Press release from Urban3:
On Nov. 13, Asheville will welcome New York City Parks Commissioner, Mitchell J. Silver, as the final speaker of the 2018 round of the Building Our City Speaker Series. The event will take place at the rooftop venue in The Capital Center at 82 Patton Avenue in downtown Asheville. Doors will open for networking at 5:30 p.m., and the presentation will begin at 6 p.m.
A renowned planner and urbanist, Commissioner Mitchell J. Silver has lead the New York City Parks Department since 2014. He oversees management, planning and operations of nearly 30,000 acres of parkland, including parks, playgrounds, beaches, marinas, recreation centers, wilderness areas and other assets. Before returning to his hometown of New York City, he served as Chief Planning and Development Officer and Planning Director for the City of Raleigh, North Carolina. He was also president of the American Planning Association (APA) between 2011 and 2013, the first African American to hold the title.
In the past decade, Silver has been recognized across a multitude of platforms as an international thought leader: Planetizen’s “100 Most Influential Urbanists” (2017); in the Urban Times as a top international thought leader of the built environment (2012); and in UBM Future Cities’ “Top 100 City Innovators in the World” (2013). He is a contributing author and editor of the International City/County Management Association (ICMA) latest edition of “Local Planning: Contemporary Principles and Practice,” which is a resource for local governments engaged in planning. In 2014, he was inducted into the College of Fellows of the American Planning Association.
While in Asheville, Mr. Silver will discuss some of the innovative projects he is working on in New York which highlight the ways planning and design can create equitable, inclusive, creative and fun spaces and places in the nation’s largest city. Projects he will share include the Community Parks Equity Initiative, Parks without Borders, Cool Pools and Creative Courts and other innovative planning and parks initiatives.
All Building Our City events are free, and are open to all members of the community, but space is limited. To register for the event, visit www.buildingourcity.org.
Building Our City is brought to you by The City of Asheville, Buncombe County Tourism Development Authority, Asheville Downtown Association, Urban3, Mountain True, Aloft Asheville Downtown, and The McGuire Fund. More information on sponsorship opportunities to support this series of lectures should visit www.buildingourcity.org.
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