About the Group

The Co-Design Group is an informal association of architects based in Vancouver and Calgary who come together to conduct community workshops for the design of urban spaces. Founded in 1979 the group has conducted over 300 public design workshops mostly in the revitalization of inner-city areas and small towns throughout British Columbia and Alberta. The group co-authored the book Co-Design: A process of Design Participation (VNR, NY, 1989). The Co-Design Group received Honourable Mention by CMHC in 1997 for Work with Youth on Sustainable Development, and received Honourable Mention as Organization of the Year in May 2000 from the International Association of Public Participation. Awarded National Honour by the Canadian Society of Landscape Architects, 2006, for the Calgary Memorial Drive program.

STANLEY KING, Dip.Arch. (Leics), M.Arch. (UBC), MRAIC

Stanley King is an internationally recognized and published authority on public design participation, and a pioneer in developing methods of public dialogue. He invented and developed the Co-Design process in post-graduate research at UBC, 1969 - 73, and has conducted over 350 public design workshops. His work has been featured by the National Film Board and nationally on CBC and CTV. Stan is principal author of the book Co-Design - A Process of Design Participation 1989, and of the School Manual ‘Bringing Youth to Main Street’ 2000. King received Commendation from the Alberta Premier’s Council in 1990 for his work with handicapped youth, received the Barbara Dalrymple Award in 1998 from the Architectural Institute of BC for Lifetime Community Service, and an Award of Excellence for the Bow Valley Concept Plan from the Community Planning Institute of Canada in 2001.

While instructor in Architectural Technologies at The Southern Alberta Institute of Technology during 1979-92, Stanley won the Ralph T. Scurfield Award for Academic Achievement in 1990, and was nominated for International Professor of The Year in 1989.

A retired architect in practice for 45 years, Stanley was administrative architect for Montreal’s 43-storey CIBC skyscraper, concept designer for EXPO 67, and in private architectural practice in housing, commerce, institutional buildings and urban design.

MERINDA CONLEY, Dip.Arch.Tech. (Hons), A.Sc.T., M.EDes.(Arch), MRAIC

President of her own firm Community Strategies Inc, Merinda Conley held the position of Chief of the Alberta Main Street Programme 1991-2006 and supervised a team of coordinators in the revitalization of 23 towns and city neighbourhoods. Through this work she supervised and facilitated numerous resource team sessions, the development of work plans and design guidelines, and was responsible for the financial tracking of all funds sourced by project communities and the program itself. She also led the development, writing and editing of the seven volume Alberta Main Street Manuals 2000.

Merinda is a founding member of the Co-Design Group and a member since 1979 of the core group of Co-Design architect facilitators. She is highly skilled at sketching the ideas of participants during a design dialogue and has assisted in facilitating nearly 200 visioning sessions. She is co-author of the book Co-Design - A Process of Design Participation 1989, and a member of the faculty in the Co-Design Advanced Urban Illustration Course on Pender Island. Merinda was Associate Director of the Co-Design Group for the Calgary Bow Valley Centre.

A recipient of seventeen awards, Merinda has received the Gold Medal from the American Institute of Architects for excellence in architecture during her academic achievements while completing the Masters Program at the University of Calgary in 1990.

Merinda received Bronze Medal in the Premier of Alberta Award of Excellence in 2003, Honourable Mention in the Premier of Alberta Award of Excellence for her work with Alberta Main Street in 1996, a Special Recognition Award for her contribution to Alberta Community Development in 2000.

In association with Stanley King Architect, Merinda collaborated in the concept design, design development, and working drawings for multi-housing developments in Kelowna and Squamish BC.

BILL LATIMER, B.Arch., B.Eng., MAAA, MRAIC

Bill Latimer is a founding member of the Co-Design Group and a member since 1979 of the core Group of Co-design Architect Facilitator. He is highly skilled at sketching the ideas of participants during a design dialogue. He is an architect in practice in Calgary as partner of Latimer Hiscock Architects, with work on housing, shops and restaurants.

Bill is an Instructor in Architectural Technology at Southern Alberta Institute of Technology. Co-Author of the book Co-Design and author of Design Guidelines for Parking, City of Calgary, and co-author with Heather Hiscock of Design Guidelines for Jasper. Author of Calgary South LRT line, Land use Study, 1978. Bill is a member of the faculty in the Co-Design Advanced Urban Illustration Course on Pender Island, and he is highly skilled at sketching the ideas of participants during design dialogue.

DREW FERRARI, Dip.Arch.Tech (Hons).,BES (Arch)

Drew is a founding member of the Co-Design Group and a member since 1979 of the core group of co-design architect facilitators. Drew is a co-author of the book Co-Design - A Process of Design Participation and is highly skilled at sketching the ideas of participants during design dialogue. Drew was also a member of the faculty in the Co-Design Advanced Urban Illustration Course on Pender Island.

Drew is an associate with Stantec Consulting in Urban Land where he is engaged in urban design and landscape architecture. Drew was awarded the Gold Medal in Architecture by the University of Manitoba, and has also won awards from the Canadian Society of Landscape Architects (CSLA) for the Campus Redevelopment Plan of Mount Royal College (Calgary, A.B., 2000), for the residential community of RiverStone (Lethbridge, A.B., 2002), and for the redevelopment of Brandt's Creek Park (Kelowna, B.C., 2002).

CHUCK SMITH, Dip.Arch. Tech.(Hons) SAIT

President of his own firm Smith and Co Studio, a Calgary design-build specialist in custom housing since 1987. Chuck is highly gifted in drawing for groups of participants in design charettes, and has been a member of the Co-Design Group since 1979. He coordinated the Co-Design program with Senior Planner Susan Palmer on her award wining Bow Valley Centre, Calgary, a project where housing development replaced the old Central Hospital. Chuck worked with Philip Dack on a Community Education Project to train citizens in the planning and appeal process. Chuck presided over the Planning Committee of the Federation of Calgary Communities, 1988 – 93.