Architect of the Capitol Stephen Ayers has hired Christine Merdon as the agency’s new chief operating officer, filling a job that has been vacant since May when then-COO and acting AOC Ayers was appointed AOC.

Merdon will be responsible for strategic planning, performance management, worker safety, customer satisfaction and service quality, according to the AOC.

“I am very impressed with Christine’s knowledge, energy, and passion for her work,” Ayers said in a statement. “Her experience both in the public and private sectors gives her the unique qualifications necessary to assist our organization in preserving the historic integrity of the U.S. Capitol, providing a safe and sustainable workplace, and continuing to build a legacy of professionalism and service.”

Merdon comes to the Capitol campus from Washington, D.C.-based McKissack & McKissack, a women- and minority-owned architecture, construction and engineering firm. She was vice president since 2000 at the company, which is working on the new Coast Guard headquarters, the proposed Martin Luther King Jr. and President Dwight D. Eisenhower memorials, and other large projects in the District and around the country.

Before that, she held several posts in the private and public sectors, including a stint at the White House Military Office, where she managed classified design and construction projects at the White House, Camp David and other presidential support facilities.

She began her career as a project manager and project engineer for the Navy.

Though she declined to comment on her new duties — except to say she starts today — Merdon enters the architect’s office at a time of turmoil, particularly at the Capitol Visitor Center, where ex-CEO for Visitor Services Terrie Rouse was recently fired amid allegations of worker discontent.

Maintenance Money

The Office of the Architect of the Capitol has awarded a contract worth up to $25 million over five years to TMA Systems.

The Tulsa, Okla.-based company provides technical support in developing reports, processing work orders, managing contracts and assets, and a range of other maintenance operations.

The deal is an “indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity” contract, meaning work orders are placed as needed, instead of being predetermined, AOC spokeswoman Eva Malecki said.

The AOC’s office also awarded a $181,135 contract to Overhead Door Co. of Baltimore for restoration of the bronze doors at the Supreme Court, which the AOC has determined are no longer working effectively. Work began on the project in late August.

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