Joseph Messana-Croly

Joseph is working on community-led design programs at Van Alen. Joseph has focused on the intersection of design and community engagement, municipal land use, and the application of equitable practices in urban planning. Joseph is experienced in working alongside historically underrepresented communities toward design and engagement projects. His past projects include a civic center vision for a transit-rich area in Bellevue, WA; research meant to make businesses in Rochester, NY more accessible to residents with disabilities; and a community-led effort to build housing and public spaces meant to combat displacement in the Central District of Seattle, WA. He has also worked on public space activation, youth engagement, and affordable housing projects.

A New Yorker at heart, Joseph returned home to Brooklyn after working in the Seattle and San Francisco Bay Areas. Joseph earned his Master of Urban Planning from the University of Washington and a B.A. in Urban Studies from the University of Rochester.