Bridget Stesney

Bridget Stesney is a Senior Director with ULI, leading the Institute’s work on the 10-Minute Walk Campaign. Bridget joined ULI after ten years working in the public sector for the District of Columbia for DC Public School and DC Parks + Recreation. During her time in DC government, she led the development of the long-term planning and capital investment strategies for parks, recreation centers, and public schools. Prior to that, Bridget worked for non-profits focused on smart growth and brownfields redevelopment.

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Design and Planning
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Architecture – Landscape
ULI Urban Open Space Award Finalist: Baxi River Forest Island
Changsha is a bustling city of 7 million people in China’s central Hunan province. The Baxi River meanders through the city, carrying water flows that have created 15 scattered islands near the city. Seasonal flooding, rapid water flow, and constructed monocultures have caused escalating erosion, destabilization, and loss of habitat along the banks. Past approaches to managing the river have favored the creation of hard edges to protect land and property. With the two-mile-long (3.2 km), 156-acre (63 ha) Baxi River Forest Island, the local government tried a new approach. It embraced the river ecosystem, creating a new park that is helping both nature and people thrive.


July 27, 2018
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Bridget Stesney
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Design and Planning
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Philanthropic Impact
ULI Urban Open Space Awards, Special Community Impact Recipient: Ricardo Lara Linear Park
The Ricardo Lara Linear Park in Lynwood, California, demonstrates how underused land can be repurposed to benefit an entire community. Teamwork and creativity transformed a vacant five-acre (2 ha) stretch of land along Interstate 105 into a park that advances social equity, improves environmental health, and offers recreation spaces for all ages.
July 27, 2018
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Bridget Stesney
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Design and Planning
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Philanthropic Impact
ULI Urban Open Space Award Finalist: Quequechan River Rail Trail
The Quequechan River Trail is reusing an abandoned rail right-of-way to provide public access to the Quequechan River, offering benefits for the community of Fall River, Massachusetts, improving water quality, and creating valuable wetland habitat. In 1958, the construction of Interstate 195 split the city in half and blocked access to the river. The new trail, made possible through strong partnerships, now provides almost two miles (3.2 km) of trails to pedestrians and bicyclists and restores a connection to the Quequechan River.
July 27, 2018
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Bridget Stesney
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Resilience and Sustainability
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Design and Planning
ULI Urban Open Space Award Winner: Levy Park
As one of the only public green spaces in Houston’s Upper Kirby District, the underused Levy Park has been reimagined as an active, vibrant civic destination. The 5.9-acre (2.4 ha) public park offers free programming and public events, and includes a 40,000-square-foot (3,700 sq m) children’s garden, a 7,500-square-foot (700 sq m) rain garden, a 43,000-square-foot (4,000 sq m) event lawn, and a 2,500-square-foot (230 sq m) multipurpose performance space.
July 27, 2018
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Bridget Stesney
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Design and Planning
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Philanthropic Impact
ULI Urban Open Space Award Winner: Madrid Rio Park
Madrid Rio Park was made possible by the burial of 25 miles (40 km) of urban motorways that had separated Madrid’s 6 million residents from the Manzanares River, which flows through the city. The park now occupies 360 acres (146 ha) of green space, with trails and urban beaches sharing space with art centers, playgrounds, and cafés, providing a link between city and river, and between the urban ecosystem and the vast Manzanares River basin.
July 27, 2018
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Bridget Stesney
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Design and Planning
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Philanthropic Impact
Five Finalists Announced for ULI Urban Open Space Award
The ULI Urban Open Space Award recognizes vibrant parks and open spaces that have been transformative in promoting healthy, sustainable, and equitable outcomes in their communities. This year, five projects were selected as finalists.
July 27, 2018
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Bridget Stesney
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