“Jeff brings his vibrant intellect, strong values, and substantial experience in resiliency, equity, and redevelopment to our organization. Our capacity to support urbanism in our nation and abroad continues to grow.”

– John Alschuler, Chairman

We are delighted to welcome Jeff Hébert to HR&A as a Partner in our New York office. A pioneer of resilience planning and community revitalization, Jeff works with cities around the world to develop strategies that mitigate future social, economic, and physical shocks and stresses. He will bring his forward-looking and holistic approach to HR&A, where he will focus on helping urban communities better adapt to changing environments and economies.

“I am proud to join HR&A and its incredibly talented team of diverse and accomplished leaders. Having worked with the firm for many years as a client and collaborator, I cannot think of a better place for me to continue my work preparing cities for the future.”

–  Jeff Hebert

For nearly a decade, Jeff served Mayor Mitch Landrieu and the City of New Orleans in many capacities, including as the First Deputy Mayor & Chief Administrative Officer, Chief Resilience Officer, Executive Director of the New Orleans Redevelopment Authority, and the Mayor’s blight czar. In these roles he managed the day to day operations of City Hall, tackled the crippling blight issues plaguing New Orleans, refocused over $250M in place-based investments, and oversaw both the City’s development portfolio and the Office of Resilience and Sustainability, which developed the City’s first climate action strategy, the award-winning Resilient NOLA comprehensive resilience strategy, and the $141M National Disaster Resilience Competition award. Previously, Jeff was the Director of Planning for Concordia, LLC and the Director of Community Planning for the Louisiana Recovery Authority in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
 

Jeff joins HR&A from the Water Institute of the Gulf, where he served as Vice President and led a transdisciplinary team developing innovative adaptation solutions for cities facing climate challenges. In addition to his role as Partner at HR&A, Jeff is an adjunct faculty member at the Tulane University School of Architecture, where he teaches in the Graduate Sustainable Real Estate Development program, the incoming Vice Chairman of FUSE Corps in San Francisco, and a trustee of the Louisiana Children’s Museum in New Orleans.
 

Please reach out to welcome Jeff to the firm at JHebert@hraadvisors.com.

On November 6th, 2018, voters in Harris County, TX made history when they elected Lina Hidalgo as their first female County Judge. A 27-year old immigrant from Colombia, Lina has spent her life working on issues of human rights and social justice. Her campaign to assume the leadership of the third largest county in the United States and victory over the 11-year Republican incumbent has attracted enormous enthusiasm and a movement of followers.

As Judge-elect Hidalgo prepares to take office in 2019, she has assembled a team to translate her energy and values into her administration: demonstrating that progressive governance can be inclusive, equitable, transparent, and effective. Building off of our experience in innovative and inclusive governance transitions, HR&A is proud to be a part of this team, assisting with Lina’s transition, including setting up her new office and staffing, identifying and articulating policy priorities, and leading the strategy behind community engagement.

Read more about Judge-elect Hidalgo’s transition here.

The Design Trust for Public Space honored Carl Weisbrod with the 2018 Public Space Leadership Award for his outstanding leadership in New York City. The Design Trust for Public Space is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the future of public space in New York City. Their projects bring together city agencies, community groups and private sector experts to make a lasting impact—through design—on how New Yorkers live, work and play.
 
Carl has had an extraordinary impact on New York City’s public realm throughout his outstanding four-decade career dedicated to public service. As founding president of New York City’s Economic Development Corporation, he led public and private partnerships that transformed some of the City’s most dynamic and fastest-growing neighborhoods. Mayor Bloomberg appointed Mr. Weisbrod as the director of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation following the devastation of Lower Manhattan after the 9/11 attacks, where he was instrumental in the dramatic recovery of the area and leading efforts to heal the city.
 
As a member of the de Blasio Administration, he served as both chairman of the New York City Planning Commission and also director of the NYC Department of City Planning. Mr. Weisbrod was charged with creating land-use policies to promote an equitable, resilient, sustainable and economically vibrant city; his tenure has overseen the enactment of Zoning for Quality and Affordability, which led to the Midtown East rezoning project, including vast improvements to public space near Grand Central.
 
