Who We Are

Kevin has an extensive background in transportation planning, serving in various leadership roles in both the public and private sectors. He was the Transportation Planning Director and Strategic Planning Manager for the City of Bellevue from 2002 to 2011. From 2011 to 2019, he served in the Seattle Department of Transportation as a Deputy Director, Director of the Street Use Division, and Planning Manager. Between 2019 and 2021, Kevin was the Senior Planning Manager at the Seattle office of WSP, overseeing urban and transportation planning workgroups. In these roles, Kevin led teams on a variety of projects, including the Ballard and West Seattle Link Extensions, Climate Pledge Arena, and the new Seattle Convention Center’s Summit building.

Kevin holds master’s degrees in both City and Regional Planning and Public Administration from Ohio State University, along with a bachelor’s degree from the University of Vermont. He is also an Affiliate Instructor in the Department of Urban Design and Planning at the University of Washington.

A principal at PLACE, Phoebe Bogert brings her artful and ecologically sensitive approach to the design and planning of public and private projects. Over her 18-year career, her experience has made her an invaluable project leader who motivates her team, collaborates closely with all stakeholders, and actively engages the community. These sensitivities are evident in her work across a range of projects, including universities, parks, housing, libraries, gardens, and playgrounds.

Phoebe has lived and worked internationally and has been a longtime resident of Seattle. Her love of the space in between took root in Los Angeles' mural art and now informs her approach to fostering thriving communities with a strong sense of place. A graduate of Pitzer College and a Garfield High School alumna, Phoebe holds a Master's in Landscape Architecture from the University of Washington, is a registered, award-winning Landscape Architect, and has served two terms on the Seattle Design Review Board.

Kate Clark is the lead artist and founder of the public art project Parkeology. Her projects have included installations and commissions with 4Culture, the Oakland Museum of California, the San Diego Natural History Museum, and the Smithsonian Institution. As an artist dedicated to collaboratively enriching public space, Kate also works with city departments to develop public art plans. She collaborated with Seattle City Light engineers, environmentalists, and race and social justice leaders to develop a 10-year public art plan, published in 2024.

Currently, Kate serves as a community engagement Artist-in-Residence for the Bitter Lake Improvement Project, in partnership with Seattle Public Utilities, the Seattle Office of Arts & Culture, and Seattle Parks and Recreation. Supported by ARTS and the Seattle Department of Transportation's 1% for Arts, she is also working with Duwamish tribal members to create a permanent sidewalk mural for the Duwamish Longhouse.

Kate earned her MFA at UC San Diego. She has been a Parson's Urbanisms of Inclusion fellow and a visiting researcher at Bauhaus-Universität Weimar.

Ray Gastil, AICP, is a city and regional planner who has held leadership positions in city planning in New York, Pittsburgh, and Seattle. As a planner, his work has focused on waterfronts, campuses, downtown revitalization, transit-oriented design, and neighborhood planning, as well as historic preservation, adaptive reuse, public art, and community development. As a consultant, educator, and non-profit executive director, he has developed design competitions, immersive urbanism workshops, and publications. 

Ray has a Master of Architecture degree from Princeton University and has taught studios and seminars on urbanism at Carnegie Mellon, where he headed the Remaking Cities Institute, as well as at Penn State, UC Berkeley, and the University of Pennsylvania. He is active with APA committees, as well as with non-profit organizations committed to creating better waterfronts and connecting art to science and the community. 

Ben is a Principal in the Seattle office of Carrier Johnson, a national architecture and design firm. Ben has over 20 years of experience in the design and execution of mixed-use and single-purpose residential or commercial developments. Most of Ben’s work has focused on new development in the Puget Sound area, with additional projects at the University of California’s Irvine campus. Ben has a strong commitment to professional development through leadership roles at the Seattle chapter of the American Institute of Architects. Since 2017, Ben has also served on the Downtown Seattle Association’s Family-Friendly Downtown Task Force.

Ben holds a master’s degree in Architecture and a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Design from Montana State University.

