2026 SAG Award Winners

Forward Pinellas

Project Goal

A core component of Forward Pinellas’s work is to provide technical assistance to Pinellas County’s 25 local governments for various planning efforts. In March 2025, Forward Pinellas set out to help two communities—the City of Indian Rocks Beach and the North Greenwood neighborhood in the City of Clearwater—develop and refine zoning regulations aligned with their distinct redevelopment goals. To support this work, the team built digital twins for both areas using ArcGIS Urban and CityEngine. Proposed regulations were translated into site-specific 3D development scenarios to evaluate how standards related to height, setbacks, density, and parking affect redevelopment outcomes and visualize compatibility with community character. The models were then used to communicate options to city staff, decision-makers, and the public, facilitating dialogue that allowed the team to further refine zoning changes prior to adoption.
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Business Problem Solved

Pinellas County is a complex planning environment. It is the second smallest county by land area yet the most densely populated in Florida. As a peninsula with little undeveloped land remaining, nearly all growth must occur through redevelopment and infill. However, traditional 2D planning tools often fall short in communicating how zoning changes and development proposals will translate on the ground. This disconnect creates confusion, reinforces resistance to change, limits meaningful public participation, and slows decision-making. Forward Pinellas addressed these challenges through 3D modeling in ArcGIS Urban to demystify zoning concepts, visualize trade-offs and compatibility, test feasibility, and dispel misconceptions about development outcomes. By bringing policy off the page and into 3D, both practitioners and the public can better understand the impacts of zoning changes, engage in more productive dialogue, and ensure redevelopment strategies are aligned with local priorities

Technology Implemented

Forward Pinellas built an integrated 3D planning system that connects data, design, and dialogue in a single, iterative workflow. ArcGIS Urban served as the core platform to build and evaluate development scenarios, integrating parcel data, zoning regulations, and custom metrics to assess parking balances and impervious surface ratios. ArcGIS Pro supported data preparation and model refinement, while CityEngine enabled the application of realistic building facades to better communicate scenarios to the public. ArcGIS Online and Experience Builder were used to share interactive, web-based visualizations. These applications came together to deliver high-impact visualizations that enabled data-driven, context-sensitive decision-making for both practitioners and stakeholders.

Development Team Biography

Rodney Chatman, AICP, is the Planning Division Manager for Forward Pinellas. With 20+ years of experience, he directs countywide planning and policy efforts related to target employment, active transportation, and community revitalization. A persuasive communicator and mentor, he collaborates across sectors to implement innovative, actionable planning solutions. He holds a Master’s in Urban & Regional Planning from University of Florida and a Bachelor’s in Sociology from Eckerd College.

Nicole Galasso, AICP, is a Principal Planner with Forward Pinellas. With 6 years of experience across private and public sectors, she provides technical assistance to local governments on land use and zoning policy by blending a data-driven approach with thoughtful storytelling to support informed decision-making and meaningful engagement. She holds a Master’s in Urban & Regional Planning from Florida State University and a Bachelor’s in Economics from the University of South Florida St. Petersburg.