Skills

Our firm has a solid expertise working with different financial alternatives to guide and advise organizations with limited budgets. APD-U has expertise in managing expectations, funding gap calculation, and cost benefit analysis for different development projects.

APD-U provides architectural renderings to provide visual examples of attributes or designs requested by our clients or recommended by our team of experts.

APD-U uses a range of technologies and instruments to capture various factors which define a neighborhood or community including, but not limited to, building conditions, land use, and building vacancy status. The result is a database of on-the-ground existing conditions for all parcels and buildings within the community.

APD-U uses visualization to organize and present large amounts of data in a appealing graphic format. Data visualization allows our clients to grasp complicated processes, and identify areas that may need attention or improvement.

APD-U conducts multiple community design charrettes to create a common understanding of the requirements for the specific projects. Our staff works with the community to develop concepts and share sketched designs

One component of creating a complete community is the implementation of design standards. APD-U has experience in creating and instituting these standards that fit within the character of the existing neighborhood to create context sensitive design.

Many of the property owners in the neighborhoods APD-U works in lack a solid title on their property. The property acquisition process requires good background information to guarantee all purchased property’s title is in good standing. APD-U provides the research necessary for smooth property acquisition.

APD-U provides tailored models outlining financial needs for real-estate projects. These financial models include development proformas, project budgets, and property acquisition models. APD-U ensures a concise end-product with plug-and-play features ensuring use beyond the initial project.

APD-U uses the powerful capabilities of GIS analysis to inform clients on geospatial information at all stages of a project beginning with existing conditions through implementation.

Our work on the historic preservation planning process involves a rational and methodical approach, which works to develop a comprehensive vision and specific goals for the preservation of historic, cultural, and archaeological resources.

Much of the work done at APD-U requires a strong relationship with local governments, and we can assist our clients in fostering a relationship with local governments to create an effective and implementable project.

APD-U assist clients to design and create a logo of their city, community, neighborhood, and subdivision. APD-U engages with both the client and community to ensure the design captures both current and future values of the neighborhood.

Using solid principles of graphic design, APD-U creates brochures, websites, flyers, newsletters, signs, and other market material to help promote our client’s projects or neighborhoods.

In addition to high quality printed maps, APD-U offers a variety of online mapping services. Multiple types of customized web maps are provided, which are secured and hosted in our server. Our firm offers online applications that range from economic development, to real estate market analysis, to environmental issues, among other topics.

Surveys created and deployed by APD-U have ranged based on the client’s needs and wants. These surveys include, but not limited to, door-to-door questionnaires, online questionnaires, and public meeting questionnaires.

APD-U’s 30-year history in revitalization projects and policies has provided the company with the experience necessary to guide other organizations to similar goals. We gauge the strengths and weaknesses of organizations and impart our knowledge in needed areas.

We offer outreach services to keep stakeholders involved and informed, and to maximize the number of people who are able to take advantage of the opportunities our projects open up within communities.

Any programs, policies, or strategies recommended by APD-U adhere to guidelines, regulations, and rules set by the associated funding source. APD-U has over thirty years working with H.U.D. and private funding sources. Additionally, recommendations made to municipal clients will follow rules and guidelines set forth by their respective counties and states.

APD-U provides tailored programmatic cost models based on client and community needs. All include future projections based on local realities that provide clients with an understanding of the potential future cost of programs. Clients in the past have used these models to successfully secure funding for their programs.

APD-U leverages its 30 years of experience as developers and planners to ensure that plans and programs are correctly implemented and managed. These project management roles range from implementation of redevelopment plans, property asset acquisition, disposition, and management, construction management, and program management.

Financing for a project is the most critical component contributing to its successful implementation. At APD-U we can help to identify sources of funding to take projects from planning stages through implementation and create a successful and sustainable project.

In many cases, our clients find that land ownership within a project area is the most effective way to influence project outcomes. At APD-U we help our clients acquire, manage, or transfer property ownership rights for key land parcels in order to ensure successful project implementation.

We specialize in connecting public and private entities to form beneficial relationships to help move projects forward. These entities frequently involve organizations across a wide array of disciplines and backgrounds including non-profit, philanthropic, for profit, and governmental organizations.

APD-U assists clients in the selection of properties for potential acquisition, which often total in the hundreds of properties for a single project. Our staff design tailored real estate databases and advise on report development and implementation to ensure a well-structured acquisition process.

Our staff uses high-resolution satellite imagery and alternative sources (such as high-resolution SAR and LIDAR) to develop analytical techniques for deriving indicators of socioeconomic and environmental conditions that prevail within the urban landscape.

APD-U uses a combination of demand side and supply side factors to determine potential retail gaps in an area. These retail gaps are applied to advise clients on the market potential for various types of retail services in an area.

APD-U provides site plans detailing proposed improvements to a given lot such as building footprint, parking, trails, and green and open spaces. The creation of sites plans usually follow any policy or program recommendations along with outlined strategies.

The team at APD-U consists of highly trained planning professionals who use their skill to create innovative and context sensitive site designs. Our site programming is based in thorough market analysis to create a program that will thrive in its surroundings.

Stakeholder groups represent both the public and private side of the community. APD-U uses these focus groups to understand the community’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats as well as to verify existing conditions.

Using powerful GIS tools and techniques, APD-U provides site selection analysis where multiple weighted criteria are combined to find which locations are most suitable for a certain kind of development.

One of the most powerful tools in guiding a community’s future development is the vision statement, which is a roadmap on what the community wants to be. Visioning Sessions are workshops that establish an overarching vision statement through the use of exercises.