7 Feb 2020

Good things come in twos, too!

Urbis continues to build out its team in Brisbane to support its growing Planning and Design competencies – introducing Directors, Julie Saunders and Michael Stott.

Julie joins the Planning team and brings in over 25 years’ development industry experience, with focus in the government and education sectors. With varied senior positions held at Knight Frank, Brisbane Catholic Education, State Government and Redland City Council, Julie’s skill set has navigated her through the reform of the planning system with Queensland’s State Government and advocacy work across Queensland’s Schools Planning Commission. She has also led large-scale development assessment teams in local government and currently chairs SE Queensland’s Housing Supply Expert Panel.

I am excited that Julie has joined us and welcome her to the Urbis family. Julie’s mix of government, agency, advisory and not for profit experience will be critical in achieving our strategic business goals for 2020 and beyond. Julie will complement and reinforce our existing expertise in social infrastructure and will be a vital member of the Urbis leadership team.

Ben Slack View Profile

Julie revealed that, “Urbis is at the forefront in shaping cities and communities, and after a long association with the firm, I’m excited to join them and be part of this exceptional team. My passion for communities, particularly in the social infrastructure space, is perfectly matched with Urbis’ innovative, market leading approach to tackling key city shaping issues. I look forward to bringing my extensive knowledge and experience to the team to continue to shape communities for a better future.”

Michael joins the Design team with a career spanning 20 years in city building and placemaking. Michael is a fervent thought leader and has added demonstrable value, having worked on several global projects in Australia, Asia, Canada, Europe and the Middle East. His wide skillset has contributed to the application of changing how cities are designed and planned – delivering innovative, unique and valued place-led urban design solutions for clients. Michael is an accomplished presenter and facilitator, who has contributed to many thought-led publications and educational forums and is regularly called upon to speak internationally on transforming cities and communities through placemaking.

Michael’s motivation for joining Urbis, “When the opportunity arose to join, it was immediately apparent that there was a natural fit between my own background and passion for creating great places and Urbis’ experience shaping the cities and communities of Australia. I am absolutely thrilled to join Urbis and work alongside some of the leading creative thinkers in the country influencing the shaping of cities. I’m also looking forward to adding a fresh perspective from a city strategy and place point of view and contributing to the growth of the Brisbane team while continuing to work on projects nationally and internationally”.

Urbis Director and Queensland Design Studio Lead, Natalie Hoitz said, “We are excited by the addition of Michael Stott to our National Design practice. Michael brings a global expertise to our growing offer, specifically in relation to city strategy and place-led master planning and urban design. We are looking forward to leveraging Michael’s knowledge and reputation nationally and internationally and the enormous value and fresh approaches he brings”.  

Read more about our cityshaper team below

Julie Saunders View Profile