Shoshana is an Analyst based in the New York office. She is passionate about equitable urban development, parks and open spaces, and resilient climate adaptation planning.

At HR&A, Shoshana has supported clients in building cases for investment in resilient infrastructure, parks, and open spaces. She has also supported the development of master plans for parks and park systems through business planning and regional and national positioning studies. Shoshana has supported the development of statewide plans for broadband and digital equity, among other projects.

Prior to joining HR&A, Shoshana interned at The Public Interest Law Center supporting attorneys in housing and environmental justice work. After undergrad, Shoshana joined the New York City Urban Fellows program for a 9-month urban policy fellowship. There, she worked at NYC Parks on their Planning and Parklands teams supporting work around urban agriculture, broadband access, and NYC Parks stewardship of New York’s historic public cemetery, Hart Island.

Shoshana has a Bachelor of Arts in Urban Studies with Honors from the University of Pennsylvania, and a minor in Sustainability and Environmental Management.

Tara works with our People team to oversee HR&A’s recruitment strategies, helping to ensure equitable recruitment processes and a strong pipeline of candidates.

Tara brings over 18 years of recruitment experience across private and public institutions of higher education. Tara was previously the Director of Enrollment Operations at Manhattan College and oversaw the enrollment management operation in support of Manhattan College’s admissions, and financial aid functions. The position managed enrollment data, communications flows and operations.

Core to Tara’s experience in recruiting a diverse class has been reaching low-income, first-generation, and underrepresented students and families while providing the opportunity to transform lives through higher education. In addition, Tara has recruited and built diverse teams to execute strategic recruitment strategy and meet enrollment goals.

Tara holds a Master of Science in Organizational Leadership from Mercy College, and a B.A. from Purchase College, State University of New York.

Mark supports the internal business using data analytics to aid in making decisions on strategic initiatives about growth, people, and operations.

Mark Siriban joins HR&A’s New York City office as a Business Analyst. Mark has over 3 years of financial tech consulting experience in both the delivery and sales capacity. His previous position was as an Oracle Enterprise Performance Management Consultant at Frontera Consulting, where he implemented Oracle financial systems in planning and budgeting for organizations as large as 50,000 employees across various industries. Prior to the consulting position, Mark was the sole Sales Operations Analyst and Administrator supporting the global Frontera sales team with offices in New York City, London, and Hong Kong. In this role, he assisted in all sales opportunities and worked cross functionally within the firm for data compliance, security, and data analytics.

Mark graduated with a Bachelor of Sciences in Economics from the University at Albany, SUNY.

David provides research and analytical support to projects ranging from transit-oriented development to affordable housing and real estate advisory.

Prior to his time at HR&A, David worked at SFMTA where he helped manage the planning phase of the Potrero Yard Modernization Project. He worked on joint development transit infrastructure projects that pushed forward San Francisco’s citywide transit, housing, and economic goals.

At his time at the University of Pennsylvania, David practiced planning in an interdisciplinary manner. He worked in two collaborative studio projects, a historic preservation studio titled Balancing Growth and Conservation in Cartagena de Indias and a landscape architecture studio titled Fostering Growth in Ciudad del Este. In these studios, he developed planning frameworks to reactivate public spaces in Cartagena’s historical center and to relocate informal settlements that were at high risk for flooding in the San Blas neighborhood of Ciudad del Este.

David received his Master of City Planning Degree from the University of Pennsylvania and pursued coursework in Real Estate Design and Development at both the Wharton School and the Weitzman School of Design. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Urban Studies and Planning with Honors from the University of Southern California.

Sylvia shapes transformative urban development, robust planning efforts, and regulatory innovations to advance housing and economic equity.

Leveraging her planning, policy, and engagement expertise in government and non-for-profit sectors, Sylvia advises municipalities and institutions on data-informed and people-centered projects to empower communities, create housing opportunities, and drive equitable economic outcomes. Her practice also involves working with private actors to think beyond the physical to build diverse and thriving places.

Sylvia was previously a senior planner and team lead at New York City’s Department of City Planning where she oversaw the Department’s Manhattan West Side portfolio, shepherded transformative public and private development projects through planning and public review, designed in-person and virtual stakeholder engagement strategies, contributed to policy making in affordable housing, economic development, and public realm and infrastructure investment. In 2022, she was recognized by Citizens Housing and Planning Council with the Ibo Balton Community Planner Award for her work as Lead Planner for the city’s historic, equity-forward SoHo/NoHo Neighborhood Plan. Prior to her tenure in New York City government, Sylvia worked in economic development policy research at Center for an Urban Future, as an independent planning/GIS consultant to New York Academy of Medicine, and on planning and housing projects in China and Indonesia.