Brian Markham is a Structural Engineer and the Seattle Office Lead at Arup. He has extensive experience in project management and structural engineering on complex building projects, ranging from art museums and performing arts centers to airports and ground transportation facilities.

Civic-minded, Arup has played a significant role in shaping Seattle's icons and community infrastructure—from expanding The Market, renovating the Space Needle, delivering the Central Library, restoring and revitalizing the King Street train station, to opening the new Convention Center. We are proud to have contributed to improving the city through projects that benefit all people. Our focus on community, engagement, equity, and enhancement aligns with the Commission's ethos.

Raised in Minnesota, Brian has spent considerable time living and working in the Northeast, Southeast, internationally, and now in the Pacific Northwest.

Shirin Masoudi is a designer with expertise in community-driven projects, urban and campus planning, and public realm design. As a Design Manager at Gensler, she leads community impact initiatives and collaborates on large-scale infrastructure projects that prioritize accessibility, sustainability, and creative placemaking. Her work spans aviation, workplace, and nonprofit sectors, with a strong focus on community engagement, cross-disciplinary collaboration, and equitable design strategies.

Having grown up in Esfahan, Iran—a city renowned for its rich historical charm and breathtaking architecture—Shirin brings a multicultural perspective that informs her design approach, creating spaces that address both immediate community needs and long-term urban development. She holds a Master of Architecture from the University of Idaho and is passionate about shaping cities that reflect and support the diverse communities they serve.

Kevin has an extensive background in transportation planning, serving in various leadership roles in both the public and private sectors. He was the Transportation Planning Director and Strategic Planning Manager for the City of Bellevue from 2002 to 2011. From 2011 to 2019, he served in the Seattle Department of Transportation as a Deputy Director, Director of the Street Use Division, and Planning Manager. Between 2019 and 2021, Kevin was the Senior Planning Manager at the Seattle office of WSP, overseeing urban and transportation planning workgroups. In these roles, Kevin led teams on a variety of projects, including the Ballard and West Seattle Link Extensions, Climate Pledge Arena, and the new Seattle Convention Center’s Summit building.

Kevin holds master’s degrees in both City and Regional Planning and Public Administration from Ohio State University, along with a bachelor’s degree from the University of Vermont. He is also an Affiliate Instructor in the Department of Urban Design and Planning at the University of Washington.

Zubin Rao, AIA, is an Associate at the Miller Hull Partnership, an architecture firm that creates projects of significance that celebrate the power of people and their natural environment. With over 15 years of professional experience, Zubin’s work includes a wide range of project types and sizes, such as affordable housing, higher education learning environments, wastewater treatment plants, US consular facilities, and more recently, civic projects like fire stations and parks.

Zubin holds a bachelor’s degree in Philosophy and a master’s degree in Architecture, both from the University of Michigan. He has served as a design studio critic and guest lecturer at universities in Washington, Illinois, and Michigan.

Molly Spetalnick is an urban designer at ZGF Architects whose experience and education span a range of design disciplines including urban design, architecture, landscape architecture, and interior design. She has a passion for leveraging policy, architecture, landscape architecture, and robust community engagement to support the development of vibrant, affordable communities near transit stations. Molly works on Sound Transit projects including the Transit Oriented Development Inventory, SDOT on the Pike Pine Streetscape and Bicycle Improvements Project, and with volunteers with a variety of organizations including the Africatown Community Land Trust, and Community Passageways.

Caitlin Truong is an architectural designer at Schemata Workshop, artist, and educator. She has worked on affordable housing projects, community centers, transit-oriented developments, and public art pieces across Seattle. Caitlin was born and raised in South Beacon Hill, where her community mainly consists of low-income households, immigrants, and refugees. While on the Seattle Design Commission, she aims to use her community-focused design perspective to advocate for communities of color.

Caitlin earned a Bachelor of Arts in Architectural Design with Departmental Honors from the University of Washington, with minors in Art History and Environmental Science. She has taken on leadership roles on campus, and her efforts have been recognized with awards such as the 2023 Department of Architecture Faculty Award for Scholarship & Leadership and the 2023 American Institute of Architects Seattle Allied Organization Award.