Congratulations Carl!

Our latest study for the City of Seattle shows how Seattle and other U.S. cities can divest from Wells Fargo and pursue public banking as part of a larger effort to align their banking activities with progressive values, expand banking services for residents, and increase investment in pressing public needs like affordable housing and infrastructure.

The study comes amid a growing movement for Seattle’s divestment from Wells Fargo and growing interest in the creation of public banks in cities across the country. From New York City to Los Angeles and beyond, more cities are ending banking contracts with Wells Fargo and considering creating what would be the first municipal public banks as an alternative.

Seattle’s municipal government hired HR&A to examine the feasibility of establishing a city-owned public bank.

Read the Study

Seattle’s goals for a city-owned public bank include replacing Wells Fargo and providing better banking services to residents and consumers, including those who have been historically underserved by the banking industry. Additionally, Seattle would like to provide capital for public priorities like affordable housing and infrastructure and extend banking services to the cannabis industry.

The study shows that it is feasible for Seattle to establish a public bank, albeit through a long-term process. The need for approval from state and federal agencies and a commitment of capital present political and financial obstacles to overcome. Existing legal and regulatory frameworks create additional barriers for a city-owned bank in Seattle. For example, the acceptance of retail deposits and issuance of loans to the public or cannabis-related businesses require changes in state or federal law that are possible, but unlikely in the short-term.

Although Seattle can achieve its key goals through a city-owned bank over the long term, alternative approaches for public banking can offer greater certainty, lower public cost, and faster results, according to the HR&A study. It’s the first study to show that a city-owned bank is not the only option for cities divesting from Wells Fargo and interested in public banking.

For Seattle, we recommend several strategies that can allow Seattle to meet its goals of divestment from Wells Fargo and greater investment in public priorities like infrastructure and affordable housing, while laying the groundwork for the eventual creation of its own bank:

Strategies to build more inclusive banking systems

1. Refresh the City’s treasury services RFP content and process to make it easier for socially responsible banking partners to participate and compete with Wells Fargo.
2. Develop non-bank investment vehicles and partnerships to support social priorities.
3. Collaborate with existing public banking efforts, such as the plan for a state-owned bank that has been proposed in Washington’s state legislature. Seattle could pursue participation in such a State bank or request that the State ease public depository and charter requirements to enable its own bank.
4. Engage with other cities to pursue public banking within or across state lines.

While the study is focused on Seattle, the policy implications are national. Seattle and other cities are offered a road map for how they can achieve independence from Wells Fargo, and implement models of public banking that can be tailored to different needs and goals.

“Our study shows there are multiple paths forward for public banking in Seattle and other cities. There is no one-size-fits-all approach. When cities divest from Wells Fargo, they can take a variety of steps to ensure their new banking practices serve all residents, businesses, and consumers. Cities can make their own choices about how they want to empower communities through public banking. They do not have to remain beholden to Wells Fargo or the banking industry,” said Andrea Batista Schlesinger, a Partner at HR&A Advisors, who oversees the firm’s Inclusive Cities practice, and growing portfolio on public banking in cities.

HR&A’s Inclusive Cities practice empowers city governments and advocates, activists, and philanthropic organizations across the United States to implement equitable and inclusive growth strategies.  The study on public banking comes as HR&A is offering its expertise to more cities looking to maintain their financial independence, invest in public priorities like infrastructure, and pursue more equitable and inclusive banking. When properly implemented, public banking can help cities of the future grow, develop, and thrive.

The expansion could potentially generate $870 million in future economic impacts.

 

Credit: Woodall Rodgers Park Foundation
 
Klyde Warren Park spans the Woodall Rodgers Freeway to connect downtown and uptown Dallas. Since its opening, the park has successfully drawn life into the district, stimulated adjacent real estate development, and increased local tax revenue.
 
