Qualifications 

Path to Equity: Policy Guide for Richmond Connects Working with various stakeholders, offices within the City of Richmond, and most importantly – the residents of Richmond – Ms. Rowan, AICP led the development of an equity-centered policy guide for Richmond’s strategic multimodal transportation plan. This effort included extensive research into, and documentation of, the historical injustices spurred by past land-use and transportation planning. This information was shared with the public and a set of policy statements, called equity factors, were developed to articulate the desired outcomes of an equitable transportation network. Guiding Principles for how to implement this work were also laid out, which served as the bedrock upon which the Richmond Connects plan was built. This work has been featured in the 2022 National APA conference, the Virginia Transit Association Conference, the Virginia APA conference, and was awarded an honorable mention by the APA VA awards committee. Check out the final plan and website, developed by CCC planning.

The policy planning process featured novel approaches to equitable outreach during the pandemic, and the full strategic plan built on the successes of this intentional, community focused engagement.

Ms. Rowan also brings expertise in the development of performance reporting for internal and external office objectives. She led the development of a performance scorecard that was integrated as part of an overall statewide transportation reporting process while at OIPI.

More recently, Ms. Rowan AICP lead the development of an annual performance report for the City of Richmond's Office of Equitable Transit and Mobility.

While at the Office of Intermodal Planning and Investment, Ms. Rowan led the development of both the VTrans2040 Policy document as well as the mid-term VTrans needs assessment. This project included extensive statewide outreach, the coordination of several planning committees, and the complex task of gaining consensus on the plan from all the modal agencies involved in statewide planning.

Connected to this project, Ms. Rowan also led the OIPI effort to develop a novel project screening process to determine eligibility for SMARTSCALE project funding. This process was ground-breaking in that it tied the long-range planning to funding eligibility for multimodal projects. It also laid the foundation for the accessibility measurement that is a model for forward thinking planners. As part of this SMARTSCALE effort, she was awarded a Governor’s teamwork award.

Ms. Rowan developed a grant application process and managed over $750K in Urban Development Area grant funds. This project spoke to the importance of integrating land-use planning and transportation planning to achieve efficient use of public funds. This work aimed to maximize the outcomes associated with multimodal projects, TOD, walkable cities, and smart growth principles. She also has extensive experience working with local governments to achieve the synergistic goals of transportation accessibility and small area planning. For this project, Ms. Rowan received the APA Virginia “Outstanding Planning Organization” Presidents award in 2016.

Kelli Rowan also has extensive organizing and outreach experience. She has previously served as a campaign manager for a national canvassing and organizing firm. She lead teams of 20-30 people doing door -to-door and public event outreach to educate and gain supporter information for clients. She has volunteered and worked with many organizations on outreach and information dissemination approaches. She has been responsible for the coordination of all levels of stakeholder involvement and committees, and is a well versed in keeping outreach and engagement exercises fresh and fun!

She recently organized a series of "Tacos for Transportation" events for the City of Richmond to develop the Path to Equity: Policy Guide for Richmond Connects.