CPTED Professionals Directory

I have been working with law enforcement for 34 years.  The first part of my career was at the Roosevelt Park Neighborhood Association where I was the Crime Prevention Organizer for 31 years.  Roosevelt Park is a very diverse community a melting pot of Latino, African American and Dutch. While at Roosevelt Park Neighborhood Association, I worked five of those years as the Executive Director.  In that role I initiated an Area Specific Plan (ASP) where a culmination of broad based community input and feedback provided direction for future improvements that would affect safety, housing, transportation, aesthetics, land use and development types along the Grandville Avenue corridor.  This Area Specific Plan is an amendment to the City of Grand Rapids Master Plan, which will inform land use decision-making into the future.  It also will inform design of public right-of-ways, transit planning, infill and redevelopment, streetscape enhancements, and economic development policies and priorities.  The City Commission approved the ASP and proposed zoning changes that fell in line with the plan in April 2017.

In August 2017 I was hired by the Grand Rapids Police Department as their Crime Prevention Coordinator.  In my role as Crime Prevention Coordinator I train 12 public safety grant funded neighborhoods, conduct home security / CPTED assessments for area residential, businesses, marijuana provision centers, churches and schools.  Keep neighborhood groups updated on current crime statistics and trends and hold public safety trainings as necessary.

Worked on a committee with the Grand Rapids Planning Department to develop a CPTED ordinance which was adopted by the City Commission in August 2019.

Recruit and train volunteers for a Victim Advocate Program, collaborate with other agencies, and work with our community members to build strong community police relations.

Strong and safe communities are my first priority.

Earned a PhD in Architecture from the University of Michigan with a focus on criminology.  Uses simulation techniques to create visibility heatmaps to understand (and statistically calculate) the relationship of CPTED’s principal of surveillance and incidents of certain types of crimes.  Received multiple grants to engage residents (from different cities and communities) in Michigan through a design charrette format  to understand and co-develop design strategies that are based on CPTED and Placemaking to reduce incidents of crime and fear of crime.