Former Redmond Public Works inspector passes away: He helped the city grow into a bustling community

Published 3:28 pm Tuesday, September 29, 2015

Submitted by the Florio family

Redmond says goodbye to a man who helped the city grow into such a bustling community.

John Florio was a City of Redmond Public Works inspector for 25 years (1987-2013) and lived in Redmond for more than 28 years. He passed away unexpectedly Sept. 18 at the family cabin at Silcox Island located on American Lake in Lakewood. He was 67.

A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. this Saturday at the Redmond Senior Center.

When John started with the city, there were about 13 traffic signals and only some locals knew about a small company called Microsoft, which back then only had 1,800 employees.  Many of his early projects were inspecting new traffic signals, which were to help regulate the ever-growing traffic in Redmond. Nowadays, the city has more than 120 traffic signals and Microsoft had grown to more than 117,000 employees.

John was an integral part of the Public Works team that contributed to the development of Redmond’s infrastructure for what was once a suburban farming community. The city is now a technology hub whose population nearly triples in size every weekday due to the influx of working professionals. John probably helped pave a road you drive on or install a traffic signal you pass every day.

Throughout his time at the city, John inspected and coordinated countless construction projects, which included new roads, signals, bridges and sidewalks as well as upgrades to parks, community centers, sewers, water reservoirs and stormwater treatment facilities.

Below are just a few of the capital improvement projects he proudly worked on:

• City of Redmond Maintenance and Operations Center (MOC) expansion

• 36th Street Bridge (over SR 520), 85th Street Bridge, 90th Street Bridge and 116th Street Bridge

• Old Redmond Schoolhouse Community Center seismic retrofit

• SR 520/Union Hill/Avondale Road intersection improvements• Bear Creek improvements

• Downtown/Leary Way improvements and beautification

• Tolt/Redmond water connection

• Well and water reservoir reconstructions

• Overlake sewer trunk line improvements

• Anderson Park cabin and well upgrades

• Perrigo and Grasslawn parks development (from fields of grass to multipurpose parks with athletic fields)

• Redmond Fire Station 17 new construction

• Redmond Fire stations 11 and 12 complete renovation

John, who was born in Yonkers, NY, in 1948, took pride in his work and the city in which he lived. His passion for improving Redmond was evident in the way he communicated with contractors and local businesses before, during and after the projects. He would always take the time to reassure business owners eager to know when the construction would be over and would pass out business cards to make himself available for questions anytime. John had an upbeat attitude, a talent for public relations and an instinct for putting people at ease. Even years after a project was completed, he could walk into local businesses and people would remember him. He always had the community’s best interest at heart and was proud to help improve city life through his work.

Prior to joining the City of Redmond, John spent 20 years in the Air Force as a draftsman, surveyor and construction inspector. He obtained a degree in vocational education, which would allow him to teach in his military retirement. Teaching and mentoring was a favorite pastime for him. When he wasn’t at work, you could often find him at his Redmond home or at the family cabin remodeling and fixing up both places and helping friends and neighbors. He was always willing to help others with projects and taught them how to do their own repairs and home improvements. Nothing made him prouder than when someone found their own confidence and success after he imparted his knowledge and wisdom.

John was a dedicated family man to his wife and four children. He was also involved with a variety of activities, which included being a Boy Scout leader (Redmond Troop 591), camping at Mountain Men Rendezvous, black powder and standard firearms shooting, knife/tomahawk throwing, cooking, woodworking, furniture making, motorcycling, boating and worldwide traveling.

One of the things people will remember most about him is his ability to strike up a conversation with anyone about any topic or to have a story that somehow managed to teach you something in the end. He was outgoing, charismatic, loved telling stories and often said, “I’ve never met a stranger.” The other thing everyone will remember is that he could build or fix just about anything. He often sketched drawings of his latest project on napkins or any scrap of paper he could find.

John was a handyman extraordinaire with a larger-than-life personality and will be dearly missed by his family and friends.