Our Senior Staff

Living in Nanaimo since 1991 Doug has focused his professional career on the development of healthy communities in rural BC and on central Vancouver Island in particular. Through a variety of project and professional experience Doug had led Lanarc Consultants, and more recently HB Lanarc to become one of the pre-eminent landscape architectural practices in British Columbia.

Doug’s approach of providing thoughtful and practical advice for clients on a wide range of community planning and environmental issues has allowed him to become a respected voice in landscape architecture and community planning through the province.

In addition to current and recently completed projects such as the Vancouver Island Conference Centre and Ladysmith Spirit Square, Doug has provided considerable energy in support of broader planning issues that can positively affect the future of all Vancouver Islanders. Doug’s involvement with the Island Corridor Foundation—an innovative collaboration between local governments and First Nations communities—is one example, his leadership in the development of decision support tools for rainwater management and water conservation are another. Over the years, Doug’s enthusiasm for quality design solutions is undiminished and his experience and curiosity provide a solid foundation in working with clients.

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Robert Barrs is a co-founder of HB Lanarc Consultants and a professional planner with 15 years experience in land use planning, sustainability strategy, policy development and research. Rob’s planning passion is to identify practical solutions to the challenges of creating sustainable communities. This passion drove him to study for a Masters in Community & Regional Planning and to becoming one of the first planners in Canada to gain LEED® accreditation.

Rob has worked on some of the most innovative projects in Canada including the National Capital Region’s long term sustainability plan (Choosing our Future), Markham’s Integrated Community Sustainability Plan, the Southeast False Creek Athlete’s Village in Vancouver and Port Coquitlam’s Environmental Strategic Plan.

Rob has led emissions and energy scenario modeling projects for communities in British Columbia and Ontario. Rob served on the board of directors of Smart Growth BC from 2002 to 2008 and was chair of the board from 2007 to 2008.

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Alex has helped numerous communities develop and implement energy and emission management plans, supported the BC Government’s 16 ministries establish their carbon neutral action plans, provided vulnerability analysis and adaptation guidance for developers and local governments, led research for the Prime Minister’s Task Force on Cities and Communities, designed educational tools for local government associations and utilities, and led change management training programs for public sector organizations. He works with an interdisciplinary team pioneering high impact energy and emission modelling and mapping for communities. Prior to joining HB Lanarc, Alex led climate policy at the David Suzuki Foundation. He earned his MSc at Oxford’s Environmental Change Institute where he was a British Council Scholar.

Alex works from the premise “our greatest challenges are institutional not technological.” He is dedicated to helping clients build the capacity to turn innovative plans into practical realities. Strategic planning, rich engagement, capacity building and governance know-how underpin his work.

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Don is a registered landscape architect with over 20 years experience in private consulting and municipal settings, with an emphasis on community and urban and design, landscape architecture, and parks and open space systems. Don’s education in landscape architecture and architecture gives him a strong foundation for the integration of building design and landscape, of environment and social forces.

Don takes an ecological approach to landscape design, integrating natural processes into the built environment to produce beautiful, healthy places through elegant design solutions that respond to complex social demands. He works closely with clients, stakeholder groups, and the public, often in a multi-disciplinary environment, to arrive at creative solutions that satisfy comprehensive design criteria.

Don has developed exceptional computer and graphic skills to provide visualizations of planning and design scenarios, either in computer generated photo-realism, or more traditional hand drawn renderings to creatively convey design and planning scenarios. More than a communications tool, computer modeling and visualizations have become a tool for design exploration in every day practice. Don routinely uses digital terrain models to explore site design options, view impacts, slope analysis, road layouts, hydrological patterns, solar access and shadow analysis, and to test urban and landscape character. Don’s experience in soil conservation, preparation of construction drawings, cost analysis,  construction documentation and contract administration brings practical, implementable solutions to the table, whether informing the broader planning process or guiding the implementation plan.

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Joaquin is an experienced urban design planner with a focus on the co-creation of walkable, livable and low-carbon communities and neighbourhoods. His practice includes neighbourhood and site planning/design, integrated land use and active transportation planning, urban design research and analysis, housing policy, downtown vitalization and community sustainability planning. Joaquin has a passion for working closely with communities, stakeholders and other professionals using innovative and collaborative design workshop techniques to co-create the best possible solutions to complex planning and design challenges.

Joaquin has led numerous multi-disciplinary and integrated design/planning teams and processes including the Coquitlam City Centre Area Plan, the Chilliwack Downtown Development Plan, Austin Heights Neighbourhood Urban Design Plan, the Aldergrove Core Area Plan, and the Carvolth Neighbourhood T.O.D. Plan, to name a few. He is an experienced facilitator and public speaker and presents regularly on urban design issues. Joaquin is a Full Member of the Canadian Institute of Planners, a co-founder of the Healing Cities Working Group, and a past member of the Vancouver City Planning Commission.

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Lee Nikl is a Registered Professional Biologist and Principal in Golder Associates’ Vancouver office. He has over 23 years of professional experience working on local, national and international projects. He is also responsible for managing, directing, and undertaking projects related to risk assessment, aquatic habitat management, environmental toxicology, environmental impact assessment, and biosecurity.

Lee specializes in the redevelopment of former industrial sites located next to water. His synthesis of practice areas brings value to redevelopment planning and design teams by evaluating environmental advantages and challenges of design options. By merging the judicious application of risk assessment and aquatic habitat design with landscape architectural design, overall project cost savings can accompany project innovations. More recently, Mr. Nikl has been working on The Pier, a residential development site on a former industrial facility in Burrard Inlet where he was responsible for risk assessment, environmental assessment, permitting, and environmental monitoring of construction. He has also been involved with similar services at the Olympic Village site in South East False Creek, a site that is being re-developed from a former industrial past to a sustainable residential development.

