From neighborhoods to cities to regions, planning for our collective future is part of our commitment to creating places that enhance life. At OLIN our team of planners and designers are leading some of the most innovative projects that bring together social, environmental, and economic resilience.
We know that planning excellence requires a community-driven and inclusive process so residents are meaningfully involved in deciding the future of their parks and cities. From our years of experience in park systems, river systems, infrastructural systems, long-range planning, resilience and climate planning, and park design and programming, we know that getting this right takes time and investment in the process. We create teams with a robust and sustained community leadership structure to guide the process, and policies, from end to end, involving community leaders at each step—to help spread the word, shape messaging, encourage participation, and ultimately shape the strategy itself. We strive to have a hyper-local approach to make sure we know a community's leaders and unique characteristics, building trust and relationships that will allow us to work from a strong foundation.
We also understand that a plan is only as successful as its ability to integrate well with other policies, and to provide a runway for smooth implementation and transparent decision-making. This can only be achieved by creating substantial buy-in through the process. For that reason, we put emphasis and time into building trust through deep and meaningful conversations with communities—putting them in the driver's seat rather than simply checking a box.
LEARN ABOUT SOME OF OUR RECENT BIG PLANS!
Caño Martín Peña Comprehensive Infrastructure Master Plan | San Juan, Puerto Rico
In San Juan, Puerto Rico, we worked with residents from the eight communities of the Caño Martín Peña District to develop a comprehensive infrastructure plan. This plan works to improve their collective health and quality of life through a holistic approach that incorporates nature-based strategies and climate change risk analysis while safeguarding the communities’ deep social bonds.
Sepulveda Basin Vision Plan | Los Angeles, CA
OLIN led the design and planning team for the once-in-a-generation opportunity to reimagine the the 2,000-acre Sepulveda Basin and improve the lives of millions of Angelinos.
The Sepulveda Basin Vision Plan (SBVP) which was released to the public in June of 2024, enhances natural systems, recreational and cultural programming, and climate resilience driven by community needs and priorities of adjacent climate vulnerable and disadvantaged communities.
Origin Park | Clarksville, IN
OLIN’s work on Origin Park seeks to restore this 400 acre site to be a connector and catalyst for surrounding Southern Indiana communities.
The park functions at a site level and regionally to be a model of a contemporary large urban park as a resilient, climate-adapted landscape that invites visitors to the dynamic power of nature and a layered cultural history through direct landscape experience.
Cleveland Parks & Recreation Plan | Cleveland, OH
OLIN led a groundbreaking citywide Parks and Recreation Plan for the City of Cleveland which serves as a guide to how the City can improve parks and recreation to better meet residents’ needs. This plan is the first to specifically use an equity-based prioritization framework for future city investments. The multi-faceted engagement process helped ensure that a representative sample of residents were heard and allowed areas of consensus to be found to identify the differing needs in different areas of the city.
As a foundation for developing the Parks and Recreation Plan, OLIN led a multifaceted engagement process. Open houses, mailed and online surveys, youth workshops, neighborhood meeting kits, and interviews were used to hear from residents what their concerns are and what they envision for the future.
LA River Master Plan Update | Los Angeles County, CA
In 2022 the LA River Master Plan was adopted by LA County as a blueprint for reimagining the LA River from single-use flood channel to multi-benefit publicly accessible open space and ecosystem. Check out Partner Jessica Henson on PBS Earth Focus talking about the 51-mile LA River.
