Elections 2026
Trustee - Three year term beginning September 2026 (choose 1)
Taewook Cha, FASLA
Taewook is a registered landscape architect and the founding principal of Supermass Studio, established in New York City in 2011. As a BIPOC leader within ASLA-NY, Taewook focuses his practice on public spaces that build equity and social capital in complex urban environments. His notable civic and institutional work includes Mulberry Commons Park in Newark, NJ, the ETEC Innovation Center at the University at Albany, and LaGuardia Airport’s New Terminal B.
Since 2021, Taewook has served on the ASLA-NY Executive Board and as Co-Chair of the DEI Committee. In these roles, he has contributed to key initiatives including the DEI Strategic Plan, the BIPOC Professional Grants, and various student outreach programs.
As Trustee, Taewook aims to elevate these chapter initiatives to the national level, effectively bridging our local voices with national ASLA’s larger goals. He holds an MLA from Harvard University and a BA from Korea University.
Carl Carlson, RLA
Carl leads the NYC studio of LaGuardia Design Group and previously served as COO and Director of Parklands at Butler Conservation. As a past president of ASLA-NY, Carl is honored to run for the Chapter Trustee position.
Over the past decade, Carl has been deeply engaged with ASLA-NY, serving in numerous roles, including Treasurer, Membership Co-Chair, Awards Co-Chair, Programs Committee member, and helped organize the first joint APA, AIA, and ASLA conference.
Through his diverse professional and nonprofit experiences, Carl has witnessed landscape architecture’s unique ability to resonate with the public, creating lifelong appreciation of natural environments and processes. He believes landscape architects play a critical role in shaping environments that support physical and mental well-being, promote equity and inclusion, and protect vital natural resources.
Creating safe and equitable spaces requires meaningful collaboration with communities of all backgrounds and a commitment to expanding representation within the profession. As Chapter Trustee, Carl will advocate for the voices of ASLA-NY at the national level, strengthen partnerships that advance the profession, and support initiatives that help the Chapter and its members thrive as they continue to improve the quality, resilience, and beauty of our designed environments.
Treasurer - Two year term beginning September 2026
Nicholas Pettinati, RLA, ASLA
Nick is Deputy Director of Urban Design at the NYC Department of Transportation. With over 15 years of experience, he has worked on projects ranging from bridge reconstructions to streetscape redesigns to crafting design policy for the agency. Nick has been instrumental in advancing the agency’s work through the Street Design Manual, El-space initiative, multiple design projects, and starting and cultivating a program to maintain landscaped areas in underserved parts of the city.
Nick has been an ASLA-NY board member since 2018 and is co-chair of the Awards Committee, where he consistently strives to highlight the incredible work of our membership. It has been particularly rewarding expanding the programs’ reach to small and emerging firms and offering new awards for community impact and small-scale spaces. Nick is also an Adjunct Professor at CUNY CityTech, an advisor for TreesNY, and a Fellow of the Urban Design Forum.
Executive Board – Two Year Term Beginning September 2026 (choose 5)
Anne Chen
As an architect and landscape architect, Anne’s work focuses on civic, cultural, and educational projects that connect ecological systems, community needs, and the public realm. Anne teaches Site Planning at City Tech, where she encourages students to see landscape as an essential framework for understanding and shaping cities. Her interest in civic leadership and public life has led her to participate in the AIANY Civic Leadership Program and the Urban Design Forum’s Forefront Fellowship, experiences that continue to inform her exploration of how public spaces can foster stewardship, resilience, and collective care.
Within ASLA-NY, Anne has contributed to the DEI Committee through LARE and National Conference grants and has helped organize webinars that foster professional exchange, mentorship, and community building. Anne hopes to support a profession that is increasingly called upon to address complex challenges at the intersection of climate, equity, and public life. She is particularly interested in strengthening connections between design disciplines, supporting emerging professionals, and elevating the role of landscape architects as civic leaders, stewards, and long-term thinkers in shaping New York’s communities.
Max Coleman, ASLA
Max is a Landscape Designer at NV5 in New York City and a graduate of the Master of Landscape Architecture program at the City College of New York. He is an ISA Certified Arborist with a passion for connecting ecological design, urban forestry, and public space.
Prior to pursuing landscape architecture, Max spent eight years working in horticulture throughout New York City, including 4 years with the New York Mets at Citi Field. This experience continues to inform his approach to design and stewardship.
At NV5, Max works on a range of public-sector projects throughout New York City, including park restorations, streetscape improvements, and urban forestry initiatives, with a focus on tree inventories and mitigation planning.
Max currently serves as Co-Chair of the ASLA-NY Emerging Professionals Committee, where he helps organize educational programs, networking events, and licensure support initiatives. He is committed to fostering connections among students, emerging professionals, and established practitioners while advancing the visibility and impact of landscape architecture across New York State.
