Cities and institutions are continually evolving. With over 15 years of long-rage and strategic planning experience with 40+ cities, institutions, and organizations globally, I help clients create tailored long-term plans that drive growth, sustainability, and success. I also ensure your organisation evolves to meet the challenges of leading change.
I am dedicated to creating delightful and sustainable urban places.
My partners and I work with local communities to create dynamic urban environments that reflect the spirit and needs of the community. Whether it’s revitalizing a downtown, planning around transit systems or crafting a comprehensive urban strategy, we focus on creating spaces that inspire and benefit us all.
Relevant projects:
I am an industry expert in space planning, building programming, and construction phasing.
I partner with academic communities to develop strategic plans, financial models, educational master plans and facilities plans that advance each institution toward its vision, mission, programmatic goals and desired position in the marketplace.
Relevant projects
I specialize in helping municipalities, universities, and organizations define their vision, mission, and goals—and chart a clear path toward achieving them.
I excel at creating comprehensive buy-ins for each plan, as well as designing dynamic implementation programs that allow organizations to track day-to-day progress alongside achievement of longer term goals.
Relevant projects:
A drive towards comprehensive sustainability is at the root of my practice. Each project includes sustainability planning at the level of detail and area of focus relevant to the client. On my own or with a team of technical experts, we offer planning for:
Relevant projects:
The initiation, orchestration and completion of a successful project requires meticulousness, creativity and collaboration.
As project manager, I build teams, coordinate action plans, manage consultants, and advise on tools to help funnel plans into the implementation and actualization phases. I’m also fun to work with. Fun does matter, after all.
I work with executives & decision makers to lead community outreach & engagement, facilitate stakeholder meetings, and provide in-depth training sessions to support a plan’s implementation.
Petaluma City: General Plan
I was hired to serve as the City of Petaluma’s representative, initiating, leading and managing the ~$5 million planning process.
Our main goal was to develop a comprehensive plan for the next 20 years of evolution of this city at the leading edge of best practice policy development and community engagement.
For five years, I worked with departments throughout the city and engaged a team of eight technical experts and planning firms to develop an exhaustive set of General Plan policies demonstrating thought leadership, courage, strategic planning and technical expertise across 14 policy areas.
I served as a Principal Planner for the City, liaising with local and regional agencies to further planning work and collaboration at all levels. See the official website for more details.
My contributions also led me to:
Chabot Las Positas: Community College District Strategic Planning, Educational Master Plans, and Facilities Master Plans
I led, managed, and wrote a comprehensive set of planning documents for the Chabot-Las Positas Community College District, initially as part of a consultant team then as a sole practitioner Principal
This plan led to a successful Bond measure, funding the construction of five buildings at Los Positas Community College alone.
Project deliverables included:
I touched the project at all scales and saw the project through to completion, performing a wide range of roles that included:
University of Hastings (now UC Law San Francisco): Strategic Plan
On two separate occasions, I was hired by the University of Hastings (part of the University of California system and Kamala Harris’s alma mater) to develop their strategic plan.
During our first engagement, I helped the College navigate a purposeful decrease in enrollment and perform associated staffing updates.
For our second engagement, I developed a strategic plan that incorporated multiple factors into the college’s long-term vision, including:
I was brought on to serve as an extension of the executive team, providing expertise in higher educational strategy as well as the ability to bring the campus community together to support and move towards a shared vision.
I worked with Christina Paul for approximately 3 years preparing an update to the Milpitas Transit Area Specific Plan (TASP), which was originally adopted in 2008.
The TASP and the update, renamed the Milpitas Metro Specific Plan, is centered on the Milpitas Transit Center, which is the only intersection between the regional Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) system and the Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) light rail system. The Metro Plan was adopted by City Council in February 2023.
Christina was part of the leadership for the consultant team that assisted Milpitas City staff in completing this plan during the challenges of the Covid 19 pandemic.
Christina’s leadership skills, her planning and resource knowledge and her ability to work constructively and collaboratively with others on her team and related teams made her invaluable in our efforts.
As a retired Planning Director I appreciate her abilities and would recommend Christina for any complex planning endeavor involving legal constraints, public input and multiple disciplines and staff resources.
— Kevin L. Riley, Former City of Santa Clara Planning Director
Are you ready to craft a strategic plan for your project?
I had the pleasure of working with Christina Paul for over three years. As a Principal Policy Planner for the City of Petaluma, she was Project Manager for the City’s General Plan Update (GPU). As a Principal with Raimi + Associates, I was her counterpart leading the GPU consultant team.
While navigating highly engaged constituents and taxed public servants, Christina remained laser-focused on the community’s ambitious economic, equity, and resilience goals. Christina was a great partner – accessible, insightful, energetic, good-humored, well-spoken, and strategic.
She’s a tremendous asset for projects large and small that seek authentic change and meaningful outcomes.
— Ron Whitmore, Principal, Raimi + Associates
Christina brought innovative ideas and thoughtful planning skills to the overall project, contributing to both the analytical framework as well as the style of the final document. Her project management skills are superb. I strongly recommend Christina. You will greatly enjoy working with her on projects of any size or scale.”
— Ned Thomas
I credit you with the awesome launch of our General Plan Update, and with the amazing trajectory that has followed💫 I consider you not only a trusted advisor but a friend and hope we stay connected both personally and professionally. I can’t express enough how grateful I am to have worked alongside of you and marvel at your diverse and immense talent!”
— Peggy Flynn, City of Petaluma City Manager
One thing all my clients have in common?
They need an intentional plan that accounts for change, growth & evolution. They have a big destination in mind, and need a plan for how to get there.
