STRATA DESIGN & PLANNING is a process-oriented landscape architecture and land planning firm specializing in master planning and project entitlements. Strata Design & Planning integrates built and natural environments to create thriving and sustainable communities. By offering land planning and landscape architecture services, Strata provides a comprehensive and integrated approach to development resulting in beautifully designed, sustainable, and socially responsible projects celebrating the vibrancy of their environment.
Strata is built upon three pillars of creating desirable, healthy, and memorable places for people to live, visit, recreate, shop, and work. The firm is well balanced and includes:
Professional land planners who have designed some of the most successful master-planned communities and resorts in the US.
Award-winning landscape architects who have crafted special destinations for unique experiences around the world.
An overarching belief in doing the right thing, listening intently, and applying compassion to every project we undertake.
Strata Approach
GUIDING PRINCIPLES + APPROACH:
CLARITY: provide enhanced engagement, active listening, effective collaboration, and facilitate informed decision-making.
PASSION: inspires creativity, innovation, and well-crafted design solutions.
INNOVATION: pursue continuous exploration, a proactive approach to challenges, and creative problem-solving.
RELIABILITY: instills confidence, credibility, and follow through on commitments and deadlines.
Strata Services
land planning
Strata Design & Planning is a distinguished land planning firm specializing in strategic and visionary development. The team at Strata has planned, designed, and built projects in some of the most regulated environments in the world, instilling respect for environmental assets and understanding the importance of creating plans that are sensitive and appropriate to a project’s setting. This approach has allowed the developer’s projects to move quickly through entitlement review and has resulted in project approvals from a wide range of community and regulatory groups.
Our planning is informed by market research and development recommendations relating to product type, size, density, and absorption. Strata’s team has been planning and designing communities throughout Colorado and North America for over 30 years.
Yield Analysis and Studies
Master Planning
Entitlements
Advisory Services
Conservation Land Planning
Community Planning
Resort and Campus Planning
Mountain Resort Planning and Design
Placemaking and Experience Creation
Signage and Monumentation Design
SERVICES
GAYLORD HOTEL & CONVENTION CENTER
Aurora, CO
Concept site design and landscape framework for the 1,500 room hotel and 300,000 SF conference facilities on 85 acres.
LUNENG CBS RESORT VILLAGE
Jilin Province, China
Landscape design for a village master plan echoing the natural environment.
PRELIMINARY STATE CAPITOL MASTER PLAN
Denver, CO
Preliminary master plan for 18-block area that surrounds the Colorado State Capitol.
SIGUA HIGHLANDS COMMUNITY
Guam
New, 750-acre master planned community comprised of 5,000 new residences on a very steep and constrained site.
LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE
Strata Design & Planning specializes in the creation of urban, suburban, and resort landscapes. Our team has completed a wide range of award-winning projects from urban infill, corporate campuses, master-planned communities, and luxury resorts throughout the world.
Strata’s team of skilled landscape architects have distinguished themselves through crafting beautiful and unique experiences and outdoor environments for resorts, campuses, communities, retail streets, universities, and communities.
Placemaking and Activation
Community and Resort Amenities Design
Pools and Outdoor Living Environments
Park and Trail Design
Public and Private Gardens
Rooftop Terraces
Streetscapes and Plazas
Landscape Plans and Details
Planting Schedules
SERVICES
CHURCH STREET MARKETPLACE
Burlington, VT
The Church Street Marketplace is one of only a few successful pedestrian streets in North America and defines Burlington’s central commercial core.
250 COLUMBINE
Denver, CO
Design for a $100M, mixed-use project in Cherry Creek North spanning an entire city block with landscape design focuses on rooftop terraces, plaza, and ground level experiences.
FLETCHER ALLEN HOSPITAL
Burlington, VT
Master plan to bring together the various buildings on the healthcare campus to improve pedestrian circulation and unify operations and services.
PATTEE RESIDENCE
Millbrook, NY
Design to enhance property features, relocate driveway to weave through woods, and make room for pool and pool house area.
Strata Team
Strata’s team of skilled professionals is dedicated to consistently delivering exceptional design work. Our team works closely with clients to develop projects that are financially successful, and esthetically compelling, and obtain broad support from a wide range of stakeholders. We achieve these results by listening carefully, understanding the site, developing design solutions that clearly articulate the client’s goals, and detailing the built elements so they create memorable places that people are repeatedly drawn to.
