2013 National Planning Awards
APA's National Planning Excellence and Achievement Awards honor the best planning efforts and individuals who create communities of lasting value. The 2013 recipients were honored at a special luncheon held during APA's National Planning Conference.
National Planning Excellence Awards
Daniel Burnham Award for a Comprehensive Plan
2040 Comprehensive Regional Plan: A Vision for Northwest Indiana
Lake, Porter, and LaPorte Counties, Indiana
The HUD Secretary's Opportunity and Empowerment Award
Owe'neh Bupingeh Preservation Plan
Ohkay Owingeh, New Mexico
Restoring the American City: Augusta's Laney Walker/Bethlehem
Augusta, Georgia
National Planning Excellence Award for a Best Practice
Philadelphia's Integrated Planning and Zoning Process
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
National Planning Excellence Award for a Grassroots Initiative
Cathedral City's Environmental Conservation Division (ECD) Kids & Community Program
Cathedral City, California
National Planning Excellence Award for Implementation
Central Riverfront Re-Birth Through Planning
Cincinnati, Hamilton County, Ohio
National Planning Excellence Award for Public Outreach
Newberg 6th Grade Design Star Program
Newberg, Oregon
National Planning Excellence Award for a Communications Initiative
City of Lake Oswego, Oregon
National Planning Excellence Award for Transportation Planning
StarMetro's Route Decentralization
Tallahassee, Florida
National Planning Excellence Award for Environmental Planning
NYC Department of City Planning, Zone Green
New York, New York
National Planning Excellence Award for Urban Design
Lancaster, Pennsylvania
The Pierre L'Enfant International Planning Excellence Award
Puebla, Mexico
Advancing Diversity & Social Change in Honor of Paul Davidoff
Birmingham, Alabama
The National Planning Excellence Award for a Planning Advocate
Michael Osur, Deputy Director, Riverside County Department of Public Health
Riverside, California
National Planning Excellence Award for a Planning Firm
Boston, Massachusetts
National Planning Excellence Award for a Planning Agency
Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning
Northeastern Illinois
National Planning Excellence Award for an Emerging Planning & Design Firm
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
National Planning Award for a Planning Pioneer
Brooklyn, New York
2013 Awards Jury
The jury is tasked with reviewing all of the award entries and identifying the ones worthy of receiving a national honor and recognition.
Jury Chair
Ann C. Bagley, FAICP
Ann Cooke Bagley, FAICP, a community planner and consultant, focuses on comprehensive plans, park development, and training planning commissioners. A practicing planner for almost 30 years, she has worked in both the public and private sectors working primarily for small to medium-sized cities. Bagley currently serves on the national board of the American Planning Association as a board member elected at large and serves as the Planning Official Development Officer for APA Texas. She was recently appointed to her fourth term on the Dallas City Plan Commission where she is chair of the Transportation Committee and on the Zoning Ordinance Advisory Committee.
Jury Member
Gov. Parris N. Glendening
Gov. Parris N. Glendening is president of Smart Growth America's Leadership Institute and the Governors' Institute on Community Design, a program funded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. In these roles, he travels across the country and around the world advising state and local governments on smart growth, transit, and sustainability policies and practices. Glendening served as Governor of the State of Maryland from 1995-2003 where he created the nation's first state-level smart growth policy package. Before being elected Governor, Glendening served three terms as elected county executive of Prince George's County, Maryland. He taught political science at the University of Maryland, College Park for 27 years and is the author of two books and over 100 articles and conference papers. Glendening holds a doctorate in Government and Politics from Florida State University as well as eight honorary degrees.
Jury Member
Letitia A. Gomez, AICP
Letitia (Leti) Gomez, AICP, began her career as a Presidential Management Intern at Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Chesapeake Division. Upon completion of her internship, she was offered a career position as a Community Planner. During the following 10 years, Gomez worked as the Community Planner for Naval Surface Warfare Center activities and Marine Corps installations in the National Capital Region (NCR). She has served as the Activity Liaison Officer to Marine Corps activities in the NCR and 2001, promoted to Activity Operations Director of the Integrated Product Team that supported Air Force and Marine Corps activities. Gomez also has served as the NAVFAC Headquarters Client Liaison Officer to the Marine Corps, Naval Supply Systems Command, and Air Force. In 2004, she moved to Commander Navy Installations Command N5, Planning and Real Estate where she led strategic facilities planning for supporting new weapons systems. Gomez assumed her current position as the Asset Management Business Line Coordinator at Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) in May 2008. In 2003, she was the recipient of a Meritorious Civilian Service award.
