Donald Brandes

Biography: A nationally recognized land planner and landscape architect Don Brandes is Vice President/Shareholder of Matrix Design Group, Inc. and Director of Urban Design and Landscape Architecture. Matrix Design Group is a full-service multi-disciplinary firm of 160 professionals with offices throughout the U.S. Prior to joining Matrix Design Group, Inc. (Matrix) Don was President of Design Studios West, Inc. (DSW) for 31 years. Matrix provides master planning and detailed landscape architectural design for a variety of mixed-use, resort, and residential projects ranging from small to large-scale for noted national builders, developers and public agencies. An author of several professional articles and publications, Don is noted for his book; Developing Difficult Sites, Solutions for Builders and Developers, published by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). Don has chaired the ULI Developing Master-Planned Communities Conference (June, 2003 - Scottsdale, AZ) and has been a featured speaker at the Pacific Coast Builders Conference (PCBC) in San Francisco as well as a speaker for several national conferences for NAHB. Don has a Masters degree in Landscape Architecture and a Bachelors degree in Political Science from the University of Colorado. A recipient of several national and state planning and design awards Don is a Registered Landscape Architect and a Member of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA), ULI Full Member, Board Member for the Colorado Trust for Public Land, and served as a Board of Director for Downtown Denver Partnership, Inc.