Mr. Ackerberg is Chief Executive Officer and owner of The Ackerberg Group. Prior to forming The Ackerberg Group, Mr. Ackerberg served as General Partner, President and Chief Operating Officer for Birtcher Financial Services and was Vice President for Heitman Financial Services, Ltd. The Ackerberg Group is passionate and committed to creating vibrant neighborhoods. The Ackerberg Group knits new and refurbished buildings into the existing urban fabric -- properties that will sustain time and changing tenant/resident desires. The Ackerberg Group is committed to making the world a better place by investing in transitional neighborhoods. The goal is to not only stimulate existing property owners to upgrade their assets but also to attract outside investors to see these areas as viable investment opportunities. Mr. Ackerberg created a non-profit development corporation, Catalyst Community Partners, wherein he serves as its Chairman of the Board. Catalyst Community Partners, a 501(c)3 corporation, is a social venture organization focused on creating prosperity for under performing communities through real estate redevelopment with job enterprise creation being the primary objective. The organization creates change by providing high impact, concentrated investments along underperforming commercial corridors. Mr. Ackerberg is an active member of the Urban Land Institute, Lambda Alpha International, and serves as a director of Hope For The City, the Minneapolis Parks Foundation, and ULI Minnesota. Mr. Ackerberg attended the University of Wisconsin – Madison where he received a Bachelor of Science degree with emphasis on Economics and Real Estate. Mr. Ackerberg and his family reside in the western Twin Cities at Indigo Acres, a “spiritual retreat”. Indigo Acres is a combination of historical experience through Native American dwellings including four 26-foot authentic Sioux tipis, an 1860 English Chateau, an 1880 cottage, and 150 acres of trails, ponds, sculptures, woods, a river, and “magic”. Also at Indigo Acres, his wife Romy operates a state-of-the-art breeding and training facility for American Saddlebred show horses.

Melinda directs Forecast’s Art Services program, working closely with Minnesota artists interested in public art, by coordinating both a Jerome-funded grant program for emerging public artists and a new McKnight-funded grant program for mid-career public artists. She also works in partnership with Minnesota’s Regional Arts Councils to create region-specifici grants serving rurally-based artists. In addition to managing grant programs, Melinda conducts “Public Art 101” workshops for artists and communities, and manages the ongoing development of the online Public Art Toolkit to further assist those interested in working in the public realm. Melinda completed a self-designed degree at the University of Minnesota titled “Art and Social Change” with an emphasis in public art. In addition to her work at Forecast, her professional experience includes co-teaching a college-level, off-campus study program on Art and Social Change through HECUA (Higher Education Consortium for Urban Affairs), coordinating artists for the Red Hot Art community festival, curating exhibitions, creating public art projects, and serving on the advisory board for the Art Shanty Projects.

Barry graduated from the University of Minnesota in 1976 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Architecture. After working in Minneapolis he returned to school in 1980 and received a Master’s Degree in Architecture and a Minor in Urban Planning from Cornell University, Ithaca, New York. He worked with KKE Architects for six months immediately after graduate school then long-time friend Garth Rockcastle asked him to join newly formed Meyer Scherer and Rockcastle Architects. Over the next 25 years Barry had the opportunity to collaborate with some of the best talent in the region winning several regional and national design awards. The early years at MS&R focused on residential architecture. Between 1986 and 2007 his work was exclusively shifted to public and academic libraries. In 1986 he was appointed to the Wayzata Planning Commission. This marked the beginning of his continued involvement in local government highlighted by six years on the city council and two, four-year terms as mayor. Today Barry continues to serve on the HRA and has been an important design voice for guiding the current development of an 800,000 square foot housing and retail project in downtown Wayzata. After retiring from MS&R Architects in 2007, he began a library consulting firm with a library director he had befriended while designing three libraries for her county system. In 2008 Barry began a writing collaboration with a long-time architect acquaintance Maureen Steele-Bellows. In May 2012 their book, “The Language of Design, because great paces are all about design” was published. The theme focused on the simple fact that local governments and planners have amazing control over the design character of their respective communities, and yet few of these folks have ever been educated in how to talk about design. The over arching point is that all the well intended planning efforts are effectively ruined by mediocre design – bad design ruins good planning. Their ultimate message is very clear; there is very little chance we can hope to consistently create great “places” if we cannot speak the language of design.