About the studio
Team members were first- and second-year students in the Urban Planning program at Columbia University. The team members are:
Ryan Devlin (rtd2101@columbia.edu) was born in Santiago, Chile but lived all but the first 8 months of his life in Washington, DC. He has spent most of his academic career in rural Virginia (4 years in Williamsburg, and 1 in Blacksburg) and is glad to finally be back in a city, and not just any city, but New York. His academic interests include community development in minority communities, ethnic economies, and immigration issues. He will be graduating this summer on completion of his thesis, which is about socioeconomic incorporation of American born children of Mexican immigrants in New York.
Aaron Donovan (donovan@nytimes.com), 27, worked for three years as a clerk, editor and reporter for The New York Times before coming to the urban planning program. Among other articles, he wrote the ‘Neediest Cases’ column, a daily feature on poverty in New York that appears from November to February as a holiday season fund-raising effort. He is interested in land use, zoning, real estate development, housing and transportation.
Seth Myers (smm2044@columbia.edu) was born in the foothills of Maine, far from any cities, which naturally lead him into urban planning. First though, he spent three years as a local TV news producer, working in Little Rock and Chicago. After 5 months of backpacking in Central America, he came to enrolled in the Columbia master’s program with one goal: study zoning in Chinatown. Under the tutelage of Richard Bass he learned the arcane intricacies of New York City zoning law and wielded them to serve the people of Chinatown. After school he plans to stay in New York or immigrate to Cuba.
Melissa Neuman (man2013@columbia.edu): Since receiving her undergraduate degree from Harvard University, Melissa has worked in organizations focusing on social policy and women's and children's issues. Her planning interests include: international and comparative planning, gender and development, and planning and public health.
Juan Rivero (jjr2033@columbia.edu)
Juan Rivero is a second year urban planning student at Columbia's
graduate program, where he is concentrating on economic development. He
has recently worked at the Department of City Planning analyzing workforce
demographics in the Special Garment District in connection with the Hudson
Yards project. He has also conducted interviews and undertaken research
relating to various reports being prepared at the Center for an Urban
Future, among them, one identifying recent trends in industrial real estate
in New York City. His interest in the City's manufacturing sector stems
partly from his work in the Spring semester's Chinatown Studio.
Prior to attending Columbia's Planning Program, Juan worked as an attorney.
After graduating from the University of Chicago Law School, he moved to
New York, where he worked at a major corporate law firm for three years.
Juan hails from the land of milk and honey, Puerto Rico. In his spare
time, he writes songs, posts them on MP3.com, and sits by the phone waiting
for record companies to call. He has been waiting for a while.
.
Shannon L. Roberts (slr2024@columbia.edu) is a Master of Science candidate in Columbia University's Urban Planning Program, where she is concentrating in Physical Planning. Prior to starting her graduate work, Shannon worked in public relations for the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC. There she utilized her Bachelor of Arts degree in Art History from the University of Michigan. Shannon grew up in Oshkosh, Wisconsin and is an enrolled member of the Oneida Tribe of Wisconsin.
Ofelia Rodriguez (oar2002@columbia.edu) After receiving her B.S. in architecture from MIT, Ofelia worked for two years as an architectural and urban designer in San Francisco. She is currently pursuing an M.S. in urban planning at Columbia University, specializing in land use planning and redevelopment strategies. For the Chinatown studio, Ofelia was responsible for gathering demographic and political data.
Kovid Saxena (ks2140@columbia.edu) is developing a sector specialization in affordable housing, as a part of Columbia University's Urban Planning Program curriculum. He graduated with a professional degree in architecture from the University of Bombay, India, in 1999 and has since worked with planning and architectural practices. At preset, Kovid is interning with Columbia University's Urban Technical Assistance Project and also assisting New Amsterdam Development Consultants on a research project focusing on affordable housing in New York City. Other interests include traveling, exploring new cultures and living the reality of a global village to the fullest.
TA: Christine Grimando (cg2018@columbia.edu) was the teaching assistant for the Chinatown Studio. Having mostly finished her Masters degree in the department this Spring, she is continuing her interests in responsible land use and economic development via enrollment in a PhD in Geography program beginning this Fall.
Professor: Richard Bass (rbass@herrick.com) Richard Bass, the former Planning Director of the Manhattan Borough President's Office, Jersey City and the City of Coral Gables, joined Herrick, Feinstein, LLP as a Senior Real Estate Analyst, in January 2000, after working in the office of Stadtmauer Bailkin LLP as a Project Associate.
Mr. Bass is a licensed professional planner with over 26 years of development and planning experience. He is recognized in the New York/New Jersey region and the State of Florida for his expertise in community and economic development, comprehensive and strategic planning, zoning and affordable housing. He has been involved with large-scale residential, commercial and retail developments, accomplished economic retention/relocation projects, and worked in Baltimore's and Harlem's Empowerment Zones. Mr. Bass started his career in Jerusalem planning new towns for the State of Israel.
He has a Masters of Urban Planning from Hunter College and an undergraduate degree from the University of South Florida. Mr. Bass is a professionally licensed planner in New Jersey and is an American Institute Certified Planner (AICP). Mr. Bass is presently an adjunct professor at Columbia University, and has taught at Hunter College and other universities. He is a frequent speaker concerning planning, development and community empowerment.
About the client: Rebuild Chinatown Initiative
The studio client, the Rebuild Chinatown Initiative (RCI), is a community-based organization sponsored by Asian Americans for Equality, Inc. RCI is working in partnership with government, planners, and neighborhood residents and businesses to preserve and revitalize Manhattan's Chinatown neighborhood.
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