Ben Gruswitz, AICP

Experience

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  Notre Dame Preparatory School

  Aug 2003 - Dec 2007

  Director of Community Service, Teacher, Camp Director

  - Directed summer camp for children in Baltimore City public housing.- Organized or created service opportunities for volunteers serving disadvantaged populations.- Wrote grant applications, school policy proposals, program manuals, and course curricula.- Taught courses on social justice issues and facilitated reflections on service experiences.

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  Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission

  Jun 2008 - Jan 2012

  - Coordinated with regional partners at the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments to develop demographic and employment forecasts.- Performed economic, demographic, and land use analysis, and disseminated data to the public, county government, development community, transportation modelers, and master plan staff.- Led implementation of interactive web map and database applications for tracking and displaying the status of master plan staging capacity and requirements.- Improved data quality and analysis of key data sets, such as parcels, employment, and land use through inter- and intra-agency coordination.- Served as a member of the ProjectDox (ePlans) implementation team. Show less

  • Senior Planner | Center for Research & Information Systems

    Nov 2010 - Jan 2012

  • Senior Planner | Environmental Planning Division

    Jun 2008 - Nov 2010
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  Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission

  Mar 2012 - Nov 2012

  Senior Planner | Functional Planning & Policy / Dev. Applications & Regulatory Coord. Divisions

  - Assisted in the development of the 2012–2016 Subdivision Staging Policy, which contains policy recommendations on private development’s role in providing adequate public facilities.- Updated regulatory workflows necessary for launching ePlans, an online tool for paperless development plan submittals enabling collaborative, digital, interagency review.

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  Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission

  Nov 2012 - Aug 2023

  - Collaborated with partners to forecast population and employment, and address other data needs, including initiating DVRPC’s Socioeconomic and Land Use Analytics Committee.- Advocated for and implemented advanced planning tools for the Long-Range Plan (LRP) and agency needs, such as the UrbanSim land use model and VisionEval scenario planning model.- Reengineered trend analysis on LRP goal progress as project manager of the Tracking Progress dashboard, augmenting public engagement with agency data and programs.- Led socioeconomic, land use, equity, transportation, and environmental research, including scenario planning: factoring in uncertainties like technological advances and climate change.- Procured and managed consultants and vendors, researching best practices in data products for potential acquisitions.- Business Responded to requests from member agencies, media, and other groups. Show less - Led and contributed to studies on proposed and existing transportation facilities and economic benefits, such as KOP Rail, proposed PA Turnpike interchanges, and PATCO’s economic impacts.- Forecasted multimodal travel demand for member governments and transit agencies.- Prepared socioeconomic data for travel model inputs and existing conditions analyses.- Guided implementation, data cleaning, and analysis for surveys and other data products.- Improved methods for locating groups for Title VI and Environmental Justice compliance.- Advised staff and organized training on data sources and analysis methods for their projects. Show less

  • Manager | Socioeconomic & Land Use Analytics

    Oct 2017 - Aug 2023

  • Senior Transportation Planner | Office of Modeling & Analysis

    Nov 2012 - Sept 2017
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  Village of Ardencroft

  Mar 2023 - Mar 2025

  Village Assembly Chair (volunteer)

  - Performed mayoral and town manager tasks for Village.- Presided at municipal government (a direct democracy) and Coordinating Committee meetings.- Interfaced with county, state, and federal elected officials and their staff on Village needs and coordinate with the Ardencroft Association and neighboring villages of the Ardens.- Spearheaded effort to modernize key governance documents, such as the 1976 municipal charter and Village ordinances.- Collaborated with all-volunteer government toward a long-term vision for the municipality, with incremental implementation.- Secured funding for and execute Village and wider Ardens plans and initiatives, including transportation and public spaces improvements along with fostering healthy forests. Show less

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  Delaware Greenways

  Feb 2024 - Dec 2024

  Trail Project Manager (contract)

  - Lead coalition of nonprofits, government agencies, and the business community to develop a comprehensive trail network that enhances economic and social opportunities, promotes healthy living, and connects Delawareans and visitors to natural and cultural attractions.- Set vision, seek funding opportunities, and administer organization’s trail program.- Update GIS trails network, create maps, and perform spatial analysis to understand implementation priority.

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  CHPlanning, Ltd

  Mar 2024 - Nov 2024

  Senior Managing Consultant (contract)

  - Supervise a project manager and junior staff team on projects for a municipal client.- Review content of project deliverables for quality, clarity, and contract compliance.

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  Whitman, Requardt and Associates, LLP

  Dec 2024 - now

  Project Planner