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Planning Team

Meet Our Team

The Long-Range Planning Services Division includes the following functional sections: Management and Administration, Comprehensive Planning Program, Neighborhood Planning Program, Urban Design Studio, and the Historic Preservation Office.

 

Management and Administration

 

Brian Boudet, Planning Division Manager 

Brian BoudetBrian is passionate about working in the great City of Tacoma and partnering with the community and other leaders to create a vibrant, dynamic urban place that all can be proud of. Brian brings more than 18 years of local-level community planning and implementation experience and has successfully managed and supervised numerous flagship planning initiatives, including the One Tacoma Plan, Hilltop Subarea Plan & EIS, Infill Residential Design Program, and the Mixed-Use Centers policy and code development projects. As the City’s Planning Division Manager, he is involved in city-wide administration and employee development initiatives, departmental budgeting, project management, consultant administration, and leading long-range land use, environmental, housing and capital facilities planning.

 

Brian holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Urban Geography from the University of Washington, as well as certifications in Supervision and Management from Tacoma Community College and the University of Washington Tacoma’s Milgard School of Business.  He is a founding member of Tacoma’s own urban design lecture series – Conversations Re: Tacoma – and has been a guest lecturer at the Evergreen State College, University of Washington Tacoma, and regional planning conferences.  Before coming to Tacoma, Brian worked as a Current Planner for Pierce County’s Planning and Land Services Department. Beyond work, Brian enjoys spending time outdoors in his native Pacific Northwest; hiking; camping; snowboarding; and playing on the water with his wife, two kids, friends, and family. (Contact Brian Boudet at BBoudet@cityoftacoma.org.)

 

Mary Crabtree, Administrative Assistant
Mary Crabtree

Mary is the Administrative Assistant to the long-range planners and historic preservation officers for the City of Tacoma. She was born and raised in East Texas but planted roots in Washington in 2011. Mary earned an Associate in Business and certificates in customer service, entrepreneurship, human resources management, sales, and supervision and management from Pierce College.

 

She is committed to learning new things and growing personally and professionally, to add value to herself and to those around her. During her time off, Mary loves crafting, spending time with family, and hiking in the great outdoors when it is not raining. (Contact Mary Crabtree at MCrabtree@cityoftacoma.org.)

 

 

Comprehensive Planning Program

 

Stephen Atkinson, Principal Planner, Program Lead

Steve AtkinsonStephen is a Principal Planner for the City of Tacoma, and has managed multiple long-range planning initiatives, including a makeover of the City’s Shoreline Master Program and Comprehensive Plan. Stephen has a Master of Regional Planning degree from Cornell University and a Bachelor of Arts in Urban Studies from the University of Washington, Tacoma.

 

After graduation, Stephen spent considerable time wandering and studying urban and rural China, from Beijing to the small village of Xizhou in Yunnan Province. In his downtime, Stephen enjoys urban farming with his family, rainforest hikes, reading sports blogs, karaoke, and homebrew. (Contact Stephen Atkinson at SAtkinson@cityoftacoma.org.)


Elliott Barnett, Senior Planner

Elliott BarnettElliott has worked as an urban planner, in one capacity or another, since 2001. He was drawn to planning out of a heartfelt enthusiasm for great urban spaces and experiences, and an equally heartfelt concern about the long term sustainability of our environment. Planning has been a rewarding career which has brought Elliott from the San Francisco Bay Area to Chapel Hill, North Carolina, to the City of Groningen in the Netherlands, and finally to the Puget Sound region. Elliott and his wife moved to Tacoma about 16 years ago. They put down roots and are happy to be raising two boys in this lovely city.

 

As a planner for the City of Tacoma, Elliott has worked on a range of policy initiatives including parks and open space planning, residential design and infill, active transportation and complete streets planning and design, and subarea planning. Some of his recent accomplishments include the Tacoma Mall Neighborhood Subarea Plan and the Prairie Line Trail Historic Interpretive Project. Elliott grew up in Oakland, CA, got his Bachelors in French Language and Literature in Eugene, OR, and received his Masters of Regional Planning from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill in 2000. (Contact Elliott Barnett at EBarnett@cityoftacoma.org.)

