JM Goldson’s team, led by professional planner and founder, Jenn Goldson, strives for excellence and creativity in planning to harness opportunities for transformative change and social equity.

JENN GOLDSON, AICP

Founder and Managing Director

“The most important skill to be an effective community planner is something you’re not taught in school. It’s to be an excellent questioner and listener. Only when you can see a place through the eyes of its community members, can you truly understand the pulse of the community and what makes it authentic. Then you know where to begin.”

Jenn brings over 25 years of professional expertise to JMG that includes work in comprehensive planning, affordable housing, historic preservation, open space conservation, and community engagement. Throughout her career, Jenn has focused on creating “great places” for people to live, work, and thrive. She is committed to advancing forward-thinking visions that promote greater diversity, equity, and social justice in communities – for the benefit of all.  

Jenn has a Bachelor of Science in Historic Preservation from Roger Williams University and a Master of Community planning from the University of Rhode Island. She is certified by the American Institute of Certified Planners.

Learn about Jenn’s Community Planning Book Group.

LAURA SMEAD, AICP

Senior Community Planner for Land Use and Long-Range Planning

Laura brings over 15 years of combined planning and research/analysis experience. Laura’s previous planning work includes land use and zoning, community engagement, public health, ArcGIS mapping, and climate change. She is also experienced at grant writing, data collection, research, and statistical analysis. The big issue behind her efforts is how to make more sustainable and healthy places.

In a volunteer capacity, Laura serves on the Sharon Master Plan Implementation Committee, and the Revere and Son Heritage Trust Board.

Laura holds a Masters in Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning from Tufts University, a Masters in Psychology from California State University Fullerton, and a Bachelors of Applied Science in Psychology from the University of Minnesota Duluth. She is certified by the American Institute of Certified Planners.

Elana Zabar, M.Ed., CNU-A

Community Planner & Community Engagement Specialist

Elana is a community engagement specialist and planner. Her passions include building inclusive and sustainable communities, ensuring that all community members have equitable access to participate in civic life. She has experience building community with diverse populations and believes in centering collaboration in her work. Elana holds a bachelor’s degree in Community and Environmental Planning with a dual degree in Sustainability and a minor in Political Science from the University of New Hampshire. She then went on to earn her Master’s of Education in Community Engagement at Merrimack College.

Flavio Vila

Community Planner for Land Use & Urban Design

Flavio has a deep passion and curiosity about how affordable housing and land policy can work as processes to overcome urban poverty, especially in the informal settlements of the global south. As a Community Planner for Land Use and Urban Design at JM Goldson, Flavio assists with land use planning, zoning, and research, as well as quantitative, qualitative, and spatial analysis for a variety of projects.

He holds a Bachelor in Architecture from the University of Lima and a Masters in City Planning from the Department of Urban Studies and Planning at MIT. During his graduate degree and as a part of his Fulbright scholarship, he was part of the MIT Enhancing Water Affordability Project which seeks to understand the nature of water poverty in U.S. cities, to examine potential local-level policy responses, and to explore how federal programming might support utilities and households in need.

Prior to his master’s degree, he worked with informal settlements in Lima, with rural communities along the Peruvian Andes and Amazon, and at the Peruvian Ministry of Housing. Flavio is a native Spanish speaker and a fluent English speaker.  

Noah Harper

Noah Harper is a planner, specializing in housing, equity, and urban development. As a planner, Noah uses his research, analysis, and communication skills to advocate for equitable, innovative solutions that help to build beloved, inclusive communities. He holds a master’s degree in City and Regional Planning from Rutgers University’s Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, as well as undergraduate degrees from Brandeis University in English, and Film, Television, and Interactive Media.

Austin Smith

Community Planner for Land Use & Long-Range Planning

Austin comes to JM Goldson with a deep passion for cultivating equitable, human communities. Particularly on this continent, they believe the foundations of this effort are reconstructing more complete historiographies, devolution and democratization, and finding common ground through generosity, empathy, and openness. They believe that building a better world requires all of us to think fractally, with action and intention being reflected at every scale, everywhere at once. They are proud to come from a family of builders, healers, gardeners, and community-oriented folk.

Austin has years of project management, organizing, and communications experience in food justice and livable communities. Austin’s recent experience includes comparative research on municipal zoning bylaws, GIS analysis, and research on the history of community land trusts. They appreciate bringing a patient, generous, and iterative approach to addressing large, complex issues. Austin believes that community planning is a tactile poetics of reality, one which finds its grounding in truth-seeking and its efficacy in devolution.

Austin holds a bachelor’s degree from Wheaton College (MA), where they studied Philosophy and Political Theory. They are currently an MCP candidate at Boston University, concurrently pursuing Master’s Certificates in Applied Sustainability and Urban Policy and Planning.

Brenna Trollinger

Brenna Trollinger, MUP, is a Community (she/her) is a community planner specializing in land use and long-range planning. She holds a Master’s in Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning from Tufts University. Her professional experience focuses on spatial analysis and interactive web mapping as well as facilitating community engagement efforts through the use of participatory planning tools. She believes that equitable planning outcomes occur when the process is community driven at every step.

Kadineyse Paz

Community Planning Analyst

Kadineyse Paz is a policy professional passionate about working from a social change and equity lens with more than 7 years of experience in housing and environmental policy in her hometown of Boston. Throughout her years in advocacy, she has been involved in helping to pass important housing and environmental protection policies at the city and state levels. She holds a BA from Bryn Mawr College and is currently completing her Public Policy Master’s degree from Tufts University as a Neighborhood Fellow. Kadineyse is also fluent in Spanish. She is excited to join JM Goldson’s dynamic group as a Community Planning Analyst.