Dianne R. Brake, President
With degrees in Sociology and Planning, Dianne was hired in 1985 to run the Regional Forum, a multi-disciplinary, public private partnership that developed a 10-point action plan for the region. In 1990 she was made President and, with the Board, has presided over many organizational changes, such as the change of name and location, proposing effective responses to changes in the environment in which PlanSmart NJ must operate.
Dianne has developed in-depth knowledge of land use planning in central
New Jersey as well as in statewide transportation, housing and State Plan
programs. She is an experienced facilitator and has developed working relationships
with state agency bureaucrats in DCA, DEP and DOT, developers, county planners,
mayors, and a broad range of non-profit groups, including environmentalists,
housing, transportation, urban and social justice advocates. She has been
appointed to statewide agencies by three separate Governors, both Republican
and Democrat. She is a founding officer in two statewide coalitions – the
New Jersey Regional Coalition and the Coalition for Affordable Housing
and Environment.
E-Mail: Dianne R. Brake
Ann B. Brady, Vice President
With a degree in Sociology and work experience in Baltimore, MD Anchorage, AK and Burlington County in transportation, environmental and land use planning, Ann was hired to undertake project work. In 2000 she was made Vice President, combining responsibilities for staffing Board committee work, administrative oversight and continuing in project planning. She works closely with Dianne and the Administrator to manage the organization.
By mid 2002, Ann was able to hand over her planning work to other staff
and added development to her responsibilities. By 2005, Ann was managing
the implementation of the Strategic Business Plan and fundraising in membership
(corporate, individual and municipal/county), the Capital Campaign and
the Smart Growth Economy Project.
E-Mail: Ann B. Brady
Noelle Reeve, Vice President, Planning
With an Honours degree in Environmental Science and a MSc. in Community and Regional Planning, Noelle came to us from Canada with experience as an environmental planner, a program administrator, and a Communications Director for a British Columbia department of government. She has managed successfully PlanSmart NJ’s watershed project, urban growth targets project, and is now managing our county planning contracts, which this year have covered Salem, Passaic, Monmouth and Mercer Counties. Last year, she worked closely with the New Jersey Regional Coalition to form a Central Jersey Regional Equity Coalition.
Noelle is working closely with Dianne and the planning staff to change the practice of regional planning by creating new tools and strategies to 1) manage multiple goals and 2) make transparent the connection between a public policy decision and stated objectives. She will be documenting these new tools in a handbook funded by the Dodge Foundation on 3-Systems Planning.
E-Mail: Noelle Reeve
Jeffrey Wilkerson, Senior Project Planner
Jeffrey came to us from the New York City area, where he attended NYU's Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, with experience in planning, community development and policy analysis. His previous experience includes work with the NYC Department of City Planning and an environmental justice organization in Brooklyn to analyze the community impact of potential open space and transportation capital projects. Jeffrey has particular skills in data management and GIS mapping analysis. He oversees PlanSmart NJ's housing, transportation and neighborhood planning portfolios with an additional focus on NJ's State Plan developments.
While at PSNJ, Jeffrey has produced alternate zoning scenarios and related impacts reports for NJDOT funded Route 1 Growth Strategy Project using PlanSmart NJ's Goal Oriented Zoning application, He acted as project manager for the Bromley Neighborhood Revitalization Plan of Hamilton, NJ, He provided analysis for future development as input to NJTransit's Route 1 BRT project and for a project called 'Housing the Vulnerable' for the Mercer Alliance to End Homelessness. He is currently working on a build-out analysis for Tinton Falls, NJ and a 'Circulation Planning Technical Guide' for NJ's Office of Smart Growth.
E-Mail: Jeffrey Wilkerson
Tanika Jones, Office Manager
Tanika brings 10 years of non-profit management experience to this job. She oversees all the office operations including managing the financials and database and provides support to all staff. Previous employment includes Trenton YMCA and YWCA, Habitat for Humanity and Art Works. She has an Associates Degree in Business Management from Mercer County Community College.
E-Mail: Tanika Jones