Valerie Berstene

Biography: Valerie Berstene is an architect and urban planner who specializes in complex three-dimensional challenges, whether at the scale of a building, block, or district. With expertise in both architecture and planning, Valerie brings a wide array of knowledge to assist her clients in redevelopment strategies. Her projects include corridor revitalization, district land use and economic development planning, adaptive reuse, and strategic long-range planning for public entities, institutions, and private developers. Most recently, Valerie has worked locally with the Village of Skokie, the City of Evanston, and the Northalsted Business Alliance; as well as serving clients in Indiana - the Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority, the City of Gary, and the City of Noblesville. In recent years, Valerie worked in the public sector, as a municipal planner in two Chicagoland suburbs. Through this experience she acquire experience administering local zoning and public policy which she now translates to valuable knowledge for her public and private sector clients. Valerie’s practice is rooted in interdisciplinary collaboration and community involvement. She believes that the most powerful design solutions come from a holistic, integrated design approach to leverage the expertise of diverse professionals and respond to the needs of a community. Especially as her work expands to include climate action and environmental justice planning, collaborating across disciplines and enabling local community members to take action is key to long-term success.