Lee McKnight has been named Saluda Residency Administrator for the Virginia Department of Transportation in the Middle Peninsula region.

He succeeds Joyce McGowan, who served the Saluda residency in various roles for 24 years, the last six as residency administrator. McGowan is now the assistant division administrator for maintenance in the Fredericksburg District.McKnight is leading highway maintenance and operations, land use, emergency response and snow removal for around 1,750 miles of state-maintained roads in the counties of Essex, Gloucester, King and Queen, King William, Mathews and Middlesex.

He oversees nearly 120 employees and a maintenance and operations budget of $10.5 million and is the primary local government liaison for all VDOT programs.

Before starting his current role, McKnight was infrastructure manager for VDOT’s 14-county Fredericksburg District, and he previously was the Assistant Chesterfield Residency Administrator for the counties of Amelia, Chester...