Progressive Urban Management Associates
Immersive • Market-Based • Tactical
Progressive Urban Management Associates (P.U.M.A.) is a national leader in helping communities and organizations across the country create and sustain thriving places. We advise clients on a wide range of community planning, economic development, organizational management, and financial solutions.
P.U.M.A.'s Core Values
Recognizing that planning is a dynamic process, we are continuously learning and adjusting our approach. As a team, we aspire to bring the following values to each of our projects:
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Focus on building consensus through wide-reaching, inclusive outreach to the community
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Listen deeply and learn from the experience of people who live and work in the community before drawing conclusions
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Promote accessible, equitable physical and social spaces for all community members
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Equip ourselves – and our client communities – with data and analysis to inform decision-making
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Focus on the “how” in addition to the “what,” so that our plans are actionable and achievable
P.U.M.A. & DEIB
P.U.M.A. values diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB); it is part of our company culture, and it is important to each one of us as individuals. Our approach is to educate ourselves about issues regarding systemic racism and inequity. We engage in difficult conversations to consider varying points of view and life experiences. Work with our clients is done with a DEIB lens. Furthermore, we are willing to dig deep with clients and constituents who want to “go there.”
With our projects, there have been times when we explore and expose the history of a place, including the difficult and tragic history which is commonly ignored.
Our efforts around DEIB are not the responsibility of a few individuals or a separate department at our firm. Rather, it is the collective responsibility and challenge that each of us commits to – to ensure that whatever we offer to clients takes DEIB into consideration and also challenges the status quo. We have a reputation for engaging in candid and frank conversations with our clients about DEIB issues. If the client is not raising them, we are raising them, particularly as it relates to the work we are doing.
We each have a responsibility to acknowledge our role and to make a difference.
What Our Clients Say About Us
"Please accept all our sincere gratitude for helping to take our organization on this incredible journey. I feel a sense of renewal and focus from our team, and you all were instrumental in helping us reach that."
~ Justin Apger, Chief Operations Officer, Downtown San Diego Partnership
