CHAIR

Katy is an award-winning urban planning professional and funding specialist with more than ten years of experience. She specializes in transportation planning, economic development, and public policy in distressed and disadvantaged communities. She has a talent for creating catalytic community impacts using infrastructure investment. As a member of Stantec’s North American Funding Program, Katy helps clients navigate complex funding opportunities and position their projects for maximum community benefits.

Skilled in project management and policy analysis, she ensures impactful and meaningful community-driven outcomes in all her work. Katy is passionate about building places people love and has helped communities and clients secure over $240M in federal, state, and private funding to bring their ideas to life.

VICE CHAIR

As a planning and community development professional, Matt Pleasant enjoys collaboratively working with diverse groups to cultivate vision, build consensus, and guide strategic land use decisions to improve the quality of life in Indianapolis.

In his current position as the Administrator of Current Planning for the City of Indianapolis Department of Metropolitan Development, Matt supervises a team of 12 planners and 4 support staff. Most recently, Matt worked as a Land Use Professional at Nelson & Frankenberger, a law firm representing both residential and commercial developers seeking zoning approvals with various jurisdictions of the Indianapolis metropolitan area. Prior to that role, Matt worked as an Associate Planner for the City of Westfield.

Matt has also served as President and Vice President for the Irvington Community Council. He is accredited with the American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP) and graduated from the University of Oklahoma’s Economic Development Institute. Matt holds a Master of Community Planning and B.A. in Geography (Human Emphasis) from the University of Cincinnati. Matt lives in the Historic Irvington neighborhood with his wife, daughter, twin sons, and two dogs. He enjoys supporting local restaurants and bars, streaming the latest tv series, and enjoying the City parks with his family.

TREASURER

Angie Schmitt is a Cleveland-based writer and urban planner. She is the author of Right of Way: Race, Class and the Silent Epidemic of Pedestrian Deaths in America, which was published in 2020 by Island Press and named one of the top urban planning books of 2020. She is the founder of 3MPH Planning and Consulting, which works with leading change makers around the country advancing safer policies and infrastructure. Her writing has appeared in Slate, Vox, The New York Times, CNN Business and other publications. She is a mother of two and hasn’t owned her own car in nearly a decade.  

CLERK

Christina Jesse is a Planning Administrator at the City of Carmel, a graduate from Indiana University Bloomington, summa cum laude, and a member of Phi Beta Kappa. She holds three bachelor’s degrees in Environmental and Sustainability Studies, Gender Studies, and Media. In 2020, Christina completed two master's degrees at Ball State University, one in Urban and Regional Planning and another in Urban Design. Since 2019, Christina has worked with the City of Carmel Department of Community Services and currently specializes in current residential and commercial development. Christina is a member of American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP) with the American Planning Association and holds CNU-Accredited professional membership with the Congress for the New Urbanism. She hopes to utilize her design experience and passion for environmentalism to specialize in sustainable urban agriculture, affordable housing operations, and transit-oriented development.

OPERATIONS

Justin is a Planner with the Eastgate Regional Council of Governments, where he has worked on projects relating to the dam removals along the Mahoning River, community wastewater planning, the Youngstown SMART2 Network, improving transportation in the region through the lens of multimodal accessibility and active transportation, and has been a part of the Healthy Community Partnership of the Mahoning Valley at the Steering Committee and Action Team level for the past few years. He also spends his time volunteering as the Co-Founder and Co-Executive Director of Thrive Mahoning Valley, a Board member and Mill Creek Maple volunteer for the Rocky Ridge Neighborhood Association, and a member of the Wean Foundation's Neighborhood SUCCESS Resident Council. The common thread through Justin's professional and volunteer work is that those efforts result in a better quality of life for the people that are often overlooked or ignored by the system. He believes that people deserve to have safe and equitable access to resources and that they should have the autonomy and dignity to do so on their own terms.

COMMUNICATIONS

Dan Baisden is Administrator of Neighborhood Planning and Activation for the City of Fort Wayne Indiana and serves as the past chair for CNU Midwest. Prior to his current position, Dan spent several years as a neighborhood planner/public art manager for the City of Fort Wayne and was the Executive Director of Main Street Van Wert. Growing up near Akron Ohio, Dan is passionate about the Legacy Cities of the Midwest and has dedicated years of research toward community development and engagement strategies for these communities with limited resources.

Dan is a graduate of Arizona State University with degrees in Urban Planning and Urban Sociology, and received his Masters in Community Development from Penn State University, Dan won the Edison Research award in 2011 and was named one of Fort Wayne's 40 Under 40 in 2015 , 

AT-LARGE

Alex Betsch is the Director of Planning at Bayer Becker in Cincinnati.  As a consultant and Certified Planner, he believes every great design starts with a collective vision.  That means working with community members, other design professionals, and key stakeholders to build places people love.  Alex has developed design principles that are in alignment with the Congress for New Urbanism to help guide his team through the plan-making process. 

Alex graduated from the University of Cincinnati School of Planning in 2012.  He has a wide range of experience that includes small-scale urban infill projects, mixed-use developments, and large-scale community master plans.  He’s even had the pleasure of working on several agrihood communities.

