Thursday, March 21, 2013 — 3:00 p.m.–4:15 p.m.     

Tools to Help Cities Become More Prepared for Development in the New Normal
This discussion will include a summary of lessons learned from ULI Minnesota’s “Navigating the New Normal” workshops for public officials. The workshops provide a forum to foster a meaningful dialogue between public and private sector leaders with respect to the challenges and opportunities of development and redevelopment created by today’s economic realities, market preferences, and demographic shifts. This session is a must-attend for those looking for models for local engagement on a complex set of issues with clear implications for housing.

Additional Session Resources:

• Presentation

Speaker Biographies

Cathy Capone Bennett, ULI Minnesota
Cathy Capone Bennett has more than 20 years of experience in community and economic development and currently works as a consultant to ULI Minnesota/Regional Council of Mayors, which is a nonprofit organization that actively engages the public and private sector leaders to foster collaboration, share knowledge, and join in meaningful strategic action to create thriving, sustainable communities.

Bennett manages the Regional Council of Mayors Housing Initiative, which partners to implement tools and strategies that support a full range of housing choices in connected, livable communities. This includes providing technical assistance as part of the Opportunity City Program, Navigating the New Normal, and Southwest Corridor Community Works. Technical assistance includes analyzing community change data to strengthen awareness of future development and reinvestment opportunities; developing a regional housing toolkit, MSP Housing + Transportation Cost Calculator and (Re)Development Ready Guide; project management; and public policy facilitation.

Bennett has been consulting since 2006 and previously worked in local government for the Minnesota cities of Mounds View and Roseville and in regional economic development for the San Diego Economic Development Corporation.

John Shardlow, Stantec Consulting Services
John Shardlow is a planning consultant with 34 years of experience in public and private sector land use planning. He has assisted more than 100 cities and counties with a full range of planning services, including a full range of housing studies and plans. He has also assisted hundreds of landowners and developers with all types of land development, including numerous master-planned communities, mixed-use developments, and housing projects of all types, styles, and price points.

Shardlow is the past chair of ULI’s Minnesota District Council (www.uliminnesota.org) and continues to serve as its governance chair, a cochair of the Regional Council of Mayors Environment Committee, and a member of its Housing Advisory Committee. He is a founding board member of the Sensible Land Use Coalition (www.sensibleland.org) and has taught a wide range of planning, land use, and zoning courses for elected and appointed officials for more than 30 years. At the national level, Shardlow chairs the ULI Sustainable Development Council. He was recently selected to lead the TOD Center of Excellence for Stantec Consulting Inc.