President and Owner of Livable Cities Studio, Meredith has over 18 years of expertise in urban redevelopment, parks and public space design. She is distinguished for her leadership, design and project management of large-scale complex efforts. She has worked on public parks, streetscapes and urban design projects focusing on developing responsible and innovative designs that respond to the needs of the place and community. Meredith’s projects emphasize the role of public space as a way to stimulate redevelopment and create socially active spaces that provide long-term benefits for cities. Meredith is known for her interdisciplinary team leadership, her responsiveness to clients and her excellent communication skills. A firm believer in the benefits of collaboration, she forms strong long-term working relationships with design teams and clients. Meredith is recognized for her rigor and follow-through and for instilling discipline and accountability into design processes.

Todd is an Urban Designer and Principal at Livable Cities Studio and has over 20 years of planning and redevelopment experience in both the public and private sectors. Throughout his career, he has been responsible for leading numerous multi-disciplinary teams, establishing long-range visions and guiding them through strategic implementation with an emphasis on the role of public open-space as a way to stimulate growth and create socially active spaces. He specializes in complicated urban design and planning projects focused on redevelopment, mobility, public space design, community outreach and city building. Most recently, in his role as Deputy Director of Denver Mayor Hancock’s North Denver Cornerstone Collaborative (NDCC), Todd directed and oversaw a portfolio of planning initiatives and capital projects totaling over $100 million in public investment of multi-modal infrastructure, parks, and waterfronts. In addition, Todd has been a regular studio instructor and critic at the University of Colorado Denver, a studio critic at the University of Texas, Auburn University and a Career Discovery instructor at Harvard’s Graduate School of Design.

Will Viitanen is a landscape architect at Livable Cities Studio with extensive experience leading and designing unique projects in a variety of sectors, from civic and university campuses to public gardens. Working collaboratively on multi-disciplinary efforts, Wil is most interested in the power of landscape in addressing complex social, economic, and environmental issues through powerful narratives interventions that weave architecture and landscape as one. His background in architecture informs a sensibility in design thinking, craft, and detailing and he brings design excellence to the team from design concept to documentation and construction observation. Will holds a Master of Landscape Architecture from the University of Colorado Denver and a Bachelor of Environmental Design degree from the University of Colorado Boulder.

Will’s recent projects include design for The Butterfly Pavilion at Baseline Development in Broomfield, Co, The Pollinators’ and Bird Garden at the Arboretum at Penn State University and the University of Denver Advantage projects at the University of Denver.

Yishuen is a landscape designer and visual communications team leader at Livable Cities Studio, and has diverse interests in urban design, architectural visualization, user experience design, and emerging technologies. Her project experience includes public spaces and parks, urban design, master planning, transit-oriented development, and mixed use development. Prior to joining Livable Cities Studio, Yishuen initiated and launched virtual reality system at Design Workshop, and lead firm-wide training on 3D modeling and virtual reality. Yishuen believes great design starts with the end-users in mind, and is interested in using emerging technologies and landscape architecture to design human experiences for people and communities. Yishuen received her B.A. Urban Studies and Master of Landscape Architecture from The University of Texas at Austin, and enjoys cycling, hiking, coding, doodling, and VR games in her spare time.

Conrey is a Landscape Designer and Project Manager and brings to the team broad skills in landscape architecture, planning, 3D modeling, and technical documentation, as well as graphic design and visualization. Conrey earned his Bachelor of Landscape Architecture from Colorado State University in 2017, where his studies focused on Global Environmental Sustainability and Sociology, while serving as the President of CSU’s Student Chapter of ASLA and earning the department’s Exemplary Leadership Award. Since joining LCS, he has worked on projects of all phases and scales while continuing to serve the broader design community as a member of the ASLA Colorado/Wyoming Executive Board. Currently, he is championing the integration of BIM/Revit into our studio workflow while managing multiple projects of various scales.

Conrey sees the true value of design as a medium for social improvement and change and aims to positively influence the communities he works with by tackling key issues through comprehensive design and building relationships with mission-based organizations. 

Melanie Schroeder is a landscape architect at Livable Cities Studio whose talents and experience span an extensive range of project types, both public and private. She has worked both nationally and internationally, equipping her with a depth of experience in streetscapes, parks, playgrounds, and on-structure spaces. Her driven attitude pushes her to seek the best outcomes possible for a project and dig deep to uncover a site’s inherent identity. Melanie’s projects celebrate each project site individually, recognizing each site’s context and narrative as unique. She is passionate about seeing projects through construction and creating meaningful and tangible impacts for communities. Melanie holds a Master of Landscape Architecture from the University of Minnesota and a Bachelor of Environmental Design degree, also from the University of Minnesota.

Chelsea is a landscape designer at Livable Cities Studio with experience in public and private projects. She earned her Master of Landscape Architecture and Master of Urban and Regional Planning from the University of Colorado Denver in 2021 where her studies focused on environmental justice through landscape planning, and she was awarded the ASLA Student Honor Award for her project work. Her diverse educational background informs her systems thinking throughout the creative process. She is passionate about combining research, public engagement, and artistic intervention to design places for communities and the environment.

Lauren is a landscape designer at Livable Cities Studio. She earned her Master of Landscape Architecture and Master of Urban and Regional Planning from the University of Colorado Denver in 2022. Her studies focused on environmental equity and public realm improvements. She also served as CU Denver’s ASLA student chapter president and was a student supervisor in the fabrication lab. Lauren brings dedication, enthusiasm, and excellence in graphic representation to Livable Cities Studio. She is most interested in the intersection of research and digital innovation to design landscapes that influence stronger communities and improved ecological environments. Lauren enjoys running, skiing, gardening, and cooking in her free time.

Madison is a landscape designer at Livable Cities Studio. She earned her Master of Landscape Architecture from Kansas State University in 2022 where she was awarded PGASLA Honor and Merit Awards for her work. As a designer she is passionate about creating iconic, experience-driven places and is inspired by narrative and placemaking design that is rooted into the experience.