In October, park stewards, the Woodall Rodgers Park Foundation, announced the 1.2-acre expansion of the park. HR&A worked with the foundation to estimate the potential economic impact of the expansion, which the foundation used to generate support and secure $76 million in funding for construction and operations.
 

READ THE CASE STUDY

Skillful’s growing program to empower career coaches in state workforce development systems is expanding to Indiana. The program will particularly focus on educating employers and job seekers on the digital skills needed for advanced manufacturing and agriculture jobs. Since 2017, HR&A has worked alongside Skillful to create a robust leadership and training program that prepares career coaches to connect middle-skill workers with the jobs of tomorrow.
 

READ THE CASE STUDY

John Alschuler will speak on Monday October 29, 2018, at 7:00 pm at Rice Architecture’s Farish Gallery in Anderson Hall on the Rice University campus. Admission is free and open to the public. For guaranteed seating please register for each lecture here.
 
How can the public and private sectors join to create shared collaborative spaces that engage people and strengthen communities? An expert on this issue, John Alschuler, Chairman of HR&A Advisors, will give the third and final lecture of the Rice Design Alliance Fall 2018 Lecture series on the topic of sharing, organized in collaboration with PLAT Journal and Rice Architecture.
 
As a consultant and real estate advisor focusing on urban developments, Alschuler brings his knowledge base to various clients and civic entities to aid in the realization of projects that will revitalize an area. Alschuler is the Emeritus Chair of Friends of the High Line and sits on the Board of Directors of the Center for an Urban Future.
 
In Houston, HR&A has been integral in the preservation and development of the Menil neighborhood and Buffalo Bayou Park. Alschuler has been involved in master planning for the legacy of the 2012 London Olympic Parklands, now Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, to ensure its future as a civic space. Other HR&A projects have focused on resiliency after natural disasters, strategic planning for revitalization of downtown and waterfront neighborhoods, affordable housing, and a report on the economic impact of Airbnb.
 

RSVP

HR&A’s Raleigh office, established in 2016, hosted a discussion in July with leading transportation and urban development experts in the North Carolina Research Triangle Region on the impacts that new urban mobility options and autonomous vehicles will have on regional development. The conversation was animated by a focus on how autonomous vehicles can complement current and future transit investments underway in the Region to be a positive force for city building. These experts identified that autonomous vehicles will reduce the need for dedicated parking, helping free up developable land for more productive uses and reducing the burden of parking costs on future development. They also identified strategies to proactively leverage new mobility options and autonomous vehicles to enhance city building efforts in the Triangle Region.

SHARED MOBILITY TECHNOLOGIES ARE FORCING CITIES IN THE TRIANGLE TO RETHINK THEIR STREETS

Across the nation, technological advancements in transportation are reshaping how streets are used. Shared mobility platforms—carsharing, ride-hailing, bikesharing, scootersharing—offer convenient ways to get around and engage with cities. The Shared Use Mobility Center reports that the creation of robust mobility networks helps reduce car ownership and increases use of public transit. As detailed in HR&A’s 2017 report, Driverless Future, autonomous vehicle technologies are advancing rapidly. The state of North Carolina is already investing in infrastructure improvements and policy measures in anticipation of their widespread deployment that could arrive as early as next year. The Triangle must prepare itself for how these changes will affect city-making. Conversations about the ultimate impact of autonomous vehicles on our built environment are an important next step for policymakers.
 

SCENARIOS FOR THE INTRODUCTION OF AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES

The Shared Use Mobility Center contends that autonomous vehicles will build on current trends of shared mobility platforms and use of public transit to further supplant private car ownership, a position that potentially offers several advantages for city building. A vehicle fleet that transitions from traditional to autonomous would experience cost-savings in maintenance and operation. While the loss of jobs due to vehicle automation is a significant concern, one potential benefit is lowered fares for public transportation and private ride-hailing platforms that can both increase mobility and further incentivize car-light lifestyles. Reducing dependency on personally-owned vehicles can offer reduced congestion and a cleaner, safer environment.
 
