and Buildings; and

WHEREAS, Ernie Forrest oversaw the writing and development of Directive One, the first Real Property Management Manual for the implementation of an organized method for the acquisition and disposition of the Commonwealth's real property, issued in 1984 and containing policies still largely followed today; and

WHEREAS, Ernie Forrest, during his multiple decades of service, has been instrumental in the planning, acquisition, or development of numerous real property projects throughout the Commonwealth, including resolving the Commonwealth's boundary between Loudoun County in Virginia and Jefferson County in West Virginia; and

WHEREAS, Ernie Forrest has also been a part of such projects as the assembling of properties along Broad Street near the seat of government for the new Library of Virginia; relocating the Commonwealth's Consolidated Laboratory at the Virginia Biotechnology Research Park and redeveloping the former site; handling historic properties such as Richmond's Main Street Station; acquiring privately owned rental space in order to relocate multiple state agencies at a substantial savings to the Commonwealth; and acquiring properties for higher education institutions; and

WHEREAS, Ernie Forrest has been a great steward of the Commonwealth's real estate assets; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly hereby commend John E. Forrest on the occasion of his retirement from the Department of General Services; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to John E. Forrest as an expression of the General Assembly's admiration for his loyal and lengthy service to the Commonwealth and best wishes for a happy retirement.

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