 

Maryam Moeinian, Senior Planner
Maryam Moeinian

Maryam is an international City Planner from Tehran, Iran. She holds a Master of Urban Planning degree from Minnesota State University-Mankato and earned her Bachelor of Science in Urban Engineering from Azad University of Iran. She has been working as a City Planner/Urban Designer for both public and private entities since 2012. She has a thorough understanding of local planning from her experience working for multiple cities in Washington, Arizona and Minnesota.

 

Outside of work, Maryam enjoys exploring new places within the city, hiking, camping, backpacking, attending Persian ceremonies, and spending time with her fiancé, their dog, and two cats. She also has a passion for traveling, which has taken her on adventures across three continents, encompassing 21 countries, 29 U.S. states, and 27 Iranian provinces. With each journey, her understanding of the world deepened, increasing her commitment to sustainable urban development. (Contact Maryam Moeinian at MMoeinian@cityoftacoma.org.)

 

Wesley Rhodes, Senior Planner

Wesley RhodesWesley is a Senior Planner supporting long-range planning initiatives for the City of Tacoma. Prior to moving to Tacoma, he worked as a planner in NYC and Nashville, TN. He has a wide range of planning experience working for nonprofits and international NGOs, city and regional governments, and private consulting firms. Most of his work has been at the intersection of climate resiliency and transportation planning, and he is passionate about public engagement. Wesley has an MS in Urban Planning from Columbia University in the City of New York and a BS in Urban Studies from Tennessee State University.

 

Outside of work he enjoys nature and hiking, running, cooking, coffee, and meditation. He is also an avid traveler having visited more than 30 countries on five continents. He is excited to call the PNW home having settled in Tacoma with his wife and their two cats. (Contact Wesley Rhodes at WRhodes@cityoftacoma.org.)


Alyssa Torrez, Senior Planner
Alyssa Torrez

Alyssa is a Senior Planner supporting the Home in Tacoma initiative as well as other long-range planning initiatives for the City of Tacoma. Before coming to the City, she worked with the Tacoma Housing Authority where she was a program manager and worked to bring community voices to affordable housing projects in Tacoma’s diverse Hilltop neighborhood. In addition to her work in affordable housing, Alyssa worked in community outreach and early childhood with PBS stations, supporting learning goals for children and families in low-income areas throughout the greater Tacoma area. 

 

Alyssa grew up in Southern California, living and working in diverse areas and building skills and passion for community engagement. Living in Tacoma for eight years, Alyssa continues this passion by serving on several local boards, including the Hilltop Action Coalition and Write 253. She holds a bachelor’s degree from California State University Fullerton in Communications and Public Relations and a Masters in Community Planning from the University of Washington Tacoma. In her free time, Alyssa manages her household full of animals and shared housing housemates and enjoys attending community events. (Contact Alyssa Torrez at ATorrez@cityoftacoma.org.)

 

Adam Nolan, Associate Planner
Adam Nolan

Adam is an Associate Planner with the long-range planning team at City of Tacoma. Military service brought him to the Puget Sound-region, and he has since worked as a laborer and in the service industry, alongside education and activism experiences. Upon completing undergraduate studies, he held project management and/or consultant roles in the production of a documentary film, in local oral history and storytelling projects, and other community-based projects.

 

Since completing the MA Community Planning program at UW Tacoma, he has worked as a social service provider assisting homeless veterans and families in obtaining permanent housing and accessing a broad range of resources. Outside of work, he enjoys running around streets and trails, hiking and backpacking, exploring music, and spending time with friends/family. (Contact Adam Nolan at ANolan@cityoftacoma.org.)

 

Madeline Borowski, Comprehensive Planning Intern

Madeline is originally from Detroit, MI, but has been living in Seattle since 2019 and is proud to call the Pacific Northwest her home. She recently graduated from the University of Washington with a BA in Architecture and a minor in Urban Design & Planning. Throughout her time as an undergraduate student, she explored a wide range of disciplines within the College of Built Environments— a major highlight of her academic career was spending the spring of 2022 in Rome, studying public space, sustainable urban design, and social housing.

