Cape Cod Commission welcomes new staff

After spending three summers as a Traffic Technician, Evan Costa joined the Commission staff as a Transportation Planner/Engineer in July 2022. Evan is well into his full-time role. Within his first year, he wrote the 2021 and 2022 Pavement Management System reports and helped update the Coordinated Public Transit – Human Services Transportation Plan for 2023. Evan will continue to assist with transportation data collection efforts while also becoming involved with a Bicycle Side Path Inventory and assisting with the Regional Transportation Plan update. Evan holds a Bachelor's degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering from UMass Dartmouth.  

Carolina Romero began work as the Economist at the Cape Cod Commission in September 2022. Before joining the Commission, she provided advisory and data analytics services to management consulting firms, government, academia, and private sector companies. She holds an M.B.A. from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and a Master's in Economics from the Universidad de Los Andes in Colombia. As the Economist, Carolina provides quantitative and qualitative support to a wide range of projects with particular attention to current social-economic challenges and potential economic impact on our community.    

In October 2022, Cory Murray joined the Cape Cod Commission staff as a Community Development Planner. Prior to taking on this role, she worked on an analysis of the state's homelessness crisis while employed with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development. In addition, she served as a data analyst for the state's Eviction Division Initiative during COVID-19, supporting efforts to keep tenants in their homes once the pause in evictions and foreclosures expired in October 2020. Cory holds a Bachelors degree in Community, Environment, and Development from Penn State University. At the Commission, she will support various community and economic development projects focusing on housing, affordability, and community impact.  

GIS Analyst Debbie Ricotta joined the Commission staff in February 2023. She most recently worked for the Town of Dennis as a Senior Project Surveyor in the Engineering department, performing GPS surveys and assisting with stormwater and transportation projects. Before that, she worked as a Community Development Assistant for the Town of Eastham. A Certified Floodplain Manager, Debbie holds a Bachelor of Arts from Macalester College and a graduate certificate in GIS from Penn State University.   

The Commission's newest staff member, Helaine Goudreau, began work in April 2023 as a Special Projects Coordinator. Helaine has worked for several nonprofit organizations in Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Ireland, specializing in grant management, communications, strategic planning, program development, community outreach, and fundraising strategy. She most recently served as Program Officer at the Cape Cod Foundation, where she was the key grantmaking contact for community organizations across the region. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in English and Public Policy from Connecticut College.