Integrating Land and Cities for Better Futures

Strong communities require careful planning, effective community engagement, and a clear understanding of intrinsic value. By applying a “Vision that Works” philosophy to develop creative, practical planning solutions and by working through an interactive, integrated process to plan thriving communities and promote equity, resiliency, and sustainability, Otak’s design-based planning turns policies and concepts into reality. Otak brings over forty years of successful and diverse urban, suburban, and greenspace planning to strengthen communities.

Whether planning new dog parks or preserving and enhancing natural habitats, Otak approaches each assignment carefully, focusing on low impact development to support natural systems. We develop sustainable solutions that meet everyone’s needs. By creating great places and special use areas, like rain gardens and stream corridor boardwalks, Otak’s work imparts people with a sense of pride in their community and fosters shared experiences with cherished landscapes.

Otak offers creative, innovative urban design at all scales—master planning communities, downtowns, transit-oriented developments, streetscapes and corridors, neighborhoods, and other special places. We provide a strong foundation for the development of workable planning policies and code provisions by implementing specific design standards and guidelines. Using these standards and guidelines, our multidisciplinary team conceptualizes, envisions, and creates lasting, vibrant places that promote equity, livability, and sustainability, accurately reflecting their communities.

Otak’s goal is both to preserve natural landscapes and improve park visitors’ experience; however, over-tourism requires strategies to optimize visitor use sustainably. To identify these factors and assess specific park needs, we apply various research surveys to collect data—the NPS National Socioeconomic Monitoring Program and simulations of visitor use volumes and patterns for protected areas. Our service applications support FLMA visitor use management and user capacities within IVUMF framework.