 

Previously, Madeline worked as an intern at the City of Woodinville, where she focused on surface water management projects in the Public Works Department. In her free time, she is a bread baker, natural wine enjoyer, reader, novice gardener, and cat parent. (Contact Madeline Borowski at MBorowski@cityoftacoma.org.)

 

 

Neighborhood Planning Program

 

Lauren Hoogkamer, Principal Planner, Program Lead

Lauren Hoogkamer

Lauren is the Principal Planner leading the City of Tacoma's Neighborhood Planning Program. She specializes in equitable outreach, engagement, and communications for planning and preservation issues. For seven years she served as the Assistant Historic Preservation Officer for the City of Tacoma where she managed the award winning outreach and education program, as well as staffed the Landmarks Preservation Commission. She holds an MS in Historic Preservation and an MS in Urban Planning from Columbia University, as well as a BA/BA in Print Journalism and History and a Minor in Business from the University of Southern California.

 

Previously, Lauren was a historic preservation consultant under her own business, Cultural Resources Research and Consulting. She has also received awards for journalism and poetry and has research published by the World Monuments Fund. Lauren grew up in rural Lewis County, WA, but now lives in Tacoma with her husband, two sons, a dog, and a cat. Lauren's goals are to ensure that our built environment represents and meets the needs of our diverse community. Her work is inspired by her experiences as a multicultural woman-- she is Mexican, Trinidadian, Black, French, Chinese, South Indian, European, and currently exploring her Latinx indigenous roots. (Contact Lauren Hoogkamer at LHoogkamer@cityoftacoma.org.)

 

Anneka Olson, Senior Planner

Anneka Olson

Anneka is an urban planner in Tacoma’s neighborhood planning program, where she helps connect communities with opportunities to shape the future of their neighborhoods. After five years in New Orleans working on bike and pedestrian advocacy, she moved to Tacoma to complete her MA in Community Planning at University of Washington Tacoma and also worked in the City of Tacoma’s Historic Preservation Office.

 

Since then, her community planning work has taken her to the Bay Area, Maui, Denmark, and even inside the West Seattle Bridge – but she can’t imagine a more important and interesting place to work than Tacoma’s neighborhoods. A fourth-generation Washingtonian, she is also a board member of Downtown on the Go! and the Washington Trust for Historic Preservation. In her spare time, she loves to bike, cook, and listen to jazz. (Contact Anneka Olson at AOlson@cityoftacoma.org.)

 

Leander Swan, Neighborhood Planning Intern

Leander SwanLeander is a planning intern in Tacoma’s Neighborhood Planning Program. He supports the Program by fielding outreach and engagement, assisting in communications and presentations, documenting and researching best planning practices, and coordinating support between partners for neighborhood plan implementation. Prior to working at the City of Tacoma, Leander had just completed his BA in Sociology – Environmental Studies at Whitman College, where he also worked on conservation in the Blue Mountain Land Trust and environmental justice planning practices in the College’s Trees and Landscaping Committee.

Currently, Leander is pursuing a Master of Urban Planning and Design at University of Washington in Seattle. He looks forward to bolstering his work at the City of Tacoma using the innovative and just planning practices learned at the UW, pushing for proactive, healthy, inclusive, community-agentic, and sustainable planning. Growing up in the Seattle area, Leander has always enjoyed photography, playing trumpet and anything else music, as well as exploring both the cities and countryside of Washington. (Contact Leander Swan at LSwan@cityoftacoma.org.) 

 

Urban Design Studio

 

Stephen Antupit, Senior Planner

Stephen AntupitAs a Senior Planner, Stephen brings to the Urban Design Studio deep passion and diverse expertise to support equity, resilience, and livability. His portfolio includes urban design and planning accomplishments at the Comprehensive Plan policy level, crafting Land Use Code provisions, launching and leading Station Area Planning and large-scale mixed-income redevelopment programs, and crafting and implementing award-winning master plan visions. Stephen equally enjoys challenges at detailed, site and streetscape scales as well as complex initiatives of citywide and regional impact.

