Hi, I'm Laura. I'm an urban planner and project manager committed to building sustainable cities.
Master of City Planning, University of Pennsylvania
LEED GA Certified
/ Work
Climate Tech
Exploring ways to responsibly integrate new technologies into the built environment to develop equitable and sustainable cities.
This report offers Penn eight actionable recommendations on how to integrate urban tech to deepen campus decarbonization. I was invited to present my recommendations to Penn's President and to sit on a Penn Sustainability subcommittee.
The City of Philadelphia is siting its EVSE roll out. This data-driven index makes a case for prioritizing EJ. It is intended to power a scalable web application.
Sunbrella is a public furniture prototype powered by solar and Arduino. At our final class review, Philadelphia's Smart City Director said, "Find the money. We'll pilot it tomorrow."
Urban Resiliency
Weaving sustainable design and community interests to enhance the lived experience for all residents.
Salem, NJ is shrinking and sinking. However, there is potential to reindustrialize with the growth of the green economy. We developed a strategy to leverage civic assets such as Salem Community College's only-in-the-nation glass science program and the nearby New Jersey Wind Port project to map out a new regional workforce pipeline cognizant of sea level rise.
As part of the US State Department's Diplomacy Lab, we developed a pedestrian and bike network for Bucha, Ukraine. We presented our work to the Ukrainian Ambassador to the US, who endorsed our work and exlaimed, "If we built this, my kids could bike to school!"
I led design and product for this digital tool which was built with the Benton Institute for public advocates from cities big and small to quickly investigate and compare digital advancement metrics.
As the Special Projects Manager at Two Trees, I worked with Field Ops to reuse salvaged building materials througout the park. The park complies with FEMA's 10' guideline, is 'ferry ready' and provides much needed recreational space in NYC.
The BQX proposal was developed by Two Trees. I led the branding and creative, including all illustrations which strongly influenced the final design. All of the renderings depict real scenes and people in NYC.
Spatial Analytics
Levering R, Python, and GIS to develop data visualizations that tell stories about the opportunities and challenges within cities.
In 2022, the City of Philadelphia launched a smart loading zone pilot downtown. We conducted a first-pass analysis using clustering and Random Forest Modeling to predict when and where loading zones would be most popular.
This study explores what variables about neighborhoods best predict Zestimate® pricing. The goal was to develop a generizable model usable beyond Philadelphia.
Set in Chattanooga, TN, this study explores the local bikeshare program's usage patterns and local context fators to develop a predictive model to inform a bike-station rebalancing strategy.
A straightfoward set of maps to highlight how Mecklenburg County's racial and income inequalities correlate with unequal access to voting, banking, and public transit.
Real Estate
Developing human-centered concepts anchored by researach, community input, and considered design.
Six Peak Capital is a vertically integrated real estate developer committed to building urban infill properties that offer more accessible rents. I led their product strategy and managed interior development across 12+ properties in LA and NYC.
While at Two Trees, I led the first repositioning and marketing strategy for the Domino Sugar Factory with Beyer Blinder Belle and PAU Architects. I worked with Berlin Rosen, Sagmeister Walsh, and Newmark to execute a unique coffee table book about its history and future vision.
I consulted Hines' new Netherlands teams on a masterplan for a €30 million land bid. The proposed vision was a zero-carbon light industrial island anchored by makerspaces and renewed access to the surrounding canals.
I worked with local planners and program managers to devise a redevelopment scheme for 2 1800s market halls. I successfully presented the scheme with Allied to Manchester City Council.
In 18 months, we assembled a local team of interior designers, graphic designers, and construcion crews to conceptualize and build 18 unique food market stalls. For many chefs, it was their first brick and mortar. The food hall was acquired in 2019.
