After three years leading AECOM’s New York design and consulting operations, Chris Ward is leaving.
It seems that Ward’s position as executive vice president and chief executive of the firm’s New York design and consulting services business group is being eliminated, since his responsibilities will be taken over by an AECOM executive in Boston.
Crain’s first reported Ward’s departure on Tuesday. Ward told The Real Deal in an email that his leaving was part of an abrupt “downsizing” at the company. He’s not sure where he’s headed next.
A spokesperson for AECOM said in a statement that Ward’s last day will be Sept. 30.
Ward joined AECOM in 2015, where he oversaw the firm’s transportation, wastewater, environment, power and architectural services in New York and New Jersey. The role tapped into his extensive experience with infrastructure from previous roles as the executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and as the Bloomberg administration’s commissioner of the Department of Environmental Protection. While at the Port Authority, he oversaw the redevelopment of the World Trade Center site.
In 2016, Ward pitched an idea to build a 45 million-square-foot development in Red Hook that would include 45,000 new apartments. The plan called for the extension of the 1 train and the redevelopment of the Red Hook Terminal. Earlier this year, AECOM opened a new office nearby in Industry City.