Port of LA announces new chief harbor engineer

Chris Brown, who began his career as a student engineer at the Port of Los Angeles in 1993, has been appointed the port’s chief harbor engineer, the top position overseeing the port’s Engineering Division.

He replaces Dina Aryan-Zahlan, who recently was promoted to deputy executive director of Development at the port.

Brown will lead the planning, development and design of infrastructure and facilities that support the diverse operations of the nation’s busiest seaport, including wharves, terminals, rail, roadways and public space.

“Chris has been a pivotal player in many port infrastructure projects over the last two decades,” Aryan-Zahlan said. That included involvement in the award-winning Wilmington Waterfront Park and the current port wide electrification program, she said.

“This promotion recognizes all his hard work, dedication and contributions to these critical infrastructure programs,” she said.

Most recently, Brown was the assistant chief harbor engineer responsible for division sections handling structural specifications, architectural and electrical elements of port infrastructure projects. Before that, he served as the harbor engineer in charge of division sections on structural, specifications, right of way, and technology. From 2000-15 he held various roles, including section head, program manager and designer, for a number of projects, most notably as project manager for the Wilmington Waterfront Park, which won Engineering News Record’s “Best of the Best Award” in 2012.

After beginning as a student engineer at the port, Brown worked a four-year stint at Holmes & Narver (now AECOM) and returned to the Port of Los Angeles. He received his bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from the University of Southern California and his master’s degree in structural engineering from the University of Maryland.

In addition to being a registered civil engineer in California, Brown is a certified construction documents technologist as designated by the Construction Specification Institute, where he serves as a board member. Brown also is a senior certified professional with the Society for Human Resource Management.