That's a Wrap!: Cityfi Unwrapped - 2023 Edition

As we put the finishing touches on 2023, we decided to put our own spin on Spotify’s Wrapped, showcasing our most read and impactful newsletter articles of the year. If you have been reading EVERY edition of the Cityfi Newsletter, you know Cityfi’s been busy (maybe “busy” is an understatement!). The 15 curated articles below are just a taste of our 2023 highlights; we simply couldn’t fit them all! Enjoy revisiting some of our thoughts, accomplishments, expert analyses, exciting announcements, and standard-setting client deliverable overviews.

State of the Union - Brandon analyzes 2023’s State of the Union address.
Electrifying the Home: Making Decisions with Cityfi's Social Impact Calculator - Chelsea shares a personal use case for the Cityfi Social Impact Calculator.
Cityfi Presents the Grantee Success Toolkit for The Opportunity Project - Alex, Kyle, and Mahreen showcase Cityfi’s skills in aiding organizations with grants.
March: In Like a Lion, Out Like a Lamb - Story reflects on rural healthcare and the importance of reliable internet.
Cities, Get Ready for Climate Migration! - Ryan emphasizes the need for climate migration planning.
Pittsburgh Smart Loading Zone Pilot Case Study - Erin presents a unique curb management pilot program Cityfi helped create.
Retreat Reflections: Appreciating the Ingredients that Make Up Cityfi - Chelsea connects Cityfi’s diversity with cooking great meals.
Curb the Chaos: Solutions for Cities at the Curb - Sarah showcases Cityfi's expertise in facilitating workshops and convenings.
Hot Takes from the Cityfi Team - The Cityfi team shares their thoughts on hot-button topics and recent events.
Bellevue, Washington Adopts Historic Curb Management Plan - Evan and Sarah provide insight into a unique curb management plan Cityfi helped develop.
Cityfi Europe: What’s Next? - Cityfi expands to Europe!
Angelo Adams Leads Zipcar into the Future - Brandon interviews Zipcar’s president on the future of shared mobility
Twin Tremors: Invest in Economic and Mobility Resilience - Karina argues for the need to invest in the interconnected urban core and public transit. This is a MUST read!
Safety First: Streamlining Small Scale Improvements - Karina testifies before the U.S. Senate on roadway safety.
An Autonomous Vehicle Guidebook for Cities - Erin announces the release of the Knight Foundation funded Autonomous Vehicles: A Guide for Cities.

Our Wrapped newsletter edition also includes our reflections on the year and what we are looking forward to in 2024! Please continue reading for our team’s quick thoughts and contemplations as we touch on topics ranging from Cityfi’s first team retreat to putting an elephant in the fridge.

Of course we still need to provide our standard in-depth articles featuring our collaborations with our amazing clients and the cutting-edge work we are developing, so scroll down to keep reading about: Evan’s new practice of communal lunches and their parallel to mobility collaboratives, our work with Palm Beach County to develop a Transportation Demand Management policy to mitigate consequences from the region’s rapid growth, and our engagement with Project MOVER. The year may be ending, but we are still moving forward!

Lastly, as a housekeeping note, the Cityfi Newsletter will not be published the week before New Year's. Our team will be taking that week off to spend time with friends and loved ones. We look forward to returning to your inboxes on January 12th, 2024. Please set a calendar reminder for our epic newsletter return. Enjoy your Holidays!

‘Tis the Season for Reflections

Story Bellows

Bringing the full Cityfi team together in person was a true highlight of the year. Celebrating our achievements, setting sights on and planning for deeper and broader impact, and beginning a months-long debate over who won the scavenger hunt makes me so grateful for the Cityfi team. For me, working together (even if often physically apart) brings me a deep sense of purpose and hope in a world that can benefit immensely from the types of collaboration and partnership we work to advance. Also…my new e-bike is great - a highlight of ‘23 and something I can’t wait to use more in ‘24!

Sarah Saltz

As I write this from the train to my hometown of Philadelphia to help facilitate the City’s electrification taskforce, I am feeling grateful for the values-driven projects and clients we’re fortunate to support and the opportunity to make an impact in the cities I care about.

Sahar Shirazi

This year, I took a leap of faith and joined Cityfi, enticed by the culture, work, and people that were so clearly valued here. As I round out my first 5 months here, I continue to be excited about the way this team thinks and works together, and the opportunities we create to problem-solve more creatively, collaboratively, AND pragmatically to support the diverse communities we work in. Meeting the full team in Chicago was a perfect introduction to the commitment to climate, equity, and innovation that carries us all through our work. I can’t wait to see what new challenges and creative solutions 2024 brings.