Autonomous vehicles that move continually to pick up and drop off passengers would decrease demand for parking spaces. Parking spaces, lots, and decks currently located in central business districts can be located further away as autonomous vehicles add to the list of “first/last mile” solutions. Cities and real estate developers stand to benefit from the reduced need for parking, as existing and future parking space can be repurposed in ways that enhance the local urban context. Moreover, once lenders and regulators have confidence that autonomous vehicles can alleviate the need for the quantity of parking typically provided in the market today, the feasibility of delivering denser urban development in the Triangle will improve as the need for expensive structured parking is reduced.
 
While the above scenario represents one possibility, an alternate scenario must also be considered – that autonomous vehicles purchased for personal use could inhibit ridership of shared mobility platforms and public transit. According to a 2016 report by the Rocky Mountain Institute, by 2030 travelers could save an estimated $4,000 per year if they eschewed car ownership for shared mobility platforms. Still, many drivers could be inclined to pursue ownership of an autonomous vehicle to preserve privacy, avoid sharing, and ensure flexibility in where and when you travel. Only an estimated 2% of residents in the Triangle Region took public transit to work in 2016. In an area where public transportation options are not as robust as in other growing areas, and where driving is the established norm of transportation, the possibility of autonomous vehicle technology further entrenching car ownership must be acknowledged. If this comes to fruition it could mean more traffic congestion and more scattered development.
 
Monica Barrow, the Southeast Transit Planning Practice Leader at STV, Inc., stresses the importance of cities being proactive in planning for autonomous disruption and not adopting a “wait and see” approach. Development of robust transit infrastructure has a long timeline due to funding and permitting requirements and waiting to see how autonomy changes transit can be a recipe for frustration and inaction. The Triangle Region can prepare itself for the inevitable driverless future today, and it is already taking steps to do so. Legislators and public authorities are wrestling with the safety, infrastructure, and legal implications of autonomous vehicles to prepare for their widespread introduction. However, less focus has been placed on how autonomous vehicles will affect our built environment and interface with public transit systems. Faced with the uncertain impacts of autonomous vehicles on the ability to create healthy and sustainable built environments, HR&A’s Raleigh Office looks forward to supporting the Triangle Region in developing strategies to leverage autonomous vehicles as a positive force for progressive city-building and inclusive economic development.
 

TO CAPITALIZE ON THE POTENTIAL BENEFITS OFFERED BY AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES, GOVERNMENTS IN THE RESEARCH TRIANGLE REGION SHOULD ADOPT THE FOLLOWING STRATEGIES

 
#1 Update zoning ordinances to take advantage of autonomous vehicles reducing dependence on parking
In Triangle Region cities, like many throughout the country, there are minimum parking space requirements on a per square foot or per unit basis. These parking requirements are driven not only by local ordinances but also by investors and lenders who underwrite development projects. Parking is seen as necessary to attract tenants and make retail spaces viable. In Charlotte, the city has created flexible TOD zoning districts that reduce or eliminate parking needed for development along the Rail Trail, a 3.5-mile pedestrian trail and light rail line. However, few developers have taken the city up on the reduced parking requirements. This issue takes on new dimensions in the Triangle with the arrival of autonomous vehicles and implementation of regional public transit projects.
 
The advent of autonomous vehicles has potential to weaken the relationship between parking and retail, opening the door for new types of retail less dependent on dedicated parking. According to HR&A Partner Bob Geolas, autonomous vehicles may help re-focus the emphasis of retail centers on creating a great experience and quality of place for patrons, rather than providing a convenient place to park. Localities can then better support the goals of transit-oriented development by reducing parking requirements and even enacting parking maximums in transit-rich nodes to accompany potential density bonuses. The decreased construction costs that would have gone into providing additional parking could open up new development possibilities.
 