Mary Daly, ASLA
Mary is a Public Realm Designer for NYC DOT. In her role at NYC DOT, she works to enrich the public realm through improved connections to parks and greenspaces at key intersections, and on streetscape projects that bring comfort and greenery to the pedestrian experience along major corridors, with interventions ranging from small scale plantings and sidewalk extensions to full street reconstruction projects that reimagine streets as linear pathways that contribute to the public realm. Prior to working at NYC DOT, she graduated from CCNY with an MLA in 2024 and worked for Partnerships for Parks and Citi Bike. While at CCNY, she served as Student ASLA-NY Vice President her second year, and Co-President her third year. In the Vice President role, she relaunched in-person networking and educational opportunities for students following the pandemic, including the Rising Urbanists conference and portfolio reviews. As the Co-President, she continued to build on these events and partnered with the Student AIA chapter for the portfolio review to continue to build connections between students and alumni at CCNY. Currently, Mary serves as Co-Chair of the Emerging Professionals Committee and coordinates events centered around pathways to licensure and networking with emerging professionals and students.
Stephen Godanis, ASLA
Stephen is an Associate at LaGuardia Design Group in New York City. Through his diverse professional experiences and longstanding involvement with ASLA, he has witnessed firsthand the power of landscape architecture to engage communities and inspire the public realm.
Stephen holds a Master of Landscape Architecture from Boston Architectural College, a Master of Urban Design from the City College of New York, and a Bachelor of Arts in Urbanism from Indiana University, where he was recognized as a Sam Jones Scholar, William Plater Scholar, and MURI Scholar.
An active volunteer with ASLA New York, Stephen serves as Co-Chair of the Programs Committee. He is passionate about advancing the profession through advocacy, outreach, and collaboration with allied organizations. As a member of the ASLA-NY community, he is committed to expanding the chapter’s impact, strengthening connections within the local landscape architecture community, and fostering meaningful engagement across related disciplines.
Caroline Gotwals
Caroline is a landscape designer and arborist based in NYC. She practices in the planning & environment group at HNTB where she focuses on landscape restoration and resiliency planning to more holistically integrate infrastructure into the community. Caroline holds master's degrees in ecological design from The Conway School and landscape architecture from UMass Amherst. At UMass, she was named the 2025 Olmsted Scholar. Prior to earning her master's degrees, Caroline worked in marketing and brand strategy for climate-focused tech companies and also spent time as a livestock farmer.
This year, Caroline brought her skills and experience as a marketer to the communications committee. Her professional experience uniquely positions her to support strategic messaging to elevate the public presence of the chapter and shape how landscape architecture is understood and valued by our community. She is excited for the potential to expand her level of support and to continue advancing the ASLA mission.
Steven T. Lee, ASLA
Steven is a landscape architect and urban designer based in New York City, with a passion for crafting meaningful, equitable, and resilient public spaces. As a Design Principal at SWA/Balsley, he directs complex public realm projects domestically and abroad. His built work spans diverse contexts and includes notable projects such as Drexel Square in Philadelphia, the Ghayath Trail at Expo 2020 in Dubai, Trillium Park in Toronto, and 87 Park in Miami Beach. Steven engages closely with clients, interdisciplinary teams, and designers across experience levels to foster shared creativity and develop innovative solutions. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Claremont McKenna College and dual master's degrees in Landscape Architecture and City Planning from the University of California, Berkeley. In addition to practice, he has contributed to design education as a lecturer at Cornell University and a guest critic at numerous universities throughout the US.
Kate Poppel, ASLA
Kate is a landscape and urban designer at WorkshopAPD with professional experience across a range of local, domestic, and international projects. With a background in landscape architecture and urban planning, Kate has worked with public, private, and nonprofit organizations throughout the U.S., as well as internationally in Denmark and Sweden. She brings a holistic worldview to each project while maintaining a strong understanding of local context.
She currently serves on the ASLA-NY Programs Committee and previously served as National Student Representative Council (SRC) Chair, along with holding several APA leadership positions at the national, state, and local levels since her undergraduate studies.
Kate would be honored to serve on the ASLA-NY Board and support the chapter’s mission and impact. Through her professional and leadership experiences, she has developed a strong commitment to advancing landscape architecture and planning through advocacy, education, and community engagement. Kate is committed to interdisciplinary collaboration and has played an active role in organizing the Joint AIA-ASLA-APA Conference this year. She is excited to contribute her leadership, collaborative spirit, and passion for the profession to strengthen member engagement and expand the impact of landscape architecture throughout New York.
Lucila Silva-Santisteban, ASLA
Lucila is a landscape and urban designer based in New York City with 10 years of experience across multiple scales of projects varying from urban, institutional and high-end residential projects here in the city, in the northeast coast, in Europe and South America.
Currently she’s an Associate at Sasaki Associates in their New York office in Brooklyn. Working on projects such as: the lead for the landscape design of the USAT campus in Chiclayo-Peru, managing the landscape project Longwood Place located in Longwood Medical Area renovation project in Boston, supporting with the landscape component in the master plan for Universidad de Los Andes in Bogotá-Colombia, co-manager of the Brooklyn Navy Yard revitalization project as well as part of the design team for the public space project in Hudson Yards.
Lucila holds a Master of Landscape Architecture from the Rhode Island School of Design and a bachelor’s in architecture from the Javeriana University in Bogotá-Colombia.
She’s a proud member of the ASLA-NY-DEI committee as well as co-leader of the RISD Latin+(más) Alumni club where she spends some of her free time at.