Mentor

Rosalind F. Williams has a Masters in Urban Planning from the University of Washington and a charter member of the American Planning Association. As Director of Planning and Development for the City of Ferguson, Missouri she was responsible for long-range planning, historic preservation, community development, economic development and zoning administration. Previously, she held similar positions in Kirkwood and Berkeley, Missouri and Ithaca, NY. Her work as a city planner over the past 40+ years has concentrated on neighborhood revitalization, housing improvement and affordability, and downtown redevelopment, primarily in first suburban communities. Her work in community and neighborhood development requires working with a variety of stakeholders on plans that benefit all and foster partnerships to reach collective goals.
Ms. Williams has had a major role in the following projects:
Ferguson Downtown Form-Based Code – The Code replaces the traditional zoning for downtown Ferguson with a new zoning code that prescribes the form of infill development envisioned by the community in an earlier visual preference survey. A road-diet of South Florissant Road was planned to compliment the Code.
West Florissant Avenue Corridor Plan, 2012 – a collaborative examination of strategies for the revitalization of an obsolete commercial corridor by six municipalities, Ferguson, Dellwood, Country Club Hills, Flordell Hills, and Jennings, along the corridor. The Plan was to basis for the application for the Great Streets Initiative grant that is currently underway.
Ferguson Downtown Strategic Development Plan, 2008 – a strategic development plan for downtown Ferguson focused on implementing strategies to bring about a more walkable and vibrant community center, including complete streets and form-based zoning, promotions and community events, and business retention and attraction.
Healthy and Active Communities Initiatives in Ferguson – introduced new zoning to facilitate community gardening and preserve urban farming and worked closely with Trailnet and Live Well Ferguson (LWF) and others on active and healthy initiatives and associated studies. Ms. Williams extended LWF activities for another three years by successfully applying for a $300,000 grant for the Missouri Foundation for Health.
Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) Legislation – Ms. Williams initiated the introduction of PACE legislation in the Missouri 2010 Legislative Session. The legislation, signed in May 2010, makes it possible to establish clean energy districts for the purpose of financing energy retrofits of residential and commercial building, paid back as a property tax assessment.
Social Compact Drilldown – Ms. Williams advocated for North County’s inclusion in a drilldown conducted by Social Compact of Washington, D.C. to obtain non-Census based statistical data to help shift the tone from deficit-oriented to asset-oriented when advocating for retail investment in underserved communities. The information is currently available for all of St. Louis City and North County and can be organized for any geographic area.
Meacham Park Commercial and Residential Redevelopment TIF Project, Kirkwood, MO, 1989-2005 – $22,000,000TIF Project involving the redevelopment of a low income minority neighborhood using the $57,000,000 commercial development to finance the total regeneration of the residential area. Managed the project from RFP solicitation of developers to implementation of both the commercial development and the residential neighborhood revitalization.
Other Recent Activities and Positions:
o Member of the Technical Advisory Committee for the GRG, Maline Creek Corridor Study. Provided staff input on Phase I implementation of the Maline Creek Greenway.
o Chairperson of the University City Retail Sales Tax Commission 2007-2012.
o Member of the Technical Advisory Committee for the proposed St. Louis County Sustainability Zoning Code, 2013.
o Member of the I -170/Olive Boulevard Joint Redevelopment Implementation Committee, 2011-2012.