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Posted on Thu, Jul 29, 2010 : 5:51 a.m.

Executive Profile: Anya Dale, project manager, Washtenaw County Economic Development and Energy Department

By Sarah Rigg

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Anya Dale

Anya Dale became interested in urban planning as an unexpected side result of working in wetland restoration.

“We were working hard to retain one acre, when across the street, a 100-acre subdivision was going in,” she said. “I realized it was very hard to protect spaces from that side, rather than redirect where growth is going.”

Dale, who is a project manager for Washtenaw County’s Economic Development and Energy Department, said that in her current role, she can help save undeveloped wild places by encouraging redevelopment in already built-up areas rather than having businesses building new structures in green spaces.

“I’m still definitely an environmentalist at heart, but I found that I really liked working with people and working on the government side of things,” she said.

Dale originally came to Washtenaw County as a planner. But when there was a shakeup in county departments earlier this year, the planning department was eliminated, and she was re-hired into the economic development and energy department.

Before the reorganization, one of her major projects was redevelopment of the Washtenaw Avenue corridor between Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti. She said in her new role, she is still devoting about half of her time to that project.

“That project still fits under economic development, and there’s a lot of community support for it,” she said.

Washtenaw Avenue crosses four jurisdictions — two cities and two townships — making it a major thoroughfare.

“But it’s kind of a horrible corridor, with congestion and crashes,” she said. “Considering how much good traffic could be going through to support business, businesses don’t do as well as they could, because there are a lot of problems.”

Dale said she and other county staff welcome residents' comments on redevelopment of Washtenaw Avenue at www.washtenawavenue.org.

She said that from the time the Ann Arbor Transit Authority was established, the area has always seen the highest usage.

“And it can’t keep up with demand for the people who want to ride buses,” she said. “There’s the potential to do express buses or some related service, and we need sidewalks to all the bus stops. In a lot of place, there are no sidewalks.”

Dale said some of the problems being addressed include improving traffic flow and making the area more accessible by public transit, bike and by foot.

She may be able to influence some of the public transportation policy through her role on the board of the AATA. She said she wasn’t looking for another volunteer opportunity since she already donates a lot of her free time. However, she said, several people told her they thought she should do it, so she applied and was appointed to the board in June.

Dale said she hopes to contribute her expertise in land use and help the AATA board make moves to encourage public transit to expand regionally. This involves, she said, not only making the link-up between Ypsilanti and Ann Arbor easier for commuters but also working with smaller communities and villages in the area that don’t have public transit systems.

When she’s not working on Washtenaw Avenue improvements or regionalizing transportation, the other half of Dale’s job with the county involves energy policy.

She said the county recently received a big grant to retrofit their buildings and make them more efficient. Dale added that county staff also hope to offer revolving loans to members of the community so they will make their own efficiency improvements and invest in new, sustainable technologies.

Background

Age: 29.

Education: Bachelor’s degree in zoology, master’s degree in urban and regional planning.

Family: Just celebrated sixth anniversary with husband Mitch. I also have a Dachshund and a very badly behaved cat.

Residence: A little house on the west side of Ann Arbor.

Business Insights

Best business decision: Filling a temporary planner position at the county that developed into a full passion for the planning field.

Worst business decision: Taking the good-paying job right out of college.

Best way to keep a competitive edge: Stay involved!

Personal hero: I have a million heroes. I think everyone has a strength and passion they can tap into to accomplish amazing things, and I am so inspired by anyone who has the faith in themselves to use it.

How do you motivate people? I think everyone is passionate about something, so I try to tap into what people care about, find connections and see how groups can work together to reach similar goals.

What advice would you give to yourself in college? To have more fun! In the long run, there isn’t much difference between As and Bs … I spent way too much time going for the As.

Word that best describes you: Committed.

First website you check in the morning: Weather.com.

Confessions

What keeps you up at night? Thinking about what I need to do the next day, and whether the things I spend my time on are worthwhile. I always want to make sure what I put effort into is making an impact, and I get very anxious if I think I’m not being productive.

Pet peeve: Angry drivers. I think we’d all be nicer if we walked more and drove less.

Guilty pleasure: Thrift store shopping.

First job: Painting school classrooms in the summer break.

First choice for a new career: Green consultant! I’d love to help people green and simplify their lives.

Treasures

Favorite cause: Anything to do with protecting animals.

Favorite book: “Animal Compassion” by Peter Singer.

Favorite movie: “The Big Lebowski.”

Favorite hobbies: Yoga, hiking/backpacking.

Favorite restaurant: For lunch, Mahek; for happy hour, Arbor Brewing Co.; for special occasions, Eve.

LinkedIn, Facebook or Twitter? LinkedIn and Facebook. I’m “on” both but still don’t really get it …

Typical Saturday: Exercise, go with my husband and dog for coffee downtown, run errands during the afternoon and see friends in the evening.

What team do you root for? Detroit Tigers.

Wheels: A little Toyota, though we plan to transition to a one-car family.

Who would play you in a movie? An early Meg Ryan.

Sarah Rigg is a freelance writer and a frequent contributor to AnnArbor.com. You can reach her at sarahrigg@yahoo.com.