 

In all, Stephen embraces a commitment to inclusive stakeholder engagement, creative partnerships, and strategic fun with a purpose. He has served as city and public agency staff, as a design team consultant, and as an engaged professional on behalf of Northwest communities large and small for three decades. He considers his marriage and two grown children to be his greatest source of pride and joy. Stephen holds a Master of Urban Design in Landscape Architecture from the University of Washington and a Bachelor of Liberal Arts and Sciences in Renewable Energy Policy from The Colorado College. (Contact Stephen Antupit at SAntupit@cityoftacoma.org.)

   
Carl Metz, Senior Planner

Carl MetzCarl is a Senior Planner supporting the Urban Design program. Before he moved to Tacoma with his family in 2019, he worked as a Planner in cities in Oregon and Arizona. He has a wide range of planning experience, from reviewing building permits to processing all manner of land use applications as well as managing historic preservation programs. Carl has a Masters of Urban and Environmental Planning and a BA in Political Science with a minor in Urban Planning from Arizona State University.

 

Outside of work, he loves spending time with his family, traveling, and getting outside as much as possible for hikes, bike rides, or lawn bowling at Wright Park. He is passionate about planning issues and considers it a great privilege to work for the City of Tacoma. (Contact Carl Metz at CMetz@cityoftacoma.org.)

 

Kristin Bauer, Urban Design Studio Intern
Kristin Bauer

Kristin recently graduated from the University of Washington Tacoma with her B.S. in Urban Design this past June. Previous projects included conducting research on anti-racist municipality policies for UWT and acting as a part-time instructor for a condensed Intro to Urban Design course during the summer. She’s happy to continue working in Tacoma and can’t wait to see what this city will teach her next.

 

When she’s not working on design projects, she is usually baking, heading to her local yoga studio, camping, or playing board games with her husband. (Contact Kristin Bauer at KBauer@cityoftacoma.org.)

 

 

Historic Preservation Office

 

Reuben McKnight, Historic Preservation Officer

Reuben McKnightReuben has been Historic Preservation Officer at the City of Tacoma since 2003. He has a Masters of Urban Planning from the University of Washington, and an undergraduate degree in Anthropology from Western Washington University. Reuben has served on the Board of Directors for the Washington Trust for Historic Preservation, the National Alliance of Preservation Commissions and Preservation Action, as well as a term on the Seattle Landmarks Preservation Board.

 

Prior to working in Historic Preservation, Reuben worked as a field archaeologist in Oregon, Washington, and Idaho. (Contact Reuben McKnight at RMcKnigh@cityoftacoma.org.)

 
Susan Johnson, Historic Preservation Coordinator

Susan Johnson

Prior to becoming the Historic Preservation Coordinator, Susan spent fourteen years as an Architectural Historian with Artifacts Consulting, Inc. She obtained her MS in Historic Preservation from the University of Oregon and has worked on a wide variety of preservation projects in the Pacific Northwest, including but not limited to compliance documentation, state and federal tax incentive-funded rehabilitations, register nominations, cultural landscape reports, preservation plans, and survey/inventory.

 

Before pursuing a career in historic preservation, Susan worked as a draft animal handler and a craftsperson in metal and wood on historic farms in the Midwest. She holds a BA in Anthropology from Kalamazoo College and has lived abroad in Scotland and in Guatemala. As part of her Peace Corps service in the latter, she worked in community outreach and agricultural training. She has conversational proficiency in Spanish. (Contact Susan Johnson at SJohnson7@cityoftacoma.org.)

  

Tina Nailor, Historic Preservation Intern 
Tina Nailor

Tina recently graduated from the University of Washington, Tacoma with a Bachelor of Arts in Urban Studies with a minor in Global Engagement and holds an Associate’s Degree in Architectural Technology from SUNY Orange Community College of Middletown, NY.

She has designed affordable housing for with Habitat for Humanity in Newburgh, NY. Working internationally, she has collaborated with nonprofit organizations, to reintegrate former US military sites back into the urban fabric through renewable energy infrastructures. Her published research has focused on the social and cultural formation and how it is impacted by the built environment.

 

Outside of work she enjoys exploring local businesses and events with friends and family, and trying out new activities outdoors, rain or shine. (Contact Tina Nailor at TNailor@cityoftacoma.org.)

 

 

 



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