The purpose of this discussion is to explore the intersections between architecture, landscape architecture, and urban planning & design—how these disciplines can better collaborate across scales and sectors to shape more accessible, beautiful, and effective urban environments.
We are especially excited to hold this event in Cleveland Public Auditorium Music Hall, a hallmark of the 1903 Group Plan and a symbol of the City Beautiful movement’s collaborative design ideals. Following the panel, Cleveland Landmarks Commission staff will lead a behind-the-scenes architectural tour of the building.
The panel discussion will be eligible for continuing education credits across AIA, APA, and ASLA.
Panel Overview: Where Planning & Design Meet
At its best, the built environment is the result of many minds working in unison—urban planners providing vision and structure, architects crafting the buildings that define our experience of place, and urban designers and landscape architects shaping the spaces in between. Yet in practice, these disciplines often work in parallel rather than in partnership.
This panel aims to examine what happens when those boundaries dissolve and real collaboration emerges. We’ll ask:
How can city planners & urban designers, architects, and landscape architects better understand each other's processes and priorities?
What does successful interdisciplinary collaboration look like—both in the public realm and in private development?
How can public-sector professionals working within institutional and political constraints work more effectively with private-sector designers?
How might we elevate the design contributions of planners and designers in a development climate often dominated by financial and political interests?
What models, projects, or initiatives can we look to—whether local or national—for examples of design and planning working seamlessly together?
The discussion will explore not only the challenges of cross-disciplinary and cross-sector collaboration but also the shared opportunities to shape Cleveland’s urban future.