But although my clients need realistic (yet transformational) plans that will guide them through the next 5-20 years, they also need to know what they have to do tomorrow.
Here’s a typical process I follow for strategic planning clients:
Make a Plan. We start with ensuring we have a unified position, aligned in purpose and direction. We ensure the right stakeholders are involved
Gather data about relevant systems, develop an Existing Conditions analysis (including opportunities & challenges), and iniate the first round of community / stakeholder outreach
Success metric: Produce report that captures all findings
Given existing conditions, where do we want to go from here? What does the community need? What do stakeholders want most?
Success metric: Overall vision is captured & confirmed
What choices do we have? What are all possible avenues to success?
Success metric: The overall vision is captured and confirmed
Create the foundation of the plan, and map out all steps required to achieve the overall vision, following the direction we confirmed in step 4.
Success metric: A detailed plan foundation is identified and mapped
Review and edit plan framework, adding in specific actions & timeframes required to achieve milestone goals identified in step 5
Success metric: Final plan is drafted and submitted for approval
Plan is submitted for review and approved by key decision makers & stakeholders
Success metric: The plan is approved and formally adopted.
I (and my partners) operate as a boutique urban and campus planning consultancy focused on strategic, engaging planning and implementation efforts that bring delight and success to the communities we serve.
I have over 15 years of experience leading town planning, strategic planning, and institutional planning projects for clients all over the world.
My practice is deeply rooted in rigorous analytical practices and technical expertise.
Following my graduate work at MIT, I started my career at Sasaki, one of the premier institutional and urban planning firms in the US.
Within Sasaki, I led teams to create facilities plans for institutions and research parks, and was part of the small Sasaki Strategies group, which served to extend our planning knowledge to strategic planning projects.
Since then, I have led institutional and urban planning projects across the world both within consulting firms and as a solo practitioner, while also specializing in the intricacies of planning in California.
During our time together, I operate as an integral part of your executive team.
I support your existing infrastructure to develop plans that are realistic, straightforward, and easy to implement – all while working alongside any supporting team members I need to bring on in order to establish a plan and set it in motion.
Our research will help you gain a thorough understanding of where you are, your biggest challenges, and any opportunities you may not even be considering.
We fully engage your team and community, creating a space to craft a detailed vision of the future, while developing best practices for each of the factors set out in our long-term plan.
Are you ready to craft a strategic plan for your project?
Christina served as project manager for our Downtown plan. She demonstrated a great understanding of our issues and visions and always knew what questions to ask of stakeholders to get quality input!
— Lindsay Mitchell
San José Evergreen Community College District Facilities Master Plan, San José, California
Institutional Space Planning Model Development and Maintenance, Sasaki Associates, Watertown, Massachusetts and San Francisco, California
UC Hasting College of the Law Strategic Plan, 2011 and 2018, San Francisco, California
Chabot Las Positas Community College District Facilities Master Plan, Hayward/Dublin/Livermore, California
Chabot Las Positas Community College District Strategic Plan and College Educational Master Plans, Hayward/Dublin/Livermore, California
Saint Mary’s College Master Plan and Form-Based Code, Moraga, California
University of San Francisco Master Plan, San Francisco, California
University of Balamand Master Plan,Kuora, Lebanon
Regis University Facilities Master Plan, Denver, Colorado
University of North Texas Research Park Master Plan and Form-Based Code, Denton, Texas
University of Missouri Facilities Master Plan, Columbia, Missouri
Petaluma General Plan, Petaluma, California
Milpitas Metro Specific Plan, Milpitas, California
Petaluma Housing Element, Petaluma, California
Petaluma Climate Action and Adaptation Plan, Petaluma, California
Pacifica General Plan, Local Coastal Plan and Downtown Plan, Pacifica, California
Bayhill Specific Plan (YouTube Headquarters), San Bruno, California
Serramonte Boulevard Corridor Plan, Colma, California
Union City BART Station Area Plan, Union City, California
Trinity River Network Strategic Master Plan,Fort Worth, Texas
Arlington Downtown Plan, Arlington, Texas
San Pablo Avenue Specific Plan, El Cerrito, California
Health and Sustainability General Plan Element, Baldwin Park, California
Parkside Specific Plan,Brisbane, California
Old Sonoma Road Master Plan, Napa, California
Dallas 360 Corridor Plan, Dallas, Texas
Re:Streets: Designing Streets for Living, Not Just for Driving, Rutledge Press, 2018
City of Oakland Comprehensive Sustainability Framework, Oakland, California
City of Oakland Zoning Update, Oakland, California
Association of Bay Area Governments Regional Missing Middle Housing Communications Materials, San Francisco, California
Streams & Valleys Strategic Plan, Fort Worth, Texas
Union Square Business Improvement District Strategic Plan, San Francisco, California
Long Beach Associates Strategic Plan, Long Beach, California
ULI San Francisco Strategic Plan, San Francisco, California
Project Conceptualization and Marketing for Lake Merritt BART Station Development
Global advertising campaigns for Yahoo!, IBM and other brands, New York, New York
Sonoma Clean Power Branding and Communications, Sonoma, California
City of Davis Water Rates Initiative, Davis, California
Disclaimer: When you work with me as a coach, my role is to support and assist you in reaching your own goals, but your success depends primarily on your own effort, motivation, commitment and follow-through. While I will give you great support and guidance, I cannot predict and I do not guarantee that you will attain a particular result, and you accept and understand that results differ for each individual. Each individual’s results depend on his or her unique background, dedication, desire, motivation, actions, and numerous other factors.
Your staff needs coaching in order to reach their full potential. Are you ready to lead your team, instead of just assigning tasks? Get the free desk reference today: