Guillermo "Bill" Vidal (born July 19, 1951) is a Cuban American author and career civil servant who served as the 44th mayor of

Denver, Colorado Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

. Vidal served as deputy mayor under

John Hickenlooper John Wright Hickenlooper Jr. (; born February 7, 1952) is an American politician serving as the junior United States senator from Colorado since 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 42nd governor of Colorado from 2011 to 20 ...

until Hickenlooper resigned his position as mayor in order to serve as the

governor of Colorado The governor of Colorado is the head of government of the U.S. state of Colorado. The governor is the head of the executive branch of Colorado's state government and is charged with enforcing state laws. The governor has the power to either app ...

. Vidal was then sworn in as mayor on January 12, 2011 and served until July 18, 2011 when his successor Michael Hancock was sworn in. After he moved from deputy to mayor, Vidal did not run for the office, choosing instead to serve only until a new mayor could be elected. Following his service as Mayor of Denver, he became president and CEO of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Metro Denver.

Biography

:''Section source'' Bill Vidal is a native of Camagüey,

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

, where he was born to Roberto and Marta Vidal. He and his brothers arrived in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

in 1961 via

Operation Peter Pan Operation Peter Pan (or Operación Pedro Pan) was a clandestine exodus of over 14,000 unaccompanied Cuban minors ages 6 to 18 to the United States over a two-year span from 1960 to 1962. They were sent after parents feared that Fidel Castro and ...

. The brothers were sent to live at the Sacred Heart Orphanage in

Pueblo, Colorado Pueblo () is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Pueblo County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 111,876 at the 2020 United States Census, making Pueblo the ninth most populo ...

, and reunited with their family four years later. Vidal earned a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

civil engineering Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads, bridges, canals, dams, airports, sewa ...

from the

University of Colorado The University of Colorado (CU) is a system of public universities in Colorado. It consists of four institutions: University of Colorado Boulder, University of Colorado Colorado Springs, University of Colorado Denver, and the University o ...

. He is a registered

professional engineer Regulation and licensure in engineering is established by various jurisdictions of the world to encourage life, public welfare, safety, well-being, then environment and other interests of the general public and to define the licensure process thro ...

with over 30 years of experience in the

public sector The public sector, also called the state sector, is the part of the economy composed of both public services and public enterprises. Public sectors include the public goods and governmental services such as the military, law enforcement, inf ...

of state and city government.

Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT)

Guillermo Vidal worked 23 years with the

Colorado Department of Transportation The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT, pronounced See Dot) is the principal department of the Colorado state government that administers state government transportation responsibilities in the state of Colorado. CDOT is responsible f ...

. He started as a Highway Design Engineer, and worked his way up to the executive director position under Governor

Roy Romer Roy Rudolf Romer (born October 31, 1928) is an American politician who served as the 39th Governor of Colorado from 1987 to 1999, and subsequently as the superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District from 2000 to 2006. Family and e ...

. His career at CDOT included being the Region II District Engineer, Region VI Transportation Director, and 5 years as

executive director Executive director is commonly the title of the chief executive officer of a non-profit organization, government agency or international organization. The title is widely used in North American and European not-for-profit organizations, though ...

. As executive director he implemented a re-engineering effort of all project design and construction processes, completed the first statewide multi-modal transportation, and establishing the first air quality policy for the state.

Denver Regional Council of Governments (DRCOG)

From 1999 to 2004, Bill served as executive director of the DRCOG. Vidal completed the restructuring of the organization to reduce bureaucracy and increase energy and participation. He brought together a consensus among DRCOG's 50 members (9 counties; 41 municipalities) that unanimously adopted the 20-Year Transportation Plan and the Clean Water Plan. He directed the investment of a $40 million in regional projects, including the Central Platte Valley Light Rail Spur and

Denver Union Station Denver Union Station is the main railway station and central transportation hub in Denver, Colorado. It is located at 17th and Wynkoop Streets in the present-day LoDo district and includes the historic station house, a modern open-air train shed, ...

City and County of Denver

Bill Vidal moved onto the public works manager for City and County of Denver, which also including being the Deputy Mayor. During his tenure with Denver, Vidal negotiated a critical $50 billion, 20-year franchise agreement with

Xcel Energy Xcel Energy Inc. is an American utility holding company based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, serving more than 3.7 million electric customers and 2.1 million natural gas customers in Colorado, Texas, and New Mexico in 2019. It consists of four ope ...

. He also introduced an extensive street and bridge construction program for the city, and developed the city's first Storm Sewer and Sanitary Sewer Master Plans. With his strategic planning expertise at CDOT, he developed Denver's first Strategic Transportation Plan including a multi-modal transportation plan. He also oversaw the completion of construction and expansion projects for Denver's

Colorado Convention Center The Colorado Convention Center (CCC) is a multi-purpose convention center located in Downtown Denver, Colorado. At 2,200,000 square feet (total space) it is currently the 12th largest convention center in the United States. It opened in June 1 ...

and the

Denver Art Museum The Denver Art Museum (DAM) is an art museum located in the Civic Center of Denver, Colorado. With encyclopedic collections of more than 70,000 diverse works from across the centuries and world, the DAM is one of the largest art museums between ...

, these projects totaling over $500 million in costs.

References

External links

* Official webpag
About Denver Mayor Guillermo (Bill) V. Vidal

Guillermo "Bill" Vidal Papers at Denver Public Library
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vidal, Bill 1951 births Living people Colorado Democrats Mayors of Denver University of Colorado alumni Writers from Denver American politicians of Cuban descent Cuban emigrants to the United States Hispanic and Latino American mayors People from Camagüey State cabinet secretaries of Colorado 21st-century American politicians