Geoffrey S. Yarema, Chair of Nossaman's Infrastructure Practice Group, is a nationally recognized leader in infrastructure development and finance. He has helped pioneer innovative procurement, contracting, and financing structures for large public works projects throughout North America and has proven himself an essential advisor to public agencies seeking to make effective use of innovative forms of contracts including: design-build, design-build-operate-maintain, toll concession, availability payment, pre-development, and other kinds of public-private partnerships.
With three decades of experience in the field, Mr. Yarema has been sought out by more than 25 U.S. state departments of transportation and regional transportation agencies, frequently called upon to act as Special Assistant Attorney General on groundbreaking infrastructure projects with career-betting importance.
Mr. Yarema's work and prominence in the industry have been widely recognized and honored. In 2010 and 2011, Chambers and Partners recognized him as a leading lawyer nationally in the field of public-private partnerships, describing him as one of the "most influential attorneys in the business" and "the dominant player in PPP work in the USA." He served as a key commissioner, appointed by former U.S. Secretary of Transportation Mary Peters, to the Congressionally mandated National Surface Transportation Infrastructure Financing Commission, which released its final report in 2009. In 2008, the American Road and Transportation Builders Association named Mr. Yarema as the private sector individual who had contributed most significantly, over the last 20 years, to public-private partnerships in the U.S. transportation sector. Public Works magazine named him a "2007 Trendsetter" and California Lawyer magazine ranked him among the state's top 25 attorneys in 2000.
Representative Work
Texas Department of Transportation. Leads a team serving as Special Counsel on the largest PPP program in U.S. history, structuring procurement and contract documents, negotiating concession agreements and closing innovative financing arrangements (including securing the US Department of Transportation's largest TIFIA loan commitment to date) for a pipeline of projects worth more than $8 billion. Recent projects include:
- State Highway 130, Segments 5&6. Served as legal advisor on the negotiation of a public-private partnership to design, build, finance and operate a 41-mile toll road between San Antonio and Austin. A consortium of Cintra and Zachry is developing the project under a 50-year comprehensive development agreement, the first toll concession agreement in Texas history that reached financial close on March 6, 2008 with a total project value of $1.36 billion. The finance package includes $683 million in commercial debt, $197 million of private equity, $430 million TIFIA loan, and smaller contingency facilities. The project was named the 2008 Transportation Deal of the Year by Project Finance magazine. The firm continues to assist with the administration of the concession agreement.
- North Tarrant Express. Serving as legal advisor on the procurement of a public-private partnership to design, build, finance and operate managed lanes and upgrade existing facilities along a 36-mile corridor in Dallas and Tarrant counties. The first segment will be developed through a toll concession agreement. Federal credit assistance in the form of a conditional TIFIA loan commitment and reservation of funding, and an allocation of private activity bonds has been secured. A pre-development agreement will cover the potential development of additional segments. Construction costs for the entire project are estimated at more than $2 billion. Financing includes $570 million of state funds, $400 million of senior bond debt, a $650 million TIFIA loan, and $420 million of private equity. The project as a whole reached commercial close in June 2009, and financial close for the first segment in December 2009. The project was awarded the 2010 Co-Project of the Year by the American Road & Transportation Builders Association and the Infrastructure Journal named it the 2009 Global Transport Deal of the Year.
- LBJ Express (IH 635). Serving as legal advisor on the procurement of a public-private partnership to design, build, finance and operate a managed lanes project in Dallas. The 25-mile project includes the construction of new managed lanes and improvement of existing facilities, with expected capital costs of $1.3 billion. Federal credit assistance in the form of a conditional TIFIA loan commitment and reservation of funding, and an allocation of private activity bonds has been secured. Financing includes $489 million in public funds, $664 million in equity, federal credit assistance in the form of a conditional $850 million TIFIA loan commitment and reservation of funding, as well as $615 million in private activity bonds. The project is the first to be accepted into the FHWA Express Lanes Demonstration Program. The project was awarded the 2010 Co-Project of the Year by the American Road & Transportation Builders Association.
- DFW Connector. Serving as legal advisor on the procurement of a design-build contract to develop a 14.4-mile managed lanes project that will rebuild portions for four highways, two interchanges and five bridges in the Dallas / Fort Worth area at an estimated project cost of over $1 billion dollars. The project is under construction and is anticipated to be completed by 2014.
California Department of Transportation – Presidio Parkway Program. Assisting Caltrans with policy issues, development of procedures and methodologies for implementation of the contracting program and review of proposed PPP legislation. Initial work included various presentations to governmental agencies and industry stakeholders. Assisting Caltrans in procuring projects including procurement guidance, drafting project contracts, and advising on financial issues.
Port of Long Beach, California - Gerald Desmond Bridge. Serving as lead legal advisor on an estimated $1 billion plan to replace the Gerald Desmond Bridge using the authority granted by California's design-build demonstration program. As the first cable-stayed bridge ever built in California, the project is expected to be a landmark structure for the Port and surrounding communities. The Bridge will enable post-Panamax ships greater access to the Port of Long Beach and the adjoining Port of Los Angeles.
Georgia Department of Transportation – West by Northwest Managed Lanes. Serves as legal advisor to assist in screening projects for PPP suitability, developing optimal PPP delivery strategies for selected projects, educating public officials and project stakeholders on private sector value, counseling and documenting risk allocations, drafting procurement and contract documents, and supporting requests of USDOT for approvals, funding and financing assistance.
Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority – PPP Program. Advising the Authority on the development of its PPP program, as part of a consortium of consultants known as P3LA, and is assisting in screening projects for PPP suitability. Completed an initial screening of 60 potential PPP projects and approved strategic studies for five new PPP projects: Crenshaw/LAX Transit Corridor; SR-710 North Extension; High Desert Corridor; Regional Connector Transit Corridor; and Westside Subway Extension.
Virginia Department of Transportation. Serving as Special Assistant Attorney General assisting with the implementation of its Public-Private Transportation Act, including: negotiating a comprehensive agreement for the $323 million, 9-mile Pocahontas Parkway and James River Bridge Crossing; and advising on its latest procurement for U.S. Route 460, a 55-mile toll project.
Metropolitan Transportation Commission/Bay Area Toll Authority. Retained as special counsel to advise on negotiation of PPP transactions arising out of a 700-mile network of express toll lanes planned for the 9-county San Francisco Bay Metro area.
British Columbia Ministry of Transportation and Partnerships British Columbia – Sea-to-Sky Highway Improvement Project. Key advisor on the procurement and award of an availability payment contract to reconstruct the 110-kilometer, CDN$600 million highway critical to the 2010 Winter Olympics.
Washington State Department of Transportation – Tacoma Narrows Bridge Span. Served as Special Assistant Attorney General, negotiating a PPP to develop a new $840 million bridge span over Puget Sound, the first major suspension bridge in the United States in 30 years, using the state's first major design-build transportation contract.
New Jersey Transit Corporation – Hudson-Bergen Light Rail Transit System. Assisted in the preparation of enabling legislation, request for proposals, analysis of applicable federal requirements, drafting of contract documents, support for contract administration and assistance with innovative finance arrangements for the $1.9 billion light rail transit system, the state's largest public works project and the first DBOM transit contract in the United States.