Ryan Parzick

My first year at Cityfi has been a rewarding journey of growth and impact, allowing me to contribute to innovative solutions for two of my passions - cities and the environment. I’ve leveraged my existing skills and learned invaluable new ones through collaboration with talented colleagues on diverse projects with private companies, public agencies, and non-profits. Working at Cityfi has been better than advertised and I am eager to build upon these experiences and look forward to continuing to make a positive impact on the world in 2024!

Nicole Davessar

This year, our partnerships with impact-driven clients immersed me in strategic planning initiatives, local mobility innovation and regional pursuits for federal transportation funding, and collaborative public-private approaches to achieving Justice40 and equity outcomes. In a single June week, one of my most fun and inspiring of 2023, I had the privilege of partaking in the United States Conference of Mayors 91st Annual Meeting in Columbus before heading to Chicago for Cityfi’s inaugural firm retreat, during which I was elated to meet many of my extraordinary teammates in person for the first time. Capping off a memorable 2023, I celebrated my yearlong journey in YWCA Columbus’s empowering Kathy Duffy Espy Leadership for Social Change Program by graduating in December alongside the remarkably talented and determined women in my cohort.

Monique Ho

As one of the newer additions to the Cityfi Team, this year has been full of firsts – first visits to Bentonville, Eugene, and Palm Beach working on dynamic and interesting mobility projects; first trip to Mexico City where I got to bike, walk, and take transit to my hearts desire all across the largest city in North America; and first time meeting my colleagues in-person during our offsite in Chicago. I’m grateful to be surrounded and mutually energized by such a passionate, focused, and values-driven group who continue to inspire me to think outside the box and from whom I’ve learned so much from this past year. With 2024 fast approaching, I look forward to continuing collaborating with my team, seeing more parts of the world, and finishing (hopefully in one piece) the 2024 Los Angeles Marathon in March!

Kyle Ragan

It is hard to believe another year at Cityfi is coming to an end. It is amazing to look at how much our team and work portfolio has grown over the past few years. I continue to be energized by our team and our mission driven clients we work with. It was also great to be able to have our first ever all company retreat in Chicago this year. On a personal note, I have enjoyed getting better connected to the City of Denver this year, including having the opportunity to serve on the Transition Committee for Mayor Mike Johnston. I look forward to continuing to zip around Denver on my e-bike in 2024.

Karla Peralta

I am grateful to continue to find new ways to solve urban challenges alongside both colleagues and clients. Being part of a team of passionate individuals who share common values and goals makes it exciting. I look forward to a new year to dive into more mission-driven projects, being surrounded by family and friends, and playing plenty of Tennis!

Karina Ricks

2023 flew by, it is hard to believe! Let’s see…what happened?! Cityfi grew (some more!) and went global (that was big!). Together with OMF we helped eight cities secure nearly $16 million in inaugural SMART grant funding (also big!). We took an epic family trip to Iceland, my Latvian homeland, and immersed my teens in Copenhagen bike culture. We wrote a great playbook with Urbanism Next and I got to testify to the US Senate on roadway safety (this transportation nerd’s dream!). 2024 looks just as exciting - we have an amazingly talented (and fun!) team working on really visionary projects from Oregon to Florida. Lots more technology changes coming and great companies we get to ideate with and support. Looking forward to it all!

Evan Costagliola

So many highlights, so little time. First and foremost, my wife and I celebrated the arrival of our daughter, Capri. I’ve also taken on a new challenge, opening and nurturing our firm’s European presence from Utrecht, Netherlands. The last three months have been full of exploration, conversations and new relationships. The future is truly bright for Cityfi in Europe and abroad. As I write this on an Amsterdam-bound train, Gelukkig nieuwjaar!

Erin Clark

Choosing a highlight this year was an easy one, as I welcomed my first baby, Harper, to the world! This year has been my most challenging and most rewarding year yet. As will come as no surprise to our readers with kids or in childcare roles, I was immediately more aware of the obstacles people with young children face in most US cities trying to limit car use. In 2024, I’m hoping to find my groove navigating public transportation and e-biking with a little one in tow.

Chrissy Anecito

In July of 2023, I made the decision to join a team of smart, experienced and dedicated professionals who are committed to working with the public sector and private industry to address some of our society’s most pressing and difficult challenges. I am so happy that I made that decision, and am grateful to this team and to the excellent clients we work with for the opportunity to leverage my experience in the climate and sustainability policy space. As we head into 2024, I look forward to continuing to work alongside my incredible Cityfi colleagues to accelerate change and achieve a more equitable and green future.

Chelsea Lawson

A highlight was having a sustainability education booth at the Santa Monica Farmer’s Market again - this time being joined by like-minded friends/partners at LA Metro and the City of Santa Monica. Bonus that the connections were made via the Cityfi newsletter! My toddler Duncan was there, too, of course.

