Two St. Louisans selected for Australia/New Zealand Urban Development Panel

Three prominent leaders in urban development from the Midwest were selected to provide thought leadership to developers and government officials in Wellington, New Zealand and Sydney, Australia. Wellington City hosted a three-day Master Class featuring these leaders July 22 - 24. In Sydney, they conducted a series of workshops on July 25 and 26 hosted by Sinclair Knight Merz (SKM), a leading global engineering, sciences and project delivery firm based in Sydney.

The selected team is:

Gregory Hummel, Partner Bryan Cave LLP in Chicago, has practiced law for 36 years and concentrates in public-private partnership matters, including infrastructure and special district financings, economic development and redevelopment tax increment financings, energy, solid waste and other project financings, and incentives for large and small businesses. He has advised on the creation of tax increment financing districts in over 20 states and helped to create the Virgin Island's first TIF law. He is a frequent speaker on TIF in the United States and overseas.

John Brancaglione, Vice President PGAV Urban Consulting in St. Louis, has 43 years of experience that represents a broad scope of planning expertise involving comprehensive planning and zoning, community and economic development, industrial development, central business district planning, recreational planning, tax increment financing (TIF), market analysis, environmental planning and grant application administration. He has provided urban planning consulting services to more than 300 communities and is a recognized expert on TIF, having managed TIF planning assignments for more than 100 cities and counties in 12 states. He has worked with the city of Chicago for 14 years.

Laura Radcliff, Senior Vice President Stifel Nicolaus Public Finance in St. Louis, has served as an investment banker on more than 300 bond issues with a total par amount in excess of $16.0 billion. She focuses on economic development finance and has served as the lead investment banker for tax increment financing and development district financings throughout the US. She is on the Board of the Council of Development Finance Agencies, a national association dedicated to the advancement of development finance concerns and interests.

The idea for the tour was conceived by Joe Langley, a Senior Executive Urban Planner at SKM. Langley first heard the team speak at the Illinois Tax Increment Association (ITIA) Fall Conference in Chicago in 2007. Brancaglione, Radcliff and Hummel are members of the ITIA Board of Directors and were identified as the consultants with the required experience to help address urban renewal issues and infrastructure needs.

"We are delighted to have assembled such a stellar group to address the legal, financial, governance and town planning aspects of introducing TIF as an economic development

Columns