Dream it.

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Build it.

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Grow it.

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

St. Louis City and County Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy

Required for federal funding related to economic development, this was the first “CEDS” prepared by and for the St. Louis Economic Development Partnership, a joint organization serving both the City of St. Louis and St. Louis County, Missouri.

Greater St. Louis Economic Development Council and Strategy

This was the first metropolitan-scale economic development strategy and organization for bi-state St. Louis. It created a high-level public-private council to oversee the vast network of economic development agencies in the region. Now re-structured as Alliance STL.

Some other stuff. Maybe in Rolla. Maybe not.

For now, a picture of the two coolest kids in the world will suffice.

Lincoln, Nebraska, South of Downtown Neighborhood

Growth momentum from Downtown Lincoln put pressure on land use changes and potential gentrification in areas immediately south of downtown. Market analysis and urban design were combined to recommend highest and best uses without compromising the neighborhood’s special character.

Greenville, South Carolina, West Side Neighborhoods Plan

Downtown Greenville’s immense success with growth, revitalization, and development threatened to overwhelm the three neighborhoods to its west. This planning process assured opportunities for neighborhood growth while preserving the quality of life.

North Riverfront Industrial Economic Development Strategy, St. Louis

3,000 relatively flat acres north of Downtown St. Louis along the Mississippi Riverfront is devoted to large scale industrial operations. This planning process and strategic plan helps assure land use compatibility and relevance for the industrial sector.

Affordable Housing Market and Community Planning Feasibility Studies

Affordable housing development has evolved immensely since 1970s, from the provision of just housing to full community development. McCormack Baron Salazar is a leading affordable housing developer for whom I worked as a market, economic, and community consultant for 20 years.

Ballpark Village Market and Financial Projections, St. Louis

Ballpark Village makes the sporting experience much more fulfilling in downtown St. Louis. But its development alongside Busch Stadium required substantial market and financial projections before investors and city officials could truly believe it would be sustainable.

Salina, Kansas, Downtown Revitalization Projects

Several revitalization projects were proposed in order to re-attract some retail businesses and to increase tourism in Salina. To be funded partly by the State of Kansas “Sales Tax and Revenue” (STAR) bond program, a complex and in-depth financial model was created to inform city and state officials.

St. Louis Downtown Now! Financial Projections

Downtown St. Louis underwent an 18-month comprehensive planning process that resulted in four catalytic project areas. Each area required a building-by-building, lot-by-lot financial analysis based on prospective uses and land use changes in the plan. This attracted millions in investment dollars.

Louisville, Kentucky, Downtown Master Plan

Louisville’s downtown was experiencing a re-birth that attracted the attention of many young investors of “old wealth” families. This master planning process drew together both investors and entrepreneurs to assure that collaborative efforts would yield more than individuals acting alone.

Detroit, Michigan, Downtown Master Plan

By the late 1990s, downtown Detroit was a ghost town. Beautiful and historic architecture, but not many occupants. New sports stadiums and a resurgence of interested in urban living drove a comprehensive plan that makes much of downtown Detroit a model for other cities.

St. Louis Downtown Now! Comprehensive Plan

In the late 1990s, Downtown St. Louis, like Detroit, was seriously declining. Four major organizations funded an 18-month, highly collaborative planning process to identify potential growth opportunities and catalytic project areas for initial reinvestment.

NGA-West Land Use Impacts, St. Louis

St. Louis is home to the western campus of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) which needed a new home. Currently under construction on downtown’s northwest corner, part of its justification was an analysis of potential multiplier effects in terms of new development around NGA.

Fortress Management Site in North St. Charles, Missouri

Fortress Management is a large defense contractor in the St. Louis metro area serving Boeing and other manufacturers. It bought land to expand, then found that it didn’t need that land, so it commissioned a highest and best use analysis to determine its potential future value.

Pontoon Beach, Illinois, Interstate Frontage Property

A land owner of some 600 acres (almost a square mile) where I-255 meets I-270 in Metro East St. Louis needed advice on the most profitable potential uses in order to attract high values and appropriate developers. A challenge of the site: gaining vehicular access from the interstates!

