Goody Clancy receives top national planning firm award

Goody Clancy will receive the 2013 National Planning Excellence Award for a Planning Firm. The award, given to one firm annually by the American Planning Association (APA), recognizes the Boston-based firm "for more than five decades of exceptional work that influences and advances the field of planning." The awards jury cited Goody Clancy's achievements in "helping dozens of communities draw up successful blueprints for growth that address social equity, economic opportunity and environmental responsibility." The APA will present the award to Goody Clancy at the Association's national conference in Chicago on April 16, and will profile the firm in Planning magazine, APA's flagship publication. "Goody Clancy planners are skilled at building consensus and making sure that all citizens have a voice in creating their communities," Ann Bagley, FAICP, chair of the 2013 APA Awards Jury. "Their plans speak to a broad, non-technical audience, build ownership and lead to successful implementation. The firm is a national leader in the planning field." APA's national awards program, the profession's highest honor, is a proud tradition established more than 50 years ago to recognize outstanding community plans, planning programs and initiatives, public education efforts, and individuals for their leadership on planning issues. "We are grateful to the American Planning Association and the awards jury for honoring Goody Clancy with the National Planning Excellence Award," said David Dixon, principal-in-charge of planning for Goody Clancy. "We are particularly honored that the jury cited our long involvement with the issue of density, and with this award recognized our commitment to challenging conventional beliefs and promoting dialog among stakeholders to view the issue of density in new and promising ways Goody Clancy led organization of the first national conference on density, "Density: Myth and Reality," held in 2003, and helped organize a regional citizen's conference, the "Civic Initiative for a Livable New England," that led to creation of the Mass. Smart Growth Alliance. Other milestone planning assignments of the firm include the 1985 plan for Boston's Harbor Point (the model for HUD's HOPE VI program that transforms failing public housing into mixed-income communities), the 2010 master plan for post-Katrina New Orleans, the University District revitalization plan in Columbus in 2010 and the recent work planning the future development guidelines for Central and Kendall Sqs. in Cambridge. Goody Clancy's Planning Group has received awards from a wide range of other national organizations, including the American Institute of Architects, American Society of Landscape Architects, Congress for the New Urbanism, International Downtown Association, Society for College and University Planning, and Waterfront Center, for a body of work that is helping suburbs, cities and entire regions adapt to a rapidly changing world. The APA has awarded two national Planning Excellence awards to the firm, including one for implementation of the University District revitalization plan in Columbus and one for a "hard-won victory" in creating the New Orleans plan in 2011. The APA will present the award to Goody Clancy at the Association's national conference in Chicago on April 16, and will profile the firm in Planning magazine, APA's flagship publication. APA's national awards program, the profession's highest honor, is a proud tradition established more than 50 years ago to recognize outstanding community plans, planning programs and initiatives, public education efforts, and individuals for their leadership on planning issues.