AT-LARGE

Brian Boland is focused on residential and mixed-use properties in traditional urban neighborhoods and says long before he knew anything about urban design or planning or urbanism he was an urbanist by nature. When most people were moving out of Covington, he and his wife and moved in.  The couple purchased a historic home and over time have built a portfolio of holdings around the Cincinnati Metro.

Serving as one of the founding members of the Midwest Chapter, Brian says "The CNU community has inspired me and I continue my work as a small part of the greater project of creating places people love — one building at a time."

CHICAGO SUBCHAPTER REPRESENTATIVE

Baird Bream is a Senior Associate at Cambridge Systematics, Inc. (CS) team with a specialization in human services transportation planning, regulatory compliance and performance management. He has experience applying regulatory standards to operational environments, organizational frameworks, and planning processes to ensure compliance with Federal and state program standards and to encourage the adoption of best practices. He has developed project prioritization and policy analysis frameworks to support long-range planning efforts for transportation departments and transit agencies across the country, with a focus area on emerging mobility solutions for non-traditional transit markets and populations.

AT-LARGE

Mary Kate Genis is an Architectural Designer for KZF Design in Cincinnati. Mary Kate is a graduate of the University of Cincinnati with a degree in Architecture. In addition to her role with CNU Midwest, she is the VP of Development for the League of Women Voters of Greater Cincinnati.

She believes that physical and social connection is central to the success of communities. Mary Kate joined CNU Midwest to act on her beliefs through the principles of New Urbanism and connect with others that are working to do the same. 

AT-LARGE

Elise is a recent graduate from Ball State University in Urban Planning and Development through the College of Architecture and Planning. She is from Fort Wayne, Indiana but has enjoyed embedding herself into the Muncie community through consistent community service and volunteering. Previously, she has been awarded the University's Top 100 Student award, has served as the President of SPA, the student planning association on campus, and participated in other student organizations. Finally, Elise is a passionate cyclist who is motivated to making cities more bicycle and pedestrian friendly across the Midwest. Elise is employed by Greater Fort Wayne working in Economic Development.

AT-LARGE

Dr Kenna is a dedicated and skilled evaluator and researcher for Pittsburgh Public School District’s Office of Data, Research, Evaluation and Assessment. He is a highly motivated academic, manager, evaluator, and researcher with a wide range of management, leadership, evaluation, research, and teaching experience. He has studied and worked on three continents: Africa, Europe, and North America. He held various administrative and management positions including academic and research vice president, college dean, administrative and development vice dean, high school principal, evaluator, lecturer, researcher, and tutor.

Dr. Kenna has contributed a wealth of research to the field of mathematics education. His doctoral study focused on mathematics education and technology. He loves to spend his free time gardening and walking.

AT-LARGE

MK Lindsey is Vice President of Real Estate Development at Crawford Hoying in Columbus, OH. For the last decade, MK's work has centered around creating dynamic destinations - distilleries, museums, corporate visitor centers, parks, and walkable neighborhoods. MK has a unique blend of experience in storytelling, master planning, project management, construction, historic redevelopment, and finance. She works with architects, designers, engineers, municipal staff, builders, bankers, and equity investors to make difficult, multi-year projects happen across the region. With a project portfolio of ~$1.5B across 7 states, her key projects have included the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience in downtown Louisville, KY, Sagamore Spirit Distillery in Baltimore, MD, the American Civil War Museum in Richmond, VA, and mixed-use district developments in Dayton, Cincinnati, Louisville, and Ann Arbor. A proud liberal arts advocate and Louisville native, she received her B.A. in Political Science + History from the University of Louisville.

AT-LARGE

Jeff Raser, AIA, is the owner of Cincinnati Urban Design and Architecture Studio (CUDA Studio). Jeff has worked as an architect in a 30+ year career designing dozens of projects. Early in Jeff’s career he realized it is the space outside and between buildings that is the focus of his passion.

Since then, Jeff has studied the art, science, and economics of Urban Design – especially the creation of pedestrian-friendly places. He has master-planned new communities, created strategic urban design plans for existing urban neighborhoods, and created zoning codes (including form-based codes) which allow developers to profitably create what communities want and need. As an architect he’s designed many new urban-infill buildings – and restored historic ones – helping communities realize their full potential. Jeff is an advocate for the design and codification of pedestrian-friendly mixed-used places and has written and lectured on the fundamentals of good urban design.

At-Large

Jeff Siegler is an author, speaker, elected official, and consultant concerned with the powerful role “place” plays in our lives. He is the founder of the civic pride consulting firm, Revitalize, or Die and co-founder of the organization Proud Places. After obtaining his Master's in Urban Planning from Virginia Commonwealth University, Jeff went to work on Main Street. First as a downtown manager, and later as the Ohio Main Street State Coordinator. His first book, “Your City is Sick” was published in September of 2023 . Jeff and his wife Amber and their four kids call Pittsburgh home.

AT-LARGE

Ben Simmons is a results-driven project leader with more than 20 years of experience in the architecture and construction industry, having designed and managed some of the largest, most complex projects in the Midwest. He is a strategic thinker, communicator, and motivator who enjoys cultivating an environment that maximizes potential and elevates overall output of project processes through trust and collaboration.

Ben leads Schmidt Associates’ Community Studio in Kentucky with specialized expertise in community and workplace design. He believes the best projects emerge from strong partnerships, and he eagerly seeks out those individuals and groups who believe in the power of design and what it can do to elevate physical and cultural environments.