Gerald Gast, architect and urban designer, has twenty-five years experience in urban design, architecture, downtown revitalization and master planning. Active in urban design and architectural education throughout his professional career, Gast is currently Associate Professor in the University of Oregon's Portland Urban Architecture Program and Lecturer in the Urban Studies Program at Stanford University, where he has taught urban design since 1982. Gast served as Director of Oregon's Portland Architecture Program and was previously Director of the San Francisco Center for Architecture and Urban Studies.

Gast founded Gast Hillmer Urban Design as a partnership with Dan Hillmer in 1984. From the beginning, the firm's work has emphasized compact, pedestrian and transit-oriented urban development, focusing on downtown and community-scale projects. Gast was Principal-in-charge of the $ 70 million Uptown District mixed-use development in San Diego, Master Plan for the San Diego County Administration Center (American Planning Association "Outstanding Planning Project" Award), Downtown Scottsdale Arizona Urban Design Guidelines, San Diego County Design Guidelines for seven communities ( American Planning Association "Outstanding Planning Project" Award ), and General Plan Urban Design Elements for the cities of San Clemente, Dana Point and Huntington Park (Los Angeles), California.

Gast recently served as advisor and moderator for the Metro Transit Development Charette in Portland, and has been a speaker at conferences and seminars of the American Planning Association, San Francisco Planning and Urban Research Association (SPUR), California Redevelopment Association, and California League of Cities.

Prior to starting his practice, Gast worked with the firms of Hellmuth, Obata and Kassabaum (St Louis), Kirk Wallace McKinley and Associates Architects (Seattle), AR Williams FAIA Architect (Champaign, Illinois) and JGL Poulson Architects and Town Planners (England). He is a graduate of the University of Illinois, where he completed his Masters degree in Architecture and Urban Design.

Dan Hillmer, urban designer and architect, has twenty years of experience in public and private development projects throughout California. He has taught at the University of Illinois and served as guest design lecturer at Stanford University.

Hillmer is currently a City Councilmember in Larkspur, and has served two terms as Mayor. He currently represents Larkspur to the Association of Bay Area Governments, and is Chairperson of the Marin Telecommunications Agency, a joint powers authority composed of the 11 towns and cities within the County of Marin. Additional public service includes speaking engagements on pedestrian and transit-oriented planning for the League of California Cities Planners Institute, and advisor to the City of Oakland for the rebuilding of its fire-damaged hillside neighborhoods.

Representative projects as Principal-in-charge include the Agnews Mixed-Use Area Plan for the State of California in Silicon Valley (National League of Cities "All American Cities Award"), San Rafael Hillside Design Guidelines (American Planning Association "National Planning Implementation Award"), San Rafael Downtown Community Plan (Honor Award from the Ahwahnee Conference on Smart Growth), Marin County Residential Design Guidelines, Cow Palace Master Plan for the City of Daly City with the State Fairs Commission, and Bayfront Specific Plan for the Town of Corte Madera, California.

Prior to starting his practice, Hillmer worked with the firms of RMW (formerly Robinson, Mills & Williams) Architects, San Francisco; George V. Banning AIA, Marin County, CA; and Hall, Goodhue, Haisley, Barker (HGHB) Architects and Urban Designers, San Francisco. He is a graduate of the University of Illinois, where he completed his Masters degree in Architecture and Urban Design.