Carolina de Urquijo

This year was full of first-fabulous experiences. I ran my first half marathon (and survived), bought my first bike (thank you Cityfi for the support!), went to Asia for the first time, put an elephant on the fridge for the first time, and so on. One of the biggest highlights is joining Cityfi! A team of extremely smart and passionate people who like to have fun while doing great work.

Camron Bridgford

Major highlights of my year included purchasing my first electric bike (thanks to Cityfi for support, as well as the City of Denver for providing an e-bike rebate!). It has been a joy to cruise around town and get where I need to go quickly on those two electrified wheels! It also filled me with gratitude to see so many of my colleagues in person this year - both at our offsite team meeting in Chicago, but also client visits to Miami, San Francisco and Atlanta (to name a few). Needless to say - I work with an amazing team! In 2024, I’m looking forward to continuing to grow our team, continue to develop impact-driven work, and also focus on personal wellbeing. These days, it’s important we all commit to doing a little more R&R for ourselves.

Brandon Pollak

2023 was a strong year for Cityfi’s Public Affairs practice. We joined colleagues from across the country and world at the US Conference of Mayors, Asilomar, ITS America Annual Meeting, Heartland Summit and the Future of Travel Mobility Summit (among others). Looking ahead, we are eager to do more to support the several cities preparing to host World Cup games in 2026, continue to expand our work in Europe, and advance our work with entrepreneurs tackling major challenges through tech and innovation.

Alexander Kapur

‘23, no biggie. Celebrated our one year wedding anniversary and shortly thereafter and during a romp in Barce learned we are expecting a new baby boy, due in May of ‘24. As Angelenos and a household participating in the creative industry, my fabulous partner Mona weathered BOTH the six-month WGA writer and SAG-AFTA actor strikes; this put us on the frontier of the impacts of AI on workforce as creatives joined with other productive unions, including Teamsters, to battle studios to protect workers and their individual IP from abuse of emerging tech, while also offering to balance the efficiency and power of the tools to improve editing and production. On the Cityfi front, it was exciting to spearhead the formation of the nation’s first and benchmark cleantech and curb digital infrastructure policy, support a fantastic team to deliver a comprehensive data framework to empirically measure the impacts of zero-emission last mile delivery, and guide a leading e-school bus brand through the maze of school district procurement to gain advantage. If ‘23 was any indication of the force of climate work in the coming years, we are so excited for those waves to come! 🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊. So grateful for our team and best wishes to our clients and trusted partners for the holiday season.

Breaking Bread to Solve Pressing Mobility Challenges

By Evan Costagliola

In late November, I moved Cityfi’s European home base into an architecture and design collective in Utrecht. Everyday, this group of designers and creators break bread over a communal lunch. Each person brings a little something to the table: bread, cheese, smoked mackerel. You name it. It’s a lovely cultural practice that I have come to embrace and look forward to every day.

You might be asking, “Why do I care about communal lunch and how does this relate to Cityfi?” Well, collaborating over a common table where organizations contribute perspectives and experiences to advance big, bold ideas is how business is done in Europe. This method also happens to be what makes Cityfi a unique consultancy to engage.

This parallel also reminds me of the new challenges and opportunities that cities, globally, should be solving together. Much like how cities, private enterprise, and non-governmental organizations have collaborated in 2023 to manage the curb with data, build frameworks for automated mobility, and double-down on shared mobility, 2024 will showcase even more mobility partnerships. In 2024, I foresee coordinated movement on models to 1) ensure safe and efficient micromobility charging and 2) harness ethical ways to use artificial intelligence within city operations.

Centralize and swap. Cities should be thinking about how to mitigate potential harm from the battery fire issue, but also support urban delivery and mobility enterprises that rely on electric micromobility. New York State is driving the conversation, but this is a global issue. I am encouraged to see innovative solutions like Swobbee, a battery charging tower that centralizes battery swapping at central locations and demonstrates new ways to power urban mobility and micro-delivery models. Cities should be convening to test new ways to manage and encourage safe and efficient micromobility charging practices.
Harness artificial intelligence and learn. How might cities use and manage risks surrounding artificial intelligence? While cities need clear principles and frameworks for AI’s uses (like in New York City), there are opportunities to test the waters and evaluate real solutions now. Using AI to sense, code, and evaluate public infrastructure assets is an exciting opportunity. Companies like Velotech.ai, a partner to over a dozen Dutch municipalities, are collaborating with cities to more efficiently and cost-effectively manage public infrastructure maintenance. Using any number of municipal fleets or personal vehicles (can you say gamify?!), cities are now able to capture information about the public realm in ways that were unthinkable just years ago. Better yet, these new technologies are GDPR-compliant and responsible uses of AI practices that simplify operational decision-making and generate insights that are vital for curb management, Vision Zero, and more. This is just one way for public agencies to harness AI responsibly and sustainably.

