planner
with a background in transportation planning, funding, and policy issues.
He has also worked on economic development, environmental and land use
issues. During the past fifteen years, Mr. Kodama has worked on a wide
variety of projects involving highway, rail (passenger and freight), transportation
demand management, traffic safety, goods movement, parking management,
waste management, park and recreation, special event centers, foreign trade
zones, e-government, community transportation issues, environmental justice
and downtown revitalization. This includes working with businesses and
stakeholder groups on transportation needs assessments in downtown areas
and working with residents in local communities on transportation-related
issues.
Mr. Kodama has worked on Federal Reauthorization issues as well as a number of boards and commissions including the vice-chair of the Los Angeles Neighborhood Initiative (LANI) and as a commissioner with the State Senate Asian Pacific Islander Advisory Commission. He has also worked with governments of other countries from Asia, Africa, Europe, South America, and Central America. He is currently teaching transportation planning at the University of Southern California and has also taught public funding courses at the University of California, Los Angeles.
Before starting his own firm, Mr. Kodama was the Vice President of Air Quality/ Transportation Compliance for Kosmont & Associates, Inc. and worked for Caltrans District 7. Mr. Kodama has a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California at Los Angeles in Sociology and Economics and a Masters of Arts degree from the University of California at Los Angeles in Urban Planning, with an emphasis in Social Policy Analysis and Transportation.
2008 International Parking Institute – Award of Excellence, Category III – Reforming Parking Policies to Support Smart Growth – Metropolitan Transportation Commission – Wilbur Smith Associates, Michael R. Kodama Planning Consultants, et al.
2008 American Planning Association – Planning Excellence Award for Grassroots Initiative – Central City Community Transportation Plan – Central City Neighborhood Partners, Michael R. Kodama Planning Consultants, et al.
2008 American Planning Association, California – Planning Excellence Award for Grassroots Initiative – Central City Community Transportation Plan – Central City Neighborhood Partners, Michael R. Kodama Planning Consultants et al.
2007 International Association for Public Participation – Project of Year Awards of Merit - “Communities in Motion: Regional Long-Range Transportation Plan 2030” Community Planning Association of Southwest Idaho (COMPASS) - Meridian, Idaho, USA - Presented to Terri Schorzman, COMPASS and Rosemary Curtin – Kittelson & Associates, Michael R. Kodama Planning Consultants, et al.
2007 American Planning Association, Los Angeles Section - Planning Excellence Award for Grassroots Initiative – Central City Community Transportation Plan – Central City Neighborhood Partners, Michael R. Kodama Planning Consultants, et al.
2007 American Metropolitan Planning Organization Award - The National Award for Outstanding Achievement in Metropolitan Transportation Planning - Recipient: Community Planning Association of Southwest Idaho (COMPASS) in Meridian, Idaho – Kittelson & Associates, Michael R. Kodama Planning Consultants, et al.
The AMPO national award for outstanding achievement in metropolitan transportation planning was presented to the Community Planning Association of Southwest Idaho (COMPASS) in Meridian, Idaho for their Plan, Communities in Motion: Regional Long-Range Transportation Plan 2030 or CIM. In the past, their Plans had been little more than a collection of individual projects. For this Plan, they evaluated the regional transportation needs across a six-county region for the next 20 years and tied quantitative and qualitative evaluations of land use patterns to transportation needs associated with desired growth patterns. During the three-year project, they involved the public in numerous ways and thus brought significant attention to the need for transportation and land-use integration. Local elected officials commended them for their public involvement efforts and a local nonprofit noted that, “They were a changed region because of Communities in Motion outreach.”
2006 ACEC of Idaho – Engineering Excellence Awards – Studies, Research and Consulting Engineering Services – First Place and Grand Award – Communities in Motion – COMPASS – Kittelson & Associates, Michael R. Kodama Planning Consultants, et al.
1997 Association for Commuter Transportation, Southern California Chapter – President’s Award for Outstanding Service – Michael Kodama