In this episode of In Development, our hosts chat with Don Iveson, a former city councillor, mayor and current housing & sustainability expert. They discuss the historical context of Edmonton's infill policy environment, challenges we continue to face and how a better future will require collaboration between all orders of government. Don's deep knowledge of municipal politics and breadth of experience make for an informative, fascinating listen.

Biography:

Don Iveson served four terms at Edmonton City Hall, initially as Councillor representing the southwest corner of the City. Prior to elected office, he worked in University campus media and then post-secondary education policy. Don served as Edmonton’s 35th Mayor from 2013 to 2021 with a guiding leadership principle to make things better for the next generation. This long-term view is now embedded in through Edmonton’s City Plan and Energy Transition Strategy. After his time on Council, Don Iveson founded Civic Good, a public policy advisory practice working on climate resilience, housing affordability, and attentive governance with clients ranging from startups to governments. His primary engagement is with Co-operators as Executive Advisor with the Resilience Acceleration Lab. Don continues to live in Edmonton, though he works with organizations across Canada, through his work as Chairperson of the Canada Housing and Mortgage Corporation. He writes occasionally about his work and about Canadian public policy over on the Civic Good Substack.

In this episode, Eleanor Mohammed and Peter Spearey join our host Stephen to discuss the Edmonton Design Awards, great examples of urban design and its importance to building great public spaces. Learn about the jury process, philosophy and goals of Edmonton Design Week and how our guests see it evolving over time.

Biographies:
Peter Spearey
Peter is an award-winning landscape architect and urban designer with over twenty-five years experience exploring how thoughtful design can shape engaging, authentic and sustainable places. Peter’s practice merges placemaking and sustainable urbanism through a creative and collaborative approach to design.

Peter has worked in both the private and public sector on a wide range of community planning, landscape architecture, urban design and environmental graphic design assignments across Western and Northern Canada. Since 2016, Peter has served as Lead Urban Designer for the City of Edmonton. In this role, Peter has been responsible for delivering the City’s urban design program, including the development of urban design policy and strategy, providing reviews of development applications and City infrastructure projects, overseeing the Edmonton Design Committee, and planning and hosting the biennial Edmonton Urban Design Awards.
At the end of November, Peter will be leaving the City of Edmonton to take on the position of Chief Urban Designer for the City of Calgary.

Eleanor Mohammed

Eleanor Mohammed, RPP, FCIP, EP, MTCP, is a globally recognized Urban Planner with over two
decades of leadership in the public, private, and non-profit sectors. A Partner at DIALOG, she
advances transformative solutions in urban governance and land use planning. Currently the
Chair of the UN-Habitat Professionals Forum and a Board Director at Canada’s National Capital
Commission, she drives local and global initiatives in sustainable city-building and climate
resilience. A former President of the Commonwealth Association of Planners and the Canadian
Institute of Planners, she has spearheaded diverse projects from sustainable development
advocacy to professional capacity building and multilateral international engagement. She was
recognized on the Royal Town Planning Institute’s (U.K.) International Women of Influence list
and is a passionate professional who is a sought-after keynote at international events. Eleanor
holds a Master of Arts with Distinction in Town and Country Planning from the University of the
West of England (U.K.) and an Honours Bachelor

Register for the IDEA Symposium:
https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/1571928493439?aff=oddtdtcreator

Register for the Celebration of Planning:
https://www.albertaplanners.com/civicrm/event/info?id=750&reset=1

In this episode, our hosts chat with Neal LaMontagne, professional planner & academic about his perspectives on planning and pedagogy. Learn about the differences between various Canadian planning programs, the development of a planning school in Edmonton and what skills Neal sees as key to planning excellence in the future.

Neal's Biography:

Neal LaMontagne is a practicing city planner with a decade and a half of experience in the public and private sectors in California and B.C. Previously the Manager of Long Range and Community Planning for the City of North Vancouver, he seeks to shape the urban environment in a just, sustainable and collaborative manner through policy, regulation and community dialogue.

Past experience includes work as a senior planner for the City of Vancouver on civic sustainability, transportation and housing issues, as a consultant on comprehensive city and local area plans, zoning codes, design guidelines, and urban design strategies in the U.S. and Canada, and as an adjunct professor at the NewSchool of Architecture and Design, San Diego State University and the University of California San Diego.

Neal received his master's in urban planning from McGill University and is currently completing a PhD in urban planning at the University of California Los Angeles. His academic interests include urban design policy and regulatory frameworks, the political economy of the built environment, complexity and adaptive urbanism, urban design history and planning practice.