HR&A supported the historic transition of County Judge Lina Hidalgo of Harris County, TX, the youngest—she was just 27 years old when she ran for office—and the first Latina to serve as the chief executive of the third-largest county in the U.S. Our transition support enabled effective governance from day one through strategic staffing, policy framework development, and unprecedented community engagement that reached over 11,000 residents.
HR&A is supporting the City and County of Honolulu to assess the City’s climate-related financial risks and define strategies for funding and budgeting vital adaptation measures. As climate hazards like coastal erosion, flooding, and hurricanes become more frequent and severe, this initiative marks a significant opportunity for Honolulu to safeguard its future by investing in resilient infrastructure and long-term solutions.
The Long Island City northern waterfront currently hosts the Ravenswood Generating Station, the largest fossil fuel plant in New York City, providing over 20% of the City’s local power capacity. After Rise Light & Power committed to transforming it into a renewable energy hub, the Office of the Queens Borough President brought on HR&A to lead “Reimagine Ravenswood,” a community-driven site reuse, neighborhood improvement, and workforce development planning process to guide a just transition to an inclusive clean energy economy in western Queens.
HR&A served as strategic partner and development advisor to Rice Management Company for The Ion and broader 16-acre Ion District in Houston, overseeing real estate and programmatic development. This comprehensive advisory role has successfully transformed a former Sears building into a thriving innovation hub while laying the groundwork for a 3-5 million square foot mixed-use innovation district that fosters an inclusive tech ecosystem and creates equitable economic opportunities.
HR&A worked with Buffalo Bayou Partnership to develop a comprehensive investment framework and master plan for Buffalo Bayou East, a 260-acre waterfront transformation extending Houston's celebrated greenway network four miles east of Downtown. Our strategic planning work created the foundation for securing a historic $100 million catalyst gift from the Kinder Foundation, which will leverage an additional $210 million in public and philanthropic funding to support the first decade of development and operations.
HR&A collaborated with the Texas Broadband Development Office (BDO) to develop the State’s first ever comprehensive statewide Digital Opportunity Plan, establishing their roadmap to universal broadband availability, affordability, and adoption.
Since 2022, HR&A has worked with leaders in Manhattan’s Chinatown neighborhood to support recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, address systemic challenges facing the small business community, and foster a new generation of AAPI entrepreneurs seeking to preserve the cultural identity of Chinatown.
HR&A designed a comprehensive strategy for Northfield Community Local Development Corporation to launch Staten Island's first Community Land Trust, creating a locally tailored roadmap that positions the organization to expand affordable homeownership opportunities and strengthen community resilience through a financially viable CLT initiative.
HR&A worked with the Wilkinsburg Community Development Corporation to analyze how population decline was affecting the Borough of Wilkinsburg and develop strategies to attract new development. Our fiscal analysis and recommendations informed critical consolidation discussions between the Borough and the City of Pittsburgh.
HR&A developed a comprehensive strategic plan for Georgia Institute of Technology to strengthen Tech Square's position as a globally competitive innovation district. Through visioning and strategic planning, HR&A delivered recommendations that directly informed the design of a new 420,000 square foot anchor building, established a framework for enhanced district governance, and created a roadmap for leveraging the district's diverse talent pipeline to cement Georgia Tech's role as a global convener of innovators.
On behalf of Consolidated Edison Inc. (Con Edison), HR&A conducted a comprehensive impact assessment of the company's utility subsidiaries, Con Edison Company of New York (CECONY) and Orange and Rockland Utilities (O&R), detailing the economic, fiscal, and social value the company provides to customers, businesses, local communities, and the states of New York and New Jersey.
HR&A developed the Kips Bay Science District Education and Workforce Vision Report for the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC), that articulated the vision of the Kips Bay District as the center of New York City’s health and life sciences ecosystems. Leveraging NYCEDC's first-of-its-kind life sciences innovation, career, and education hub, the Science Park and Research Campus (SPARC), would develop the next generation of talent to support this ecosystem and anchor this District.
Since 2022, HR&A has supported New York State's Empire State Development to design and implement a comprehensive workforce strategy for the newly established Office of Strategic Workforce Development. The office’s core focus is to establish strategic priorities for job training aligned with industry needs and to fund new programs – through a $150 million grant program – that connect un- and underemployed New Yorkers especially from historically marginalized communities to in-demand, high-quality jobs in priority industries. Ultimately, this internal and external-facing effort seeks to strengthen New York’s economic competitiveness and expand economic opportunity and mobility for all New Yorkers.
HR&A advised the Bronx Chamber of Commerce to facilitate a collaborative economic development strategy among 15 major Bronx employers and institutions. Our work resulted in the Bronx Prosperity Plan — a comprehensive framework focused on talent development, strategic marketing, and targeted investments that established concrete pathways to enhance economic opportunity and prosperity across the borough.
HR&A worked with the City of Dallas to develop and implement a groundbreaking Economic Development Policy that prioritizes equitable investment in Southern Dallas and communities of color historically excluded from opportunity. Through comprehensive strategic support, our work is helping turn the City’s bold vision into measurable outcomes—restructuring incentives, aligning City departments, and building a foundation for inclusive, long-term economic growth.
HR&A worked with United Way to develop an implementation plan for their initial strategic framework for a continuum of issues related to affordable housing and homelessness in Charlotte-Mecklenburg County.
