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| 沈其樂。(波士頓市府提供) |
沈其樂獲有麻省理工學院建築碩士學位，早從1993年起，就在波士頓市重建局工作，其後在萬寧路市長
(Tom Menino)市長時代一路晉升到為波士頓市重建局(BRA)的計畫主任。接著馬丁華殊市長
(Marty WEalsh)於2014年上任，一年半後宣佈推出波士頓市50年來第一個全市發展計畫 「想像波士頓2030」，改聘Brian
Golden為BRA主任後，沈其樂轉赴麻省理工學院，從2020年迄今，擔任房地產中心主任，開授”製造城市 (City
Making)”課程，總管碩士學位班。
波士頓市在公佈任命的9月24日新聞稿中指出，過去2年多來，沈其樂做為第80章現代化指導委員會
(Article 80 Modernization Steering Committee) ，一直在餐與波市頓市的土地發展與計畫。未來，沈其樂將保留他和麻省理工學院的關係。
沈其樂和波士頓華人社區也一直保持聯繫，和當年在土地發展業界工作的陳家驊，和致力研議波士頓華埠總體發展計畫的華人前進會都關係良好。
過去這些日子以來，一直擔任代理計畫長的波士頓市計劃局副計畫長Devin
Quirk，將恢復原職，繼續監管波市頓計畫局的每日運作，並擔任沈其樂和吳弭市長的顧問。
波士頓市的都市發展計畫，在萬寧路市長時代由波士頓重建局 (BRA)這半官方組織掌管。市長雖有指派董事的權利，卻不能直接指揮這機構工作。民間對這機構，一直有不少怨言。馬丁華殊市長時代，為改變形象，把這機構改名為波士頓計畫發展局 (BPDA)。
波士頓市長吳弭早在競選市長前的2019年，已揚言要廢除波士頓重建局
(BRA) 。她當選市長後，也立刻展開行動，先是波士頓重建局局長Brian
Golden去職，接著延聘Arthur
Jemison出任計畫長，在波士頓市議會推動通過提案，今年七月正式把BPDA變成波士頓市政府部門之一。
然後，從外地來到波士頓當計畫長2年半的計劃長Arthur
Jemison，8月宣佈離任，英文報章9月初，刊發一篇文章，形容土地發展商近來很難在波士頓市政府中找到一雙願意聆聽耳朵，同時披露，Arthur
Jemison將出任底特律房屋局(Detroit
Housing Commissio)行政主任。
在波士頓市政府發佈的新聞稿中，沈其樂表示很高興在教書、研究十餘年後，帶著全新觀點回到市政府。如今的波市頓市和10多年前已經很不一樣，他很期待繼續波士頓市已邁出的改革區域規劃，讓土地發展的審核更透明，更容易預測的努力腳步。
BOSTON – Tuesday, September 24, 2024 – Today, Mayor Michelle Wu announced she has appointed Kairos Shen to be the City’s new Chief of Planning. In this role, Shen will lead the City of Boston Planning Department, which was established by Mayor Wu in July of 2024 to restore planning as a core function of City government. Shen will build on the work launched under former Chief Arthur Jemison, moving the city to a consistent and modernized zoning code, comprehensive short and long term planning, inclusive design standards, and streamlined and predictable development review.
“I’m thrilled to welcome Kairos into leadership of Boston’s Planning Department and all the critical functions shaping the built environment for affordability, equity, and resilience,” said Mayor Michelle Wu. “As a longtime friend and advisor, Kairos brings an unparalleled knowledge and expertise of this work and our communities. His decades of public, private, and institutional experience in Boston, and the relationships he has built across the City, will help the new Planning Department advance our ambitious work to grow Boston and make our City a place everyone can call home.”
Over the last two years, Mayor Wu has taken significant steps to change and improve the culture of planning and development in Boston, reforming the structure of the department and launching the first citywide rezoning and development review reforms in many decades. Mayor Wu has counted Kairos as a mentor and trusted advisor since her early days working under the Menino administration nearly 15 years ago. For the last two years, he has served as a member of the Article 80 Modernization Steering Committee, which will release consensus recommendations for public feedback this week.
“I’m excited to return to City Hall with a fresh perspective after a decade of teaching, research, and mentoring the next generation of urban planners and designers,” said Kairos Shen. “Boston is a different City than it was ten years ago, and I’m inspired by the incredible strides Mayor Wu has taken in just two and a half years. I’m looking forward to advancing the significant work that has already begun including zoning reform and making development review more predictable and transparent.”
Shen will begin transitioning into the role in early October and will begin serving as the Chief of Planning on October 15. He will maintain an affiliation with MIT while working for the City. Shen currently teaches “City Making” at the MIT Center for Real Estate, drawing on knowledge, research, and practice across the fields of planning, design, public policy, finance, and real estate. Shen was Executive Director of the MIT Center for Real Estate from 2020-2024. In that role, he oversaw the Master of Science Real Estate Development degree program as well as the Center’s relationships and partnerships with the development, architecture, and design industries. Shen’s passion for teaching was to guide, mentor, and prepare students for solving complex challenges within urban planning such as social equity, housing affordability, and climate resiliency.
Prior to his career in academia, Shen worked in City Hall in a number of different roles in planning and design over the course of two decades under Mayor Thomas Menino and Mayor Martin Walsh. Shen had a hand in shaping the City’s most pivotal planning initiatives and development projects from 1993-2015, a period of substantial growth and investment in the City. Shen is a graduate of Swarthmore College and has a Master of Architecture from MIT.
Devin Quirk, who has been serving as Interim Chief of Planning, will resume his role as Deputy Chief of the Planning Department. Quirk will continue overseeing all aspects of day-to-day operations of the Planning Department and serving as advisor to Shen and Mayor Wu. Quirk has 14 years experience working in the City of Boston, recently leading efforts to create and launch the City’s Planning Department, and has served in roles leading real estate development, affordable housing creation, and community planning across multiple cabinets within City Hall.
“Kairos brings a rare set of expertise to this role – exceptional professional experience of all aspects of our work, deep knowledge of Boston’s neighborhoods, and relationships across the real estate industry and community,” said Deputy Chief Devin Quirk. “He is the right leader to advance the Mayor’s agenda for a more predictable and transparent development environment and I’m excited to work with him in this new capacity.”
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