ERICA SPAID, ASSOCIATE

Erica Spaid is an Associate at Strategic Economics. She has completed numerous economic impact studies of potential land use changes. She recently completed an evaluation of the changing role of San Jose’s industrial lands, as well as a presentation highlighting the viability of maritime-related industries near the Port of Richmond, CA. She is currently working on a spatial assessment of Long Beach, CA’s economy that evaluates the interaction between employment and land use. Ms Spaid has also worked on an assessment of the economic benefits of introducing light rail transit to the San Gabriel Valley, in Los Angeles, CA.

In addition, Ms. Spaid has completed several financial feasibility analyses. She completed a financial feasibility analysis of development on small parcels near transit in San Mateo County, CA. She has also conducted a pro-forma analysis of several development scenarios proposed along a light rail line in St. Paul, MN.

Prior to joining Strategic Economics, Ms. Spaid worked for the Center for Community Innovation (CCI) as a Community Innovation Fellow. In her role at CCI, Ms. Spaid’s research was focused on examining stable mixed-income neighborhoods in the Bay Area. Her work also included the formation of policy objectives to help Richmond, CA foster mixed-income development. Ms. Spaid additionally worked for four years at a community development corporation in Cleveland, Ohio, serving first as Project Manager and later as the Director of Property Management. In these roles, Ms. Spaid managed the development of several affordable housing projects and oversaw management of the organization’s real estate portfolio.

Ms. Spaid received her Master of City Planning at UC Berkeley, where she focused her studies on community development, housing and equitable development. Her capstone project examined stable-mixed income neighborhoods in the Bay Area in an attempt to identify characteristics that contribute to long-term stability.