My hope is that Cityfi can drive more collaborative partnerships between local authorities and civic innovators in 2024, leading to groundbreaking policy and more civically-aligned solutions.

What’s on the Menu? A TDM Workshop!

By Karla Peralta

Palm Beach County has experienced a substantial surge in population, nearly reaching a 15% growth rate between 2010 and 2020. This surge has resulted in increased congestion, impacting not only convenience but also the economic and environmental landscape of the region. To confront these challenges, Cityfi is collaborating with The Transportation Planning Authority of Palm Beach County to develop a comprehensive Transportation Demand Management (TDM) Policy Menu for county-wide implementation.

TDM encompasses an array of policy and programmatic tools designed to reshape travel behaviors, expand travel choices, and efficiently manage congestion amid ongoing growth. The Palm Beach County TDM Policy menu veers away from a one-size-fits-all approach, acknowledging the county’s diverse land uses, densities, and varying contexts. Instead, it aims to aid different localities in choosing and implementing TDM strategies tailored to their unique characteristics and circumstances.

During a recent TDM Workshop facilitated by Cityfi on November 30th at the TPA, stakeholders actively engaged in discussions centered on the desired outcomes resulting from TDM implementation. This workshop served as a crucial platform to explore TDM's pivotal role in addressing Palm Beach County's transportation obstacles, highlighting national best practices, and seeking essential feedback on the draft policy. If you're interested in learning more about this project, please don't hesitate to reach out.

Eugene Continues to Lead

By Monique Ho

Cityfi is working with Lane Transit District (LTD) to develop a unified vision of mobility management. We are leading a strategic planning process rooted in research, best practices, and practical experience. LTD has long punched far above its weight class in thought (and action) leadership in public transit. It was the first system in the nation to implement bus rapid transit and continues to provide best in class service through its Emerald Express line. Their commitment to accessibility predates Americans with Disability Act requirements and that commitment to dignified mobility continues with the RideSource Shopper services. LTD has also historically engaged in visionary, strategic planning, including studying land use scenarios and global pressures and their impact on services and business operations.

The Cityfi Team, comprised of Karina Ricks, Story Bellows, Monique Ho, and Nico Larco (Cityfi Affiliate), recently visited LTD Headquarters in Eugene to meet with LTD staff and key stakeholders across Lane County to explore their vision and goals for mobility management to serve overall public mobility needs. With the intent to deeply listen and hear what folks had to say, we came away from this initial trip learning so much, namely, that the local and regional politics are nuanced, perceptions of LTD as an innovative agency and asset to the community, and that there is an overwhelming desire among stakeholders to co-create and collaborate with each other to find solutions in service of the community. In between meetings and riding the EmX, we spent time as a team exploring the Eugene area and got to experience the stellar culinary scene of the Willamette Valley.

Using insights gathered from this visit, the team is now in the process of crafting an understanding and vision for LTD’s role as a shared mobility manager for the region, a role that is anticipated to encompass the more expansive definition of public mobility. We are excited to return to the Eugene area soon in early Spring of next year to reconnect and collaborate with staff and the community and to refine preliminary recommendations that will anchor an action-oriented, outcomes-focused roadmap that will guide LTD in implementing this framework.

Powering Mobility with Project MOVER

By Sarah Saltz

Our team at Cityfi is proud to announce our role as project manager for Project MOVER (Moving Onto Vast E-micromobility Replication), one of one of ten grand prize awards from NYSERDA’s $85 million New York Clean Transportation Prize (CTP), which aims to enhance clean transportation, improve mobility options, and reduce harmful emissions through innovative transportation solutions and we could not be more excited to help advance these goals.

Project MOVER intends to to fill mobility gaps by bringing affordable and clean micromobility to the socio-economically diverse Rivertown communities in Westchester County starting the Village of Ossining, and aims to serve as a blueprint for communities across the state. The project will develop and deploy innovative and equitable e-bike access programs including e-bikeshare, e-bike library, and e-bike ownership pathways.

Project MOVER is led by EIT InnoEnergy, a European Union-funded climate innovation ecosystem, and is driven forward by a partner consortium that includes Shared Mobility Inc., a New York-based non-profit operator of bikeshare systems and other e-bike access programs across the country, along with Nelson\Nygaard, Mobility Development Partners, and local municipalities and community-based organizations.

In the coming months, the Project MOVER team will continue working to deploy e-bike programs in the Village of Ossining beginning in 2024. This starts with the Request for Expressions of Interest (RFEI) for e-bikeshare bikes, infrastructure, software and customer-facing solutions. If you, or companies you know, might be interested, please visit this link for more information.

Stay tuned for more updates coming soon!