Who We Are Urban Design and Preservation Division
If you embrace the past and future of our built environment, we invite you to join the American Planning Association Urban Design and Preservation Division.
We are a nationwide community of urban design and historic preservation emerging professionals and experienced practitioners in the public, non-profit, educational, and private sectors. Our Division promotes the importance of design excellence, an equitable public realm, and stewardship of our historic places throughout the planning profession and beyond.
Our Division has been honored with the 2023 American Planning Association Division Achievement Award for Overall Division Performance for the scope and quality of our programs. We also received the 2023 Contribution to the Planning Profession Award for our Design-Preservation Rapid Assistance Program (D-PRAT).
2025 Student Planning & Design Competition Registration
Now in its eighth year, the APA Student Planning and Design Competition invites multidisciplinary teams of students pursuing graduate degrees in planning, public policy, urban design, architecture, and real estate development to participate. We are excited to announce the 2025 competition site: the Colfax & Federal Clover Leaf, a 46-acre parcel in Denver, CO, the 2025 National Planning Conference host city. This site is adjacent to Empower Field at Mile High to the east and multi-family neighborhoods to the west. Student team registration is now open.
The APA Urban Design and Preservation Division, Student Representative Council, and Divisions Council proudly sponsor this annual competition.
Seeking D-PRAT Volunteers
We are pleased to announce that the Town of Enfield, Connecticut, has been selected as our 2024 D-PRAT community. We're seeking volunteers to support both our virtual and on-the-ground teams! Apply by Friday, September 27.
Career Paths What is Urban Design?
Interested in a career in urban design? Three experienced urban designers--Jason Beske, Senior Urban Designer at Stantec Urban Places, Jeff Shumaker, former Chief Urban Designer of New York City, and Ifeoma Ebo, Urban Designer/Planning Strategist--offer helpful advice to students and emerging professionals interested in becoming urban designers, and planning practitioners desiring more familiarity with urban design issues. The video was produced by Katelyn Huang, the Division's 2022-23 Scholar.