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Odete has 14 years experience in community planning and managing development applications for municipalities, regional districts, agencies and private sector clients. Odete has worked as a municipal planner and subdivision technician and is well versed in local government reviews, regulatory requirements and community consultations. She is experienced managing comprehensive development applications, both as the receiving municipal planner and as the lead applicant for clients. Her experience between public and private sector, as well as her background in process facilitation, consultation, subdivision planning and municipal finance is a valuable asset for managing development processes efficiently and in a manner that delivers win-win results for clients.

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David has been pioneering new areas of practice for more than 35 years. David practices as both a land use planner and a landscape architect, and is also heavily involved in green infrastructure planning and design. Many projects have focused on water – ranging from watershed planning to water conservation strategies, and waterfront improvements to watercourse restoration. David has been instrumental as a bridge among levels of government, local government departments, and the development community. His many contributions to innovation include key titles in the Stewardship Series, Metro Vancouver’s Stormwater Source Control Design Guidelines, RDN’s Action for Water program, and Kelowna’s Outdoor Water Conservation initiative. David has applied policy and design guidelines into local government OCPs, Development Permits, Zoning and Subdivision Bylaws, and Water Regulations. He also has been project director and designer on many constructed projects that incorporate these innovations. Most recently David has been active in planning for adaptation to climate change, including Sea Level Rise and related coastal planning and shoreline design strategies.

David’s passion is to ‘make sustainable development standard practice’. His clients are proceeding rapidly towards that goal.

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A returning BC native, James joined the firm on Vancouver Island in 2011.
He has a passion for empowering communities to create sustainable and resilient futures. He directed the prestigious Rocky Mountain Land Use Institute in Denver where he convened conferences on critical planning themes and developed innovative tools to help local governments and developers implement plans for healthy and sustainable futures. He has worked directly with citizens in developing community and neighborhood plans in Ontario, Mississippi, Colorado and British Columbia. His planning efforts in Colorado earned the Town of Fowler a governor’s award for sustainability. His experience and insights for planning in a Western context have been expressed in True West: Authentic Development Patterns for Small Towns and Rural Areas, a publication of the American Planning Association. He earned his Master’s degree in Regional Planning and Resource Development from the University of Waterloo.

With a personable style he offers clients a flexible and practical approach to developing plans and implementation tools for their communities.

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David Van Seters is an experienced business professional and environmental entrepreneur who is now applying his knowledge of business, finance, and economics to make the business/economic case for adopting higher standards of environmental and social performance in communities and organizations. David has launched three businesses, including an organic grocery home delivery service that is now the largest in North America. David has also taken on leadership roles both as the National Environmental Practice Leader for KPMG Canada and as the CEO of a number of green enterprises.

For over 20 years, David has pursued his passion for sustainability and is continually seeking out ways to integrate social, environmental, and economic objectives to enhance social well-being and environmental integrity. He has extensive experience in the areas of sustainability planning, sustainable food systems, building energy efficiency, sustainable transportation, waste minimization, community sustainability, and sustainable business.

David has uniquely combined his biology and business administration education to apply innovative business tools such as full cost accounting, total cost assessment, ecological economics, and social finance to advance sustainability for his clients.

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Vince Verlaan is responsible for ensuring excellence and innovation in HB Lanarc - Golder’s public process, community engagement, and stakeholder consultation work. He is a Provisional Member of the Canadian Institute of Planners.

Vince excels in developing and applying participatory tools and processes that greatly improve plans, projects, policies, and organizations. Building community capacity is a central goal.

With 20 years experience in diverse Canadian and international settings, he develops “strong engagement” initiatives linking different groups for their mutual benefit. Supporting effective collaboration, citizen involvement in governance, consensus-based decision making, action-learning, and positive change are his passions. Healthy communities, participatory governance, social inclusion, social capital, smart growth, and “genuine sustainability” are focus areas.

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Peter is a community planner with a focus in sustainable urban development.  His academic background is Chemistry and Environmental Science, before a Master’s degree in Planning at UBC. Peter’s strengths lie in his analytical skills and strategic approach to implementation, as well as strong project management. He has managed a number of large, high-profile projects while at HB Lanarc-Golder, including Arbutus Lands Visioning, the Green Playbook (www.greenplaybook.org), Squamish’s Oceanfront Neighbourhood Plan, and Prince George’s ICSP/OCP. His professional work has ranged widely, including: urban sustainability, land-use regulation, public participation, environmental management, and community design.

Peter is a member of the Board of the Dynamic Cities Project, and was Chair of the Board of the False Creek Watershed Society from 2004-2010.

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Jana brings to the HB Lanarc-Golder Associates team a strong background in landscape architecture and open space planning and a belief that the best solutions are reached through comprehensive planning and process. Jana is responsible for planning and design development, communications, community process and implementation. She has collaborated with clients on a wide range of projects across the public and private sectors. Jana’s recent work has included planning and design at both the community and site scales, allowing her to work with clients, community members and contractors to plan and design solutions that have lasting effects. Jana’s LEED Accreditation allows her to approach design problems with a sustainable vision from the beginning to end. With degrees from the University of Guelph and Penn State and overseas exchanges, Jana’s education in landscape architecture has allowed her to develop a broad range of skills including technical, graphic and research abilities that she combines to produce effective solutions to complex problems.

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