WithersRavenel is celebrating Community Planning Month! We are profiling our planning team members, learning more about them, and what drives their work. We meet Planner Greg Feldman. He has a Bachelor of Science degree in Urban and Regional Planning from East Carolina University. Prior to joining WithersRavenel, Greg worked in the planning departments for Pitt County and Pender County, respectively.
WITHERSRAVENEL: What got you interested in Planning?
Greg Feldman: My passion for engaging with communities to find and create a best path forward led me to a career in planning. The profession is constantly integrating new strategy as community trends shift over time so there is no “one-size fits all” approach when it comes to communinty planning. That has always been of interest to me because it allows you to connect with people and places to form representative action items.
WR: What is the most rewarding aspect of your work?
GF: Regardless of a community’s size and differences, there are often common goals buried deep within. Uncovering what these goals look like and providing a community with the necessary tools to carry them out is what I find to be the most rewarding part of my job as a planner.
WR: What has been your favorite project?
GF: Drafting All Aboard Hamlet, the City of Hamlet’s comprehensive plan. The City held so much passion for spotlighting its historical structures and the stories they carried. The WR Community Planning Team was able to turn those passions into reflective goals and recommendations that will help showcase Hamlet’s long and rich history for years to come.
WR: What is your advice to someone looking to get into planning as a career?
GF: Learn to be a forward-thinker. While a difficult skill to master, being a forward-thinker is among the most common traits I see in successful planners. Planners are often tasked with forming goals and recommendations that communities will carry out over the next several decades, so being able to accurately anticipate future needs is critical in this field.
WR: What is that one “non-planner” skill that you have or bring to the table that helps you do your job better?
GF: Being a communicator. My ability to effectively communicate has allowed me to reach a wide variety of audiences and best understand the people and places I work with.
Do you want to put WithersRavenel’s Planning Team to work for you? Contact Director of Community Planning Jay McLeod, AICP, at (919) 238-0422 or jmcleod@withersravenel.com.