#2 Make strategic investments in complete streets in urban nodes and corridors
Rather than becoming denser, development in the Triangle Region has spread out. The design of our roads exemplifies this. Raleigh Planning Director Ken Bowers expressed that transit works best where it’s comfortable to be a pedestrian, and the key opportunity in the Region is to re-imagine commercial corridors and centers as more dynamic and walkable places. Recent trends in developing at a more compact and pedestrian-friendly urban scale have brought renewed interest in multimodal infrastructure that can accommodate new mobility options. In Raleigh, ride-hailing platforms as well as dockless bikes and scooters are transforming the way sidewalks and streets are used. The Triangle must prepare for the increased prevalence of new mobility modes in designing and planning for future right of ways, for example by:

• Designing rights of way to include better lighting and continuous sidewalks to encourage walkability, and support bike and scooter usage
• Providing convenient curb space for pick-up and drop-off to accommodate the rise of ride-hailing and ridesharing platforms as well as autonomous vehicles
• Piloting the introduction of designated lanes funded by ridesharing platforms (and future autonomous vehicle fleets) that can be adapted over time based on usage and demand.

Intentional investments in place-making or the provision of incentives to encourage public realm improvements can make transit-oriented developments that appeal to residents seeking a car-light lifestyle more viable.
 
#3 Rethink existing transit operations and future transit investments
The Triangle Region is investing to improve accessibility and mobility, including a bus rapid transit system in Wake County, a light rail system connecting Durham and Orange Counties, and the completion of the I-540 loop in southern Wake County. In this time of immense opportunity, local transit agencies in the Triangle must also reimagine their operations. GoTriangle’s current pilot program in Research Triangle Park that replaces existing fixed-route shuttles with free on-demand service within the Park accessible via a mobile phone app, while met with positive feedback, has actually led to decreased ridership. Barriers to ridership for the service include 1) the lack of true destinations within RTP with potential to draw significant patronage from within the Park, and 2) the disincentive to using public transit when one has a private vehicle available and there is ample free parking. A similar on-demand service could function well in a more urban geography that does connect desirable destinations and has less readily-available parking. However, the geometrics of high transit ridership – density, walkability, linearity, and proximity – cannot be overcome with technology alone.
 
Overall, transportation authorities will have to rethink all transit routes and infrastructure to improve service. Transit stations and stops must be capable of accommodating the constant pick-up and drop-off of users in a way that is safe, welcoming, and maintains a steady flow of traffic. Autonomous vehicles can further improve connectivity by allowing transit stops to function as a feeder point for autonomous, shared, and on-demand services. Underperforming routes with low ridership could be replaced with more flexible public or private on-demand services. As autonomous vehicles are introduced into the market, these services can be scaled up and amplified, acting as complementary services that positively impact planned LRT and BRT investments for the Region.
 
HR&A’s Raleigh office is excited to be working in The Research Triangle during this time when great strides are being made with investments in transportation and urban development. However, these plans need to consider the impacts of the mobility revolution that is rapidly unfolding. We can unlock latent development potential confined in parking spaces to build more densely in urban nodes and do so more affordably. We can prioritize designing flexible and multimodal streets and sidewalks to concentrate development. We can rethink our transit systems and partnerships with private actors to provide better services.
 
To achieve these goals our governmental authorities, residents, and the business community must work collaboratively. Throughout the years the Triangle Region has developed a national reputation and strong track record of regional collaboration through endeavors involving economic development, education and job creation, and transportation. The Triangle should draw on this tradition of innovation and partnerships to the benefit of the Region’s residents as we prepare for a driverless future.
 
This paper was co-authored by the following individuals:
 

• Richard Adams, Kimley-Horn
• Summer Alston, City of Durham
• Monica Barrow, STV, Inc.
• Ken Bowers, City of Raleigh
• Bob Geolas, HR&A Advisors
• Peter Gorman, HR&A Advisors
• James Kendall, HR&A Advisors
• Michael Landguth, Raleigh-Durham International Airport
• Jeff Mann, GoTriangle
• Beau Memory, NCDOT
• Ernest Muñoz, Gensler
• Elizabeth Packer, HR&A Advisors
• Julie Paul, Formerly of ULI
• Allen Pratt, Perkins+Will
• Eric Rothman, HR&A Advisors
• Perry Safran, Safran Law
• Kyle Vangel, HR&A Advisors