Time and Place

12:00 to 1:00 pm via Zoom

Please register for the virtual lecture here

The Innovative Cities Lecture Series

“The Implementers: Why Acting with Urgency Can Protect the Future [of our Region] and the Planning Profession” presentation by the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission, including Ben McKay, Deputy Director, and Laura Herrick, Chief Environmental Engineer.

Lecture Summary:

The Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission is the official areawide planning agency for the seven counties of Kenosha, Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Racine, Walworth, Washington, and Waukesha, and is also the designated Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for urbanized areas in the Region. Commission staff provide objective information and initiatives to focus attention on key issues of regional consequence. Staff represent a range of technical expertise including land use planning, environmental engineering and science, GIS, public involvement, surveying, and transportation planning and engineering.

BIO:

Benjamin McKay is the Deputy Director of the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission (Commission). He has led and facilitated long-range regional, county, and community level planning efforts undertaken by the Commission during the last 19 years, including the Regional Housing Plan and VISION 2050, Southeastern Wisconsin’s long range land use and transportation plan. Ben received a Master of Urban Planning degree from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 2003.

Laura Herrick In her role as the Chief Environmental Engineer for the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission, Ms. Herrick manages a staff of seven with specialties in engineering, planning, and biology. She has 29 years of experience in the water resources field, specializing in hydrologic and hydraulic modeling, water resources engineering, water quality analyses, and floodplain and stormwater management. Prior to joining the Commission in 2008, Ms. Herrick worked as water resources project manager for the consulting firms HDR Engineering and CDM Inc. Ms. Herrick received her BSCE degree from Valparaiso University and MS in Civil Engineering degree from the University of Minnesota. She is a registered Professional Engineer in Wisconsin and a Certified Floodplain Manager.

AICP-CM credits will be awarded.

Questions, comments?

All lectures are free and open to planners, students, staff, faculty, and friends of the University. Please contact Blythe Waldbillig, Department of Urban Planning Project Assistant at waldbil5@uwm.edu