Sylvia holds a Master in Regional Planning from Cornell University, a Professional Certificate in Real Estate Finance from CUNY Baruch College, a Certificate of Sustainable Land Use from the University of Copenhagen, and a Bachelor of Engineering from Peking University (Beijing, China).

Garrett supports local governments and private institutions in crafting solutions to their most pressing challenges, particularly in the areas of displacement and equitable urban development.

As an Analyst in the Los Angeles office, Garrett has worked on a variety of strategic planning efforts that have guided public and private organizations to effectively serve their communities. He has also worked on several real estate and master planning projects that aim to promote vibrant neighborhoods and provide economic opportunities.

A life-long Southern Californian, Garrett is passionate about pursuing impactful work across the region – from large-scale opportunities associated with cultural events like the 2028 Olympics and Paralympics in Los Angeles to smaller-scale projects that aim to empower and strengthen underserved communities.

Garrett graduated from Brown University with a B.A. in Urban Studies. His honors thesis focused on large development projects unfolding in the city of Inglewood, CA and looked critically at conversations around gentrification and displacement.

Alexandra is an emergent strategist, place-based planner, and systems thinker who designs for connection—across people, place, and purpose. Her work integrates play and rigor to align people, processes, and possibilities, shaping environments that reimagine what’s possible.

Based in HR&A’s New York office, Alexandra advances cross-sector business development strategies within Affordable Housing and Cultural Capital. She began her tenure in the Executive Office as the firm’s first Special Assistant, serving as a force multiplier by translating leadership priorities into strategic initiatives that strengthened internal functions and deepened collective purpose.Alexandra spearheaded the design and execution of HR&A’s first Firmwide Summit, bringing staff together from across the country to reflect on the company’s past, present, and future. She also launched a series of studio retreats in cities across the U.S., ensuring that staff engage directly with the communities where their work takes shape. These place-based gatherings strengthen collaboration with partners while celebrating the people and places HR&A serves.

Before joining HR&A, Alexandra contributed to New York City’s first Climate Adaptation Roadmap while working in the Mayor’s Office of Climate Resiliency, helping to shape cross-agency strategy. At Pratt Institute’s Graduate School for Planning and the Environment, she partnered with community organizations like UPROSE to co-develop a framework for realizing the Green Resilient Industrial District in Southwest Brooklyn. In the Pacific Northwest, she led public engagement strategies for sustainable utility expansion and major transit infrastructure upgrades.

Alexandra holds a Master of Science in Place-Based Planning and Management with distinction from Pratt Institute. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Environmental Studies, cum laude, from Macalester College, where she also studied in the International Honors Program on the Politics of Land, Water, and Energy Justice.

Vidhee brings over 14 years of experience advising public and private sector clients in 25+ countries on developing new policies, programs, and business plans to help improve access to housing for underserved populations.

Vidhee previously had an independent consulting practice where she designed products and business projections for private financial institutions and housing developers in India and Ghana. She worked closely with multilateral agencies to assess the state of play in the green housing sector in India and made recommendations to strengthen finance and delivery value chains.

Prior to that, Vidhee was Principal at Affordable Housing Institute (AHI) where she provided housing finance and policy advisory services to governments, multilateral agencies, and housing entrepreneurs. She also co-led AHI’s Aarohi Fund, a socially motivated impact investor that assists early-stage affordable housing entities by providing capital and technical assistance.

Vidhee holds a Master in Regional Planning from Cornell University and a Bachelor of Architecture from Mumbai University.

Melanie supports HR&A’s growing Broadband & Digital Equity Practice in the public interest broadband ecosystem.

As Practice Manager of Operations for Broadband in Digital Equity based in the New York Office, Melanie oversees the practice’s business administration and growth.

She brings deep experience in managing a diverse portfolio of broadband and digital equity projects. Prior to joining HR&A, Melanie was a broadband consultant at a US firm, working closely with more than 70 local governments to develop and implement broadband plans and policies that meet the needs of their communities. Her work included overseeing the project cycle to produce timely, quality deliverables including strategic plans, feasibility studies, and business plans for clients to bridge the digital divide, enhance economic development, and stimulate innovation.

Melanie has a background in business administration and technical communication and specializes in development of processes and communication tools, business development, and project management. She holds an M.A. from the University of Central Florida and a B.A. from the University of Florida.