“Hurricane Katrina was a wake-up call about the heightened intensity of storms and what that amount of water could do. In its wake, city, state, and federal officials set out to make sure that type of engineering catastrophe would never happen again.”

HR&A Advisors CEO Jeff Hébert, who served as New Orleans’ first Chief Resilience Officer from 2012 to 2017, shared his thoughts in this recent Smart Cities Dive article, which traces New Orleans’ centuries-long battle against flooding and hurricanes, from its first levees in the 1700s to today’s multi-billion-dollar storm protection systems. Nearly 20 years after Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans continues to grapple with the challenges of climate change, sea level rise, and subsidence.

The piece also highlights how communities, advocacy groups, and city leaders are combining gray and green infrastructure solutions — from reinforced levees and pumping stations to bioswales, stormwater parks, and wetlands restoration — to build a safer and more resilient future.

Jeff also shared insights into the immediate recovery efforts in this piece from BisNow which examines how New Orleans’ commercial real estate market has navigated rebuilding over the past two decades.

Read the full articles:

After Katrina, green infrastructure aims to supplement the rebuilt — but still vulnerable — levees  —  Smart Cities Dive

20 Years After Katrina, Hotels Define New Orleans. Everything Else Barely Registers — BisNow

We followed three Interns from our Class of 2025—Alexander in DC, Camryn in LA, and Jose in NYC—to see what a day in the life of an HR&A intern looks like. From morning commutes that make them feel connected to the urban systems they’re helping shape to working on projects for some of the 180+ cities and communities across the globe that HR&A has served so far this year, our Interns get hands-on experience from day one. 

HR&A’s Internship Program features: 

• • Direct collaboration with Partners on real projects 
  • Dedicated mentorship with weekly career development conversations 
  • Support developing best-in-practices skills, learning new technical tools, and understanding our rigorous methodologies 
  • Cross-office teamwork spanning our locations across the country 
  • Final presentations that offer an opportunity for Interns to showcase their impact 
  • Hybrid flexibility that maximizes both in-person collaboration and connectivity

  This isn’t your typical internship experience. Our interns contribute to projects that transform communities, work alongside senior leadership, and build skills that launch careers in urban development. 

   

  Interested in joining our next cohort? Keep an eye out for when applications open this fall!

   

  

   

  

   

  

  

   

Queens 2100 confronts a hard truth: flooding in coastal communities isn’t a distant threat—it’s already reshaping how we live, invest, and plan. HR&A Advisors Principal Jonathan Haragold joined a study led by Bill Kenworthey from HOK, which moves beyond the question of if flooding will disrupt life in low-lying neighborhoods—and instead asks when, how much, and what we can do now.

Nearly 40% of Americans live in coastal counties, and this plan provides a scalable, neighborhood-level framework to help low-lying areas prepare for climate impacts. From buyouts and leasebacks to targeted rezoning and disclosure laws, Queens 2100 lays out practical tools that any neighborhood can use to shift growth away from flood risks and safeguard local residents and businesses.

Read the full article to explore the strategies and tools shaping this neighborhood-focused approach to climate adaptation here.

This press release was originally issued by Queens Borough President. 

QUEENS, NY — With months of community engagement in the books, Queens Borough President Donovan Richards Jr. will host a press conference tomorrow, July 17, at 11am to announce the release of the “Reimagine Ravenswood” neighborhood plan — a wide-ranging blueprint to leverage the clean energy transformation of the Ravenswood Generating Station, the largest such station in New York City, and maximize economic and environmental benefits across Long Island City.

The press conference will be held adjacent to the intersection of Vernon Boulevard and 40^th Avenue outside NYCHA’s Queensbridge Houses, in the shadow of the Ravenswood Generating Station.

Joining Borough President Richards will be representatives from Rise Light & Power — which owns and manages the station — and HR&A Advisors, along with other community organizations and neighborhood advocates.

