Joseph E. Brown, a pioneering landscape architect, urban planner, and ULI Life Trustee who championed innovation and interdisciplinary collaboration to solve challenges in the built environment, has passed away at the age of 77.
A ULI member for more than three decades, Brown served in many leadership roles in the organization and was a tireless champion of his home district council, ULI San Francisco. He served on the ULI Executive Committee and ULI Foundation Board of Directors, was a ULI Foundation Governor and longtime member of the Recreational Development Council (Blue Flight), and served on numerous juries for the Awards for Excellence, Visionary Prize, and ULI Hines Competition.
In recognition of his invaluable contributions to ULI and its mission—which came in all forms, including time, expertise, leadership, and financial gifts—Brown was named a ULI Life Trustee in 2013.
“I always appreciated our ULI partnership,” said Harry Frampton, past global chair of ULI and chairman and founding partner of East West Partners. “When subjects got grey, Joe was his best and I could always count on him giving me incredibly thoughtful input and advice.”
“Joe was so passionate about ULI and its mission,” said Doug Abbey, past chair of the ULI Foundation and chairman emeritus of Swift Real Estate Partners. “He understood the responsibility of ULI members to be leaders in their careers, their communities, and in non-profit organizations. He asked the tough questions. We will miss him both professionally and personally.”
“Not only was Joe exceptionally creative and intelligent, he was also a visionary leader and mentor,” said Melodie Duke-Curtis. “In his brief lifetime, Joe made a lasting, visible impact on the built environment worldwide. At the same time, he generously donated his time and expertise without expectation of reward. Joe’s passing is deeply mourned by his friends around the globe, as well as by his colleagues at ULI, who have lost a cherished friend and collaborator.”
Brown graduated from the Catholic University of America in 1970 with a degree in architecture and subsequently earned a master’s degree in landscape architecture and urban design from Harvard University. Throughout his career as a planner and landscape architect, he oversaw prominent projects worldwide, with a focus on new community planning, urban planning and redevelopment, community revitalization, historic and cultural design, and issues confronting rapid-growth areas.
He served as chief executive officer of EDAW, leading the growth of the San Francisco–based design firm into an internationally renowned entity. He became group chief executive of the planning, design, and development group of AECOM when the global infrastructure consulting company acquired EDAW. He later served as AECOM’s chief innovation officer, leading efforts to leverage innovation and creativity as key aspects of the firm.
Examples of his work include the Tokyo Midtown mixed-use development, the World Trade Center public space redevelopment in New York, the National Capital Planning Commission’s Monumental Core Plan in Washington, D.C., and Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, Georgia.
Brown was a thought leader in real estate and land use, authoring numerous articles, lecturing at prestigious universities, and leading many design seminars. In addition to his decades-long ULI membership, he was a fellow of the American Society of Landscape Architects, a member of the American Planning Association, and an associate member of the American Institute of Architects.
In his professional life as well as his many community and philanthropic engagements, he exhibited visionary leadership and a strong commitment to the shared goals and values that define ULI’s mission. He elevated his profession, infused his work with creativity and passion, and strengthened connections between the built environment and the communities around and within it. His forward-thinking approach to solving land use challenges will ensure his positive impact on the world’s cities will last long into the future he helped shape.
Joe Brown’s contributions to ULI and its mission were equally meaningful, and the ULI community remembers with gratitude his decades of engagement and leadership locally, nationally, and globally. We mourn his passing and send our heartfelt condolences to his wife, Jacinta, his children, and his countless friends and colleagues.