Jury Member
Charles C. Graves III, AICP
Charles C. Graves III, AICP, is the Director of the Department of Planning and Buildings, for the City of Cincinnati. He oversees a staff that includes 75 staff persons in the Divisions of Community Planning and Building & Inspections. Graves previously worked as the Deputy Director of Long Range Planning in the office of Planning for Washington, D.C. where he helped develop the Comprehensive Plan for the city. In his career he has also served as the Commissioner of Planning and Community Development in Atlanta, Georgia; Director of Planning for Baltimore, Maryland; and Director of Planning and Development in Appleton, Wisconsin. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Urban Planning from Hampton University and received his Master of Science in Community Economic Development from New Hampshire College as well as achieved a Certificate of Advanced Study from Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government Program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government.
Jury Member
Regina Gray
Regina Gray is an analyst for the Division of Affordable Housing Research and Technology Division in the Office of Policy Development and Research (PD&R) at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Since joining HUD in 2000, her research activities have focused on sustainable development, urban design and land use planning, transit-oriented development, energy and green building practices, and affordable housing preservation. Beyond her work at HUD, Gray collaborates with other federal agencies on a host of sustainability initiatives and is actively involved in these interagency efforts. Gray holds a bachelor's degree from Emory University, a master's degree from George Washington University, and a doctorate from the University of Maryland, College Park.
Jury Member
John R. Gosling, AICP
John Gosling led the Planning and Urban Design Practice for RTKL, a full-service design firm with offices in Europe, the United States, and Asia from 1984 to 2009. In this role, working from their Dallas, Washington, D.C., and London offices, he was responsible for managing and developing high-profile urban regeneration assignments in major cities across the United States and abroad for both public agency and private sector clients. He formed RTKL's Urban Housing group in the mid-90s, recognizing that sustainable urban regeneration means re-connecting commercial and residential architecture and urban design. Gosling is currently president of the Old Town Civic Association, Alexandria, and is active as a writer, speaker, and development planning consultant. A native Londoner, Mr. Gosling received his architectural education and diploma from the Architectural Association School of Architecture, London.
Jury Member
Mayor Ron Littlefield, AICP
Ron Littlefield, AICP, is the Mayor of Chattanooga, Tennessee, and was sworn into office on April 18, 2005. He brought with him many years of experience in city government and urban planning. Though his license is now retired, Mayor Littlefield was a Realtor, specializing in Commercial and Industrial Development, in both Tennessee and Georgia from 2000 to 2005. He has been an instructor at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, as well, as teaching a summer postgraduate course on metropolitan politics and policies. He previously worked as the acting director of planning and development in Walker County, Georgia, as well as a senior planner for the Chattanooga-Hamilton County Regional Planning Commission. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Auburn University.
Jury Member
Lynn M. Ross, AICP
Lynn M. Ross, AICP, joined the Urban Land Institute in 2012 as the Executive Director of the Terwilliger Center for Housing. She is responsible for managing the strategic direction of the center as well as the implementation of the center's work program. Ross previously worked at the National Housing Conference and the Center for Housing Policy first as Director of State and Local Initiatives and then as its chief operating officer. Before relocating to Washington, D.C., Ross worked at the American Planning Association in Chicago, IL. She joined APA's research team in 2002 and became manager of the Planning Advisory Service in 2006. Ross holds a Masters of Regional Planning from Cornell University and a B.S. in community and regional planning from Iowa State University.
Jury Member
Chase W. Rynd
Chase Rynd, is the executive director of the National Building Museum. Under Rynd's leadership, the Museum has achieved a strong national profile through enhanced educational programs, scholarly and visually engaging exhibitions, and numerous outreach efforts. Before his work at the National Building Museum, Rynd served as executive director and CEO of the Tacoma Art Museum and at the Frist Center for the Visual Arts in Nashville, Tennessee. He is a graduate of Georgetown University and sits on the Boards of the American Friends of Chantilly, France; the Downtown DC BID; Penn Quarter Neighborhood Association; and the Richardson Architecture Center, Buffalo. He also is a member of the ACE Mentor Program's National Advisory Board; the ASCE Industry Leaders Council and the vestry of St. John's Lafayette Square in DC.