Community Planning & Urban Design

The built environment shapes experience and quality of life for a community's residents and visitors. Places and spaces where people feel welcome and comfortable, and that are interesting, safe and vital invite people to connect with each other and build the framework of social connectivity, health and wellness, and prosperity and success.

Learn more about our placemaking approach here >, and check out the list below for some of our recent community planning and urban design projects.

New Ulm Comprehensive Plan

New Ulm, located just 90 miles southwest of Minneapolis/St. Paul, is a thriving community of 14,000 people with a historic downtown, a strong sense of culture and heritage, prosperous and growing industry, and nationally-recognized attractions.

Working as part of a multidisciplinary team, CDG is leading efforts to develop the City's new Comprehensive Plan, which also includes four small area plans for key locations in the community, including its Downtown as well as new residential and industrial areas.

Olivia Comprehensive Plan

Adorned with tall trees, and set among fields of soybeans, sugar beets, and a sea of corn, Olivia is a community of 2,400 residents located about two hours west of the Twin Cities on Highway 212.

Due to changing circumstances, including changes in local employment, completion of long-awaited investments, and a desire to develop a new vision for the City's future, Olivia has embarked on an effort to develop a new Comprehensive Plan.

CDG is leading a team of consultants to develop the Plan, which will communicate the City's and its residents' ideas and vision.

Glencoe Comprehensive Plan

Glencoe is a thriving community of almost 6,000 residents, located about an hour west of the Twin Cities on Highway 212. The City, offering a great mix of strong businesses, excellent schools, extensive parks, and great people, is poised to grow. Residents and leaders want to proactively work together to orient that growth so it meets residents' ideas and aspirations for their community.

Rogers Downtown Master Plan Update

The City of Rogers is a prosperous and growing community in northern Hennepin County, with a population of 13,150 residents. The city has grown rapidly, almost quadrupling in size since 2000, when its population was 3,600. Its downtown area is generally characterized by auto-oriented development with disconnected buildings, large parking lots, and low walkability, though it also includes a small finer-grained district with pedestrian-scaled storefronts, sidewalk-fronting buildings and historic façades.

East Grand Forks Land Use Plan

CDG is working as part of a multi-disciplinary team to develop the City of East Grand Forks Land Use Plan Update.

The Land Use Plan is a long-range guiding document for how the City will manage growth and development over the next 30 years. It is updated every 5 years to respond to changes within the community and includes a wide range of topics, including population and employment projections, housing, transportation, land use, and how to develop sustainably.​

CDG is providing the following services toward development of the plan:

Golden Valley Housing Concepts and Engagement

The City of Golden Valley is working to address the need for affordable housing for its existing and future residents. Recently, the City identified eight publicly-owned sites that it is considering for use as affordable housing.

CDG is working as part of a consultant team to develop a plan for engaging residents living in the vicinity of the parcels - and the city overall - to participate in a design conversation about the configuration of each of the specific sites as well as for discussion of general affordable housing topics.

Marshalltown IA Downtown Master Plan

Marshalltown Iowa is the county seat for Marshall County and a prosperous community of about 28,000 people located in central Iowa. In the summer of 2018 it was hit by a category EF3 tornado with winds of 145 mph which caused severe damage in multiple areas of the community, including the city's historic Main Street District and surrounding residential neighborhoods.

International Falls Comprehensive Plan

International Falls is the northernmost city in Minnesota and the seat of Koochiching County. With a population of about 6,000 people, the city is located on the Rainy River, along the US / Canada border, and is the largest port of entry for international railroad traffic in the United States today. It includes significant paper industry operations, and is an important gateway for tourism, including for visitors to Voyageurs National Park.

Bozeman, Montana Urban Design Guidelines

Known as “The Most Livable Place” for its renowned natural beauty, world class fishing, skiing, abundant recreational opportunities, and gateway to Yellowstone National Park, Bozeman is also a regional commercial center for much of the south central region of Montana.

CDG developed the city’s new Urban Design Manual to increase opportunities for human-scaled and context-appropriate development, innovative urban design, improved multimodal connectivity, and orderly and sustainable development while responding to the city’s unique physical and natural character.

St. Joseph Comprehensive Plan

St. Joseph is a small town of about 6,500 residents located just west of St. Cloud, Minnesota. Home to thriving small businesses and local industries, a diverse community and renowned educational institutions like the College of St. Benedict, the city is poised to grow and thrive in the coming decades.

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