The plan — originally announced in July 2022, managed by HR&A Advisors and funded by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) with support from Rise Light & Power — proposes investments in environmental justice, economic opportunity, and public space improvements that will be catalyzed by the renewable repowering of Ravenswood Generating Station. Ultimately, the plan will facilitate the retirement and replacement of the 1960s fossil fuel generators on site.

ULI San Francisco and Civic Joy Fund’s Market Street Reimagined competition has announced its winning proposals — from a four-mile-long bench fostering human connection to transforming Market Street into an urban forest. We’re proud that Candace Damon, HR&A Partner and Board Chair, served on the Jury alongside former Apple designer Jony Ive, San Francisco Chronicle’s former urban design critic, John King, Norman Foster of Foster + Partners, and other exceptional urban design thinkers.

“The Market Street Reimagined winners presented compelling proposals to breathe new life into a corridor that has a lot of the right infrastructure for success but lacks the human-centered elements that create true community. What struck the jury was the submissions’ focus on leveraging cultural richness, access to nature, and social connectivity—these are what make an urban space truly magnetic. I’m excited to see how these complementary strategies will come together to transform Market Street into a vibrant heart for San Francisco.” — Candace Damon, HR&A Partner and Board Chair and Competition Juror

“The caliber of submissions for Market Street Reimagined reflects the kind of forward-thinking design leadership that can reshape how we approach post-pandemic urban cores, with proposals that don’t just solve problems but reimagine possibilities. Most importantly, these innovative approaches prioritize accessibility and belonging, ensuring that Market Street’s transformation serves as an economic catalyst while becoming a genuine civic commons that honors San Francisco’s community-driven spirit.” — Kate Collignon, Managing Partner, HR&A Advisors

Congratulations to all the winners and participants who contributed their vision for San Francisco’s future!

Learn more about the winning submissions in this piece from the San Francisco Business Times.

You can find all of the submissions on ULI SF’s website.

“Even after New York City’s initial tax program ended, thousands of conversions continued to happen, evidence that a desirable neighborhood had been created. It wasn’t just that it reduced costs. It created the visibility of Lower Manhattan for residents—and made it a great place to live.” — Kate Collignon, Managing Partner, HR&A Advisors in the SF Examiner.

San Francisco is now poised to approve a Downtown Revitalization and Economic Recovery Financing District, where taxes from conversions could be used to offset development costs. This marks a major step towards making office-to-residential conversions viable in a downtown that has experienced significant challenges in its post-COVID recovery.

This moment builds on months of progress from the City, including code relief and fee waivers —all designed to jumpstart the transformation of vacant offices into housing. HR&A was proud to partner with SPUR, ULI San Francisco, and Gensler to assess the economics behind these strategies in 2023 and more recently with Brookings Metro, Gensler, and Eckholm Studios for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

We’re excited to see San Francisco continue making strides towards creating a resilient, vibrant downtown with opportunities for workers, residents, and visitors.

Explore the 2023 SPUR/ULI Study.

Explore the 2025 HUD Study.

HR&A Advisors congratulates the communities of Hudson Square and Long Island City on the announcement of transformative projects through New York State’s NY Forward and Downtown Revitalization Initiative (DRI) programs. These awards mark major steps forward in implementing community-driven visions for more vibrant, inclusive, and resilient neighborhoods.

HR&A served as lead consultant for the Hudson Square NY Forward process, working in close partnership with the Hudson Square BID and supported by MUD Workshop, Sherpa Construction Consulting, and PingPong Design + Strategy. The resulting Strategic Investment Plan outlines a series of catalytic projects—including expanded open space, new cultural installations, and improved public amenities—that will help reconnect Hudson Square with surrounding neighborhoods and support a more welcoming street-level experience here.

In Long Island City, HR&A was proud to support MUD Workshop’s leadership on the DRI process in collaboration with the Long Island City Partnership. Together, we helped shape a Strategic Investment Plan focused on strengthening the district’s identity as a creative, mixed-use hub, with investments in arts infrastructure, public space, and community-serving facilities. here.

We are honored to have worked alongside our partners and community stakeholders to help bring these visions into action, and we look forward to seeing the impact of these projects in the years ahead.

Read the full press release here.