Brad Buchanan - Executive director, Community Planning and Development
With Denver’s population growth, it is seeing unprecedented demand for building permits. Visionary planning is a critical component of growing our world-class city, while keeping its beloved features intact. Through partnerships with neighborhoods and other public agencies, and through regulations that guide zoning and historic sites, this department plays a key role in real estate investment and development around the City. Under Mr. Buchanan’s leadership, this city agency balances the big picture infrastructure priorities as well as the plan review and inspection for individual projects. From the skyscrapers of the central business district; to the walkable neighborhoods of Stapleton; to the charming Victorian effects of the Baker district, the staff at Community Planning and Development works to make Denver a great place to live, work and play.
Brad Buchanan was appointed Denver's planning director by Mayor Michael B. Hancock in 2014. He was a Denver architect for over 30 years, co-founding his own firm in 1999 and later joining RNL as principal and board member. He has also served for many years with civic organizations such as the Denver Planning Board, Downtown Denver Partnership and the Landmark Preservation Commission. Brad holds a bachelor’s degree in environmental design from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. He co-authored the “Design Build Teaming Checklist” and “The Architect’s Guide to Design Build,” and has presented across the United States and Canada on the role of the architect as a leader in the design and construction process. In 2005, he was elevated to fellowship by the American Institute of Architects. Brad founded Freedom by Design, a nonprofit organization providing design and construction services for the disabled community. Originally from Ohio, Brad moved to Denver in the 1980s and lived in Denver’s Park Hill neighborhood for nearly 30 years. In 2010 he and his wife, Margaret, and children Grace and Will moved to Strasburg where they own and operate a sustainable, grass-fed-cattle ranch. View Brad's TEDxMileHigh talk on the importance of linking urban and rural experiences.
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