CHRIS DUNN
Director of Design
Education: B.S. Landscape Architecture, Cornell University
Licensed Landscape Architect: AZ, CA, CO, CT, ID, MA, NJ, NM, NV, NY, RI, TX
Urban Land Institute (ULI) Colorado Member
Chris Dunn is a registered landscape architect and urban designer with experience in master planning and detailed design. With over 30 years of professional practice, he has been responsible for creation of master plans and site-specific designs for private and public institutions, parks and open space, municipal facilities, resort, and master-planned communities in the United States, Middle East, and Asia. He has successfully overseen all aspects of project development including initiation, design conceptualization and refinement, value engineering, construction administration, and post-occupancy evaluation.
Chris has managed large, complex projects with multiple consultant teams and has facilitated contentious entitlement applications, notably residential master-planned communities within Colorado, Utah, and Idaho for properties between 250 and 3,400 acres resulting in over 12,000 homes. He has provided his expertise to several ski resort base villages throughout North America and China, as well as lakeside and mountain resorts. Focusing on urban infill, Chris has designed for eight buildings with different clients in Denver’s Cherry Creek North mixed-use community, each included rooftop terraces, extensive streetscapes, and pocket parks or plazas requiring extensive City entitlements. His passion for integrating healthy communities and building components can be seen in all his designs.
RECENT PROJECTS:
250 CLAYTON STREET
Denver, CO
Provided landscape and permitting for 200 and 250 Clayton Street which included a detailed streetscape and rooftop terrace design for a new office and retail complex. The design created a dynamic pedestrian destination with sculpture and local stone details that are intriguing during the day and night. The extensive rooftop terraces build upon these themes with outdoor spaces animating the office space.
SCHWEITZER BASE VILLAGE SKI AREA
Sandpoint, ID
Provided hotel site and landscape design for Schweitzer ski area. The work has transformed the visitor experience and has established Schweitzer as a must-visit destination for the Seattle and Bellevue markets in Washington.
OAK CREEK MASTER PLAN
Oak Creek, CO
Master plan for a 3,250-acre conservation residential community. 104 home sites are being created on carefully placed 5-7 acre lots with exceptional long-range and short-range views. The remaining 2,600 acres are conserved as dedicated open space with a 30-mile network of mountain bike, running, and hiking trails.
eric sakotas
Senior Planner
Education: B.S. Urban Planning, University of Cincinnati
Eric Sakotas is a Senior Planner with over 25 years of experience in both the private and public sectors. Mr. Sakotas specializes in the design and entitlement of master-planned communities, resort and hospitality projects focusing on ski resorts, and comprehensive/framework plan updates. Eric has international experience and has traveled throughout the world to design communities in China, Saudi Arabia, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Oman, and Guam. His international exposure allowed him to experience diverse design approaches and problem-solving techniques that he applies to all of his projects today.
His strengths include project management and presentation, planning and design in large-scale residential and mixed-use developments, and more site-specific design and planning. Eric has facilitated public workshops and design charrettes to work with community members and clients to provide a vision and foundation for the communities he designs. Eric strives to build a strong relationship with all of his clients to instill trust and reliance throughout the entire planning process.
RECENT PROJECTS:
AURORA CENTER FOR HEALTH, WEALTH & WELL-BEING
Aurora, CO
Planning and entitlements for a 25-acre mixed-use, health-focused campus in Aurora. The project included a health center, retail services, affordable/multifamily housing, park and open space amenities, and an urban farm.
DANIELS CREEK
Ada County, ID
Concept planning and entitlements for a 3,000-acre property in the foothills of Ada County. The project included lotting studies, circulation framework studies, and viewshed impact analysis.
HOMEPLACE MASTER PLAN
Keenesburg, CO
Master Plan for a 225-acre site in Keenesburg. The project included concept plan development for entitlements including annexation, rezone, and approvals for a master-planned community consisting of a wide variety of residential uses, retail, industrial, and civil facilities, and a comprehensive trail and open space network.
paige lipetska, aicp
Land Planner
Education: B.S. Urban & Regional Planning,
Texas A&M University
Paige Lipetska is a detail-oriented and community-driven Land Planner with over five years of experience in urban planning. Paige has worked extensively on planning and developing communities, from conceptual layouts to final plat submittals. In her previous role, she collaborated closely with clients, engineers, and surveyors to design and render development layouts, analyze GIS data, and propose amendments to major thoroughfare plans for improved regional circulation.
Paige is well-versed in preparing platting documents, coordinating approvals with public officials, and presenting at public meetings. She has a proven track record of mentoring interns and new team members, managing project tasks, and writing regulations for new developments. With a Bachelor of Science in Urban & Regional Planning from Texas A&M University, Paige brings technical skills in AutoCAD, M-Color, and Photoshop, ensuring precision and creativity in all her projects.
Her passion for urban development and commitment to helping communities thrive make her a valuable asset to the Strata Design Team.
