Shreveport Common, Inc. Staff

Shreveport Common, Inc. Executive Director, Wendy Benscoter

Shreveport Common, Inc. Board of Directors

Chairman: Shelly Ragle, Director, City of Shreveport Public Assembly & Recreation
First Vice Chairman: Aaron Storer, Vice President, Storer Services
Second Vice Chairman: J. B. Beaird, Manager, Beaird Operating Companies
Treasurer: Melinda Schimberg, Vice President, Branch Executive Citizens National Bank
Secretary:  Debra Seamster, Choice Neighborhood Advisory
Legal Counsel: Dannye Malone, Attorney, Ayres, Shelton, Williams, Benson & Payne, LLC
Jack Allen, Director, Cupio Media
Cole Anderson, Managing Director, Anderson Oil & Gas, Anderson Energy Exploration Co, The Carthage Partners, L.P.
Jerry Edwards, First Assistant, United States Attorney
Jeff Everson, Commission Clerk for Caddo Parish
LeMar Flukers, Contractor, GIANT Construction
Jason Holland, VP Operations and Finance, Mudd & Holland Consulting Foresters
Cameron D. Jones, President, Jones Environmental, INC.
Connor Peterson, Producer and Marketing Manager, Risk Advisor, Keith D. Peterson & Company, Inc.
EX-OFFICIO
Pam Atchison, Executive Director, Shreveport Regional Arts Council
Adam Bailey, Community Planning and Design Manager, Metropolitan Planning Commission
Victor Thomas, Caddo Parish Commissioner, District 3
Gary Brooks, City Council, District B
Torri Smith-Moore; Choice Neighborhoods
Bonnie Moore, Director, Community Development, City of Shreveport
Dominique McLemore, Northwest Louisiana Juried Roster Artist
J. Kent Rogers, Executive Director, Northwest Louisiana Council of Governments
TBA Executive Director, Downtown Development Authority

Vision Plan Team

Wendy Benscoter
Shreveport Common, Executive Director
Benscoter Consultants, LLC Shreveport, LA
Wendy Benscoter is the Executive Director for Shreveport Common Inc, working with Shreveport Regional Arts Council and City of Shreveport on the Arts-led revitalization of an endangered, historic urban area. A University of Texas Moody College of Communication graduate (BS), Ms. Benscoter's background includes 20 years as an award-winning trainer and newspaper manager in Houston and Shreveport. Ms. Benscoter joined the Shreveport Common initiative in 2011 as the Community Liaison for the Vision Plan Team, and later Project Manager. She served as the state liaison for a 10-community, Louisiana Creative Community Initiative piloted by the Department of Culture and Tourism in partnership with the Louisiana Cultural Economy Foundation. She is a graduate of the 2013-14 Creative Placemaking Master Practitioner Certificate Program, Rutgers University, and has served as an an instructor for the Master Certificate program since 2015, teaching Building Community Capacity at Ohio State University, Knowlton School of Architecture, New Hampshire Institute for Art and most recently at Purdue University.

Gregory Free
Gregory Free & Associates, Austin, TX
Gregory Free is a historic preservation specialist and designer in private practice in Austin, Texas. Prior to the establishment of his firm in 1983, he served as Executive Director of the Texas Historical Foundation. He served as Restoration-Preservation Specialist for the Mississippi Department of Archives and History directing the restoration of the Mississippi State Capitol and the Manship House, both of which were awarded national recognition, and coordinated for grants projects throughout the state. Since moving to Texas, he has continued to stay involved in projects in Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama. Recent projects include Long-Range Plans for the Mississippi Heritage Trust, and downtown revitalization for Temple, Texas. Mr. Free received his Bachelor of Arts Degree in American History from the University of Alabama, and his M. S. degree in Historic Preservation from the Graduate School of Architecture and Planning, Columbia University. He studied architectural history, preservation, and decorative arts at the Attingham School, Shropshire, England. He is a recipient of a grant from the Samuel Kress Foundation/James Marston Fitch Foundation for an upcoming book on the architecture of the American Gulf Coast.

Jerome Nicholas, ASLA
Nicholas and Associates, Shreveport, LA
Jerome Nicholas has been active in all phases of landscape architectural work from design to construction. He is a 1974 graduate of Louisiana State University with a bachelor’s degree in Landscape Architecture. He has been licensed to practice in the state of Louisiana since 1975 and has practiced in North Louisiana for 35 years. He has served as lead designer on numerous projects for private clients and public agencies. His responsibilities on these projects have been broad in scope including conceptual design through construction document preparation, cost estimation, specification writing, and construction observation. These projects have included extensive site development features such as roads and parking, recreation facilities, camping facilities, athletic facilities, water features, nature study areas and facilities, pedestrian and bicycle trails, administrative and maintenance facilities, commercial and public plazas, streetscapes, and residential subdivisions.

Mischa Farrell, AIA
Mischa Farrell, Architect, Shreveport, LA
Mischa Farrell is an architect with over 20 years of experience. She has worked or internationally acclaimed firms of Machado and Silvetti Associates and Antione Predock Architect. Ms. Farrell is a 1989 architecture graduate of the University of Texas at Austin. In 2000 she founded Mischa Farrell Architect in Shreveport, Louisiana and has focused on new commercial construction, renovations and historic preservation. She has successfully collaborated with Shreveport Regional Arts Council in the past to incorporate public art into public buildings. She is the Architect of record for the Shreveport Common Project and is guiding the team in the area of new architectural visions for the target area and sustainable practices for existing buildings.

Katie Martin, ASLA
Nicholas and Associates, Shreveport, LA
Katie Martin has been active in all phases of landscape architectural work from design to construction as well as warranty and maintenance follow up. She is a 2002 graduate of Louisiana State University with a bachelor’s degree in Landscape Architecture. She has served as lead designer on numerous projects for private clients and public agencies. Her responsibilities have been broad in scope including conceptual design through construction document preparation, cost estimation, specification writing, and construction observation. These projects have included extensive site development such as roads and parking, water related recreation facilities, camping facilities, nature study areas and facilities, pedestrian and bicycle trails, administrative and maintenance facilities.

TMG Consulting, Planning
New Orleans, LA
TMG Consulting provided planning oversight during the Shreveport Common Vision Planning Process. TMG followed with the TMG Market Real Estate Study for Shreveport Common, which was awarded the 2015 Project of the Year by the American Planning Association, Louisiana Chapter.

Suzanne Perilloux Leckert, AICP, Senior Associate
TMG Consulting, New Orleans, LA
Ms. Leckert previously worked for The Innovation Group as the Director of Development Analysis, where she evaluated the practicality and feasibility of large and small scale developments around the globe. Prior to this, Ms. Leckert was a City Planner and Special Assistant to the Planning Director for the City of New Orleans. Her work experience also includes a staff position with U.S. Senator John Breaux and one in Tax and Estates law. She holds an undergraduate degree in History from Louisiana State University and a Masters of Urban and Regional Planning from the University of New Orleans, where she specialized in Historic Preservation, participating in studies and making recommendations for redevelopment of historic neighborhoods and commercial corridors.

Nilsa Duran, Associate
TMG Consulting, New Orleans, LA
Ms. Duran joined TMG Consulting in 2009. She is involved with capital development projects and privatization efforts at the New Orleans International Airport, feasibility studies for the gaming industry, neighborhood impact assessments, and GIS mapping. Ms. Duran holds Bachelor Degrees in Metropolitan Studies and Urban Design and Architecture Studies from New York University, and a Masters in Preservation Studies from the Tulane University School of Architecture. Her interests are mainly in adaptive re-use, progressive urban planning and historic preservation.