Paul Ochoa is Commissioner of the New York City Department of Design and Construction, the City’s primary capital construction project manager and steward of a $34 billion portfolio spanning public buildings and infrastructure across all five boroughs. Appointed by Mayor Mamdani in April 2026, he came to DDC from the Department of Transportation, where he served as Executive Deputy Commissioner overseeing the agency’s capital program. He has served in leadership roles at the Department of Sanitation and the Mayor’s Office, giving him a wide view of how the City plans, funds, and builds.
BTEA: You recently transitioned from the Department of Transportation to leading DDC. What are the biggest lessons from your time at DOT that you plan to bring to DDC, and what changes should the construction industry expect under your leadership?
I had a great experience at DOT as the Executive Deputy Commissioner where I oversaw the entire agency’s administration and street reconstruction teams. Many of the capital projects that I led at DOT I now get to build at DDC. I’ve said this publicly a few times already in my short time as DDC Commissioner — DDC is an agency with a great mission and amazing engineering, architecture and project management staff, but the agency needs help with some of the admin efforts that I worked on at DOT. Hiring and retaining staff, promoting good employees where appropriate and helping to boost morale. I’ve also been doing a listening tour with elected officials and our sponsor agencies to learn what works and what we can do better. I’m always available to the industry when they have suggestions on how we can deliver projects faster to New Yorkers.
BTEA: Are there specific steps the DDC is currently taking, or plans your team is proposing, to accelerate project delivery?
Everyone can agree that capital projects take too long. Mayor Mamdani tasked me with finding ways to expedite the process when I was appointed. We have some work to do to get there and will have more news to share on some interesting pilots in the next few months.
BTEA: DDC has been a leader in expanding alternative delivery methods. Where do you see these procurement tools heading over the next few years, and are there additional reforms in your opinion that are needed to help deliver projects more efficiently?
DDC has a great track record with Design-Build already, and I want to keep promoting those efforts and pilot more alternative delivery across the City. We just announced a selected DB team for the 14th Street Greenway in Manhattan, an amazing project that will connect Stuyvesant Cove and East River Parks with an over-water bridge, eliminating the “pinch point” that has been a community ask for decades. We are also launching seven CM-Build buildings projects under our Cultural and Libraries portfolio, with 70 Mulberry Street starting construction first later this year. We will be up in Albany next session advocating for the ability to use CM-Build on additional types of projects, as well as pushing for an extension of design-build.
BTEA: New technologies — from wearable devices to AI-powered site monitoring and jobsite cameras — are changing how contractors manage safety. How is DDC evaluating and incorporating innovation to enhance safety on City projects?
We have a team led by project controls, Site Safety and our data unit that looks closely at safety trends on our projects and how we can improve across the City. We are eager to see what the industry is using technology-wise and incorporating what works on projects.
BTEA: Union-signatory contractors invest heavily in apprenticeship training, safety programs, and workforce development. How important are these investments to DDC’s mission, and what role do you see organized labor and union contractors playing in the City’s future capital program?
Safety for workers and safety for the surrounding communities where we work is our number one priority, and a lot of the preparation comes from the unions and organized labor and the training they implement — they are our partners along with the companies that employ them. We want our portfolio to grow along with the union ranks.