James Mitchell, president of Superior Paving Corporation in Gainesville, Virginia, has been named the next chairman of the National Asphalt Pavement Association.
Mitchell’s term will begin at NAPA’s Annual Meeting to be held January 23 through 26 in Scottsdale, Arizona. Mitchell has served in leadership roles with the association since 2017. His father, Bart Mitchell, also served as a NAPA chairman.
Jim Mitchell succeeds Jay Winford, president of Prairie Contractors in Louisiana, who has served since 2020, staying on an extra year to maintain stability during the pandemic when the group could not meet in person.
Other new officers for 2022-2023 are:
- First Vice Chair – Christian Zimmermann, New England Group president, CRH Americas Materials, Belmont, N.H.
- Second Vice Chair – Brady Meldrem, president, Norris Asphalt Paving Co., Ottumwa, Iowa.
- Secretary – Patrick Nelson, president and CEO, Lehman-Roberts Company, Memphis, Tenn.
- Treasurer – Robert Doucet, president, Barrett Industries, a Colas Company, Morristown, N.J.
In other NAPA news, the Executive Committee formally approved revised bylaws designed to prepare for the implementation of $1 trillion in federal infrastructure spending over the next five years. NAPA seeks to modernize its leadership structure to increase its input and impact on national and regional levels, the association says.
The main changes are to reduce its board of directors to 30 members. At times, the board has had as many as 80 members. The updated bylaws also establish an advisory council with representatives from Northeast, Southeast, North Central and Western regions.
“The new board is going to be able to move in a more nimble way and have more succinct conversations about challenges in our industry,” Mitchell says. “I’m really excited about the two-way conversation between the board and the four new regions, and their opportunity to influence and impact national issues on a regional level.”
The association will meet in person January 23–26 to install the new officers and hold educational and networking events designed to advance the asphalt pavement industry and the infrastructure law’s implementation. Attendees will also hear from keynote speaker Dr. Nido Qubein, president of High Point University in North Carolina. For more details and to register, go to AsphaltPavement.org/Annual.
