Smart Growth Strategies for Poor Urban Communities

Bio: David Dixon FAIA directs planning and urban design at Goody Clancy. He received the American Institute of Architects’ (AIA) 2007 Thomas Jefferson Award for service to the public sector and “a lifetime of … significant achievement in [creating]… livable neighborhoods, vibrant civic spaces, and vital downtowns ...” David chaired the AIA’s Urban Design Committee and as president of the Boston Society of Architects organized The First National Conference on Density in 2003. He writes and speaks on urban issues related to building community, livability, economic competitiveness, and sustainability. His recent writing includes articles in Urban Land and Planning Magazine and he is co-author of Urban Design for an Urban Century (Wiley 2009). David’s work has been honored by national awards from the American Institute of Architects, American Planning Association, American Society of Landscape Architects, Congress for the New Urbanism, the International Downtown Association, and the Society for College and University Planners.

Education: Harvard University, Master of Urban Design University of Pennsylvania, Master of Architecture Wesleyan University, Bachelor of Arts

Key Publications: “Urban Design for an Urban Century: Making Places for People,” written with co-authors Lance Brown, FAIA and Oliver Gilham, AIA, to be published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. (Winter 2009)

Other Publications: • “Green planning and design? Start with the density and buildings found in Boston’s neighborhoods,” New England Real Estate Journal (January 2011) • “Why Foreigners Like Boston,” Planning Magazine (January 2011) • “Transit Oriented Development Series” Half-Mile Circle Blog, http://www.reconnectingamerica.org/blog (2010) • “Planning for the Recovery,” Urban Land (October 2009) • “Wish Fulfillment: What U.S. Cities Could Look Like in 2050”, Planning Magazine (May 2009) • “Neighborhoods and Community”, chapter for “Architecture: Celebrating the Past, Designing the Future: Commemorating the 150th Anniversary of the American Institute of Architects”, Visual Reference Publications (September 2008) • “Urban Design Process: Creating and Achieving a Vision”, chapter for “The Architect’s Handbook of Professional Practice” by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. (Update 2005) • “Universities, Revitalization, Communities”, chapter for “The University as Urban Developer” published by Great Cities Institute, Chicago (2005) • “Is Density Dangerous? The Architects’ Obligations after the Towers Fell”, in First to Arrive: State and Local Responses to Terrorism, MIT Press (2003) • “Is Density Dangerous?” The Taubman Center Report (2003) • “Building the Bunker: Defensible Space and Defensive Behavior”, ArchitectureBoston (Sept/Oct 2002) • “The Virtue of Density”, The Boston Globe (July 3, 2003), “The Virtue of Density”, Urban Land (November/December 2003) • “Smart Growth and Multi-Housing: The New American Dream”, Multi-Housing News (April 2003) • A Civic Design Agenda, National Endowment for the Arts, 1988

Bio: Director of Sustainable Communities, Natural Resources Defense Council, Washington, DC. Adjunct Proessor of Law, George Washington University. Co-founder of LEED for Neighborhood Development. Co-founder, Smart Growth America. Voted one of the "top urban thinkers" on Planetizen.com and named one of "the most influential people in sustainable planning and development" by the Partnership for Sustainable Communities.

Education: JD, Georgetown University; BA, Emory University

Key Publications: Smart Growth in a Changing World (APA); Green Community (contributor) (APA); Solving Sprawl (Island Press); Once There Were Greenfields (NRDC); A Citizen's Guide to LEED-ND (NRDC).

Past Assignments: Extensive and too numerous to list.

Bio: Ms. Belzer is the founder and president of Strategic Economics, an urban and real estate economics firm in Berkeley, CA. She has 30 years experience working on economic issues ranging in scale from regional growth management to individual development projects, and regularly speaks and writes on the topic of transit-oriented development (TOD). Her work has helped position Strategic Economics as a national leader in innovative economics research techniques that guide local public policy decisions based on sound market principals while fostering sustainable communities and creating places with lasting value. Additionally, she was central to the creation of the Center for Transit Oriented Development (CTOD), a three way partnership that includes Reconnecting America and the Center for Neighborhood Technology. The CTOD is known for its high quality research and innovative approach to TOD implementation throughout the nation and with a diversity of clients. Ms. Belzer’s recent employment related work includes an in-depth analysis of employment trends and the business environment of the East Bay region to inform future policies and planning decisions; an identification of transportation and land use strategies that can increase the effectiveness of future high capacity, employee-serving transit corridors in the Phoenix, AZ region; and a strategic land use assessment that identifies how existing and planned transit networks can best connect to the San Francisco region’s emerging job centers.

Education: Ms. Belzer received her Master’s in City and Regional Planning from the University of California at Berkeley, and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Pitzer College.

Key Publications: - Infrastructure Financing Options for Transit-Oriented Development, 2013 -Transit and Regional Economic Development, 2011 -TOD and Employment, 2011 -Transit Oriented Development: From Rhetoric to Reality, 2002 -Hidden in Plain Sight: Capturing the Demand for Housing Near Transit, 2004. -CDFI’s and TOD, 2010

Past Assignments: Ms. Belzer is president of the Board of Directors for Community Economics Inc., a non-profit organization specializing in affordable housing finance. She is regularly invited to serve as a featured speaker at conferences and has served on multiple Advisory Panels for the Urban Land Institute and as a resource team member for over ten Mayors Institutes for City Design sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts.