VHB’s Northeast Markets Development Lead, David Quart, AICP, recently joined civic, community, and industry leaders for “Discover The LINC: Transforming Infrastructure into Opportunity,” a program hosted by ULI Westchester/Fairfield in partnership with the City of New Rochelle and VHB. With VHB serving as the prime consultant for the LINC, David helped guide a discussion around how people-centered infrastructure design can reconnect neighborhoods, advance equity, and create more resilient urban corridors in places like New Rochelle, the South Bronx, and beyond.
Drawing on inspiring remarks from New Rochelle Mayor Yadira Ramos-Herbert, the conversation built upon the history of Lincoln Avenue—once the center of African American life in New Rochelle and a hub of homes, small businesses, and community institutions. Urban renewal and the construction of Memorial Highway in the 1950s bulldozed that neighborhood to create a six-lane roadway, fracturing a living, connected community and disproportionately impacting the area to this day.
The LINC will transform Memorial Highway and adjacent areas into a vibrant, live-work-play environment by converting the overbuilt highway into a sustainable, green local street with traffic calming, safer crossings, protected bike lanes, a new linear park, and upgraded stormwater systems—restoring connectivity, improving safety, and creating a more inclusive public realm. In addition, as the project progresses, the City is focused on creating new economic opportunities for local residents and small businesses.
Across the country, communities are wrestling with similar legacies, fueling a growing movement around “reconnecting communities” with climate-ready streets, public spaces, and infrastructure investments that advance equity and quality of life.
“The LINC is part of a national movement to repair the damage caused by infrastructure decisions that divided communities,” David shared during the panel. “In New Rochelle, that means transforming Memorial Highway from a barrier into a people-centered corridor—one shaped by community dialogue, grounded in local history, and designed to reconnect neighborhoods, expand opportunity, and create a more resilient public realm.”
The panel featured Adam Salgado, Development Commissioner for the City of New Rochelle, along with other civic and industry leaders guiding the LINC on behalf of the City, including Vanessa Barrios, Director of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Initiatives at the Regional Plan Association (RPA); Siddhartha Sanchez, Executive Director of the Bronx River Alliance; and Laura Starr, Principal at Starr Whitehouse.
These leaders emphasized that initiatives like the LINC unfold over many years, moving from advocacy and planning through design, construction, and long term stewardship. The discussion underscored that early decisions and partnerships can shape how infrastructure serves communities for generations.
Through projects like the LINC, VHB partners with cities, designers, transit agencies, and community stakeholders to transform outdated infrastructure into people-first, multimodal corridors—reconnecting neighborhoods and investing in the people who call them home.
Learn more about how VHB supports complex infrastructure projects through integrated project management, infrastructure design, and program management to help communities deliver long-term, people-focused outcomes.