Hampton, Virginia, Competitive Retail Strategy

Facing vast competition within the Hampton Roads area at the southern edge of Chesapeake Bay, the city of Hampton commissioned a detailed retail analysis to identify strategies and potential tenants to rejuvenate the retail supply.

Greenville, South Carolina, Downtown Retail Strategy and Tenanting Program

At the turn of the 21st Century, Greenville’s downtown had been working on revitalization for a quarter century. By then, it had 51 bars and restaurants, but not much retail. The large number of eating and drinking places, however, formed a basis for a highly successful retailing strategy.

Detroit, Michigan, Downtown Retail Strategy and Tenanting Program

Within the context of a new master plan for Downtown Detroit, details of a retailer tenanting strategy were revealed. This served as a guide to downtown organizers as they worked to attract appropriate businesses to serve a multi-dimensional market of workers, residents, and visitors.

West Florissant Avenue Plan in Ferguson and Dellwood, Missouri

West Florissant is a 6-to-8 lane arterial road for commuters from north St. Louis County to downtown St. Louis. But it was wholly unfriendly to pedestrians and retailers. This planning process revealed design and market solutions to maintain the avenue’s traffic purposes while becoming user friendlier.

Gravois Road Plan in Affton, Missouri

Gravois Road is a state-maintained “highway” from downtown St. Louis to deep in the heart of Missouri. As a suburban thoroughfare of the 21stCentury, however, it is too wide and pedestrian unfriendly. Three citizen engagement meetings led to a redesign to help users and businesses alike.

Woodson Road Plan in Overland, Missouri

Once a thriving suburban corridor carrying traffic to St. Louis International Airport, Woodson Road declined with suburban aging and completion of an interstate highway to the airport. This plan identified many ways to make the road and the City of Overland more attractive for re-growth.

Economic Impacts and Financial Projections for St. Louis Arch Grounds Improvements

With an impending 50th anniversary, the Gateway Arch grounds needed more than a facelift to continue as a premier symbol for St. Louis and American history. Some $400 million in private and public money required several impact and financial feasibility studies to accompany the planning.

Economic and Community Impact of Public Transit in Missouri and St. Louis

Every county in Missouri is served by public transit of some form, but state government is a woeful funder. This study documented the impact and importance of public transit for getting people around and for triggering job creation, economic development, and tax revenues.

Kansas City Chiefs Economic Impact in “Chiefs Nation”

Needing to support its own strategic planning and marketing, the NFL Chiefs commissioned an impact study covering their six-state “nation.” The 2020 Super Bowl champions help to support thousands of multiplier jobs and businesses while bringing “new money” into Kansas City.

St. Charles, Missouri, Fifth Street Corridor Plan

Fifth Street is the major entry route into historic St. Charles (older than St. Louis!) but new and old development north from I-70 gave a poor first impression while also functioning badly as a traffic distributor. A great deal of citizen engagement created a vision for a much better gateway street.

Greensboro, North Carolina, Central Gateway Corridor Marketing Strategy

West Lee Street and High Point Road have long served as gateways into Greensboro. A master streetscape plan prompted a need for a broader marketing strategy that could lure more shoppers and residents back to the corridor while better serving the hundreds of thousands of annual visitors.

New Orleans, Louisiana,
Canal Street Master Plan

Canal Street is the ‘Main Street’ of New Orleans, and is the boundary between the historic French Quarter and the city’s central business district. The master plan projected development potential of specific redevelopment ideas, recommended a retail tenanting program, and addressed image, marketability and adjacent neighborhoods.

St. Louis City Climate Sustainability Plan

Emerging from a need for city government to set an example for more efficient use of resources, this planning process became part of a regional effort and resulted in a comprehensive plan for the St. Louis to attract and manage growth using climate-friendly sustainability techniques.

Lake Saint Louis, Missouri, Comprehensive Plan

Lake St. Louis in the western reaches of metro St. Louis grew rapidly, then geographically expanded. This recent comprehensive plan and its process helped to bring together disparate interests while assuring consistent development standards in an increasingly competitive economic and fiscal climate.

Summerville, South Carolina Comprehensive Plan

Founded as a retreat from the heat and humidity of Charleston, Summerville has retained its small town charm but suffers from now-rapid suburbanization. This plan identified three typologies of development to create standards for different types of growth and reinvestment.