Chris Nicholas

Senior Planner

Mr. Nicholas is an urban and transportation planning professional who brings over 10 years of experience working in the government sector. He began his career as a Housing & Community Development intern in Prince George County, Virginia where he worked on long range plans, zoning, and policy research.

Following graduate school, Christopher pursed a career in local government for the Crater Planning District Commission (CPDC) in Petersburg, Virginia where he worked on transportation plans, regional plans, policies, National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Studies, bicycle/pedestrian plans, public participation planning and project management within the metropolitan area of Central Virginia.

Following his departure from CPDC, Mr. Nicholas moved to California to work in Caltrans’s Office of Regional and Community Planning, solving complex transportation issues pertaining to vehicle miles traveled, California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), local development projects, climate change and the State Highway System. During his time at Caltrans, he was a guest speaker at the American Planning Association’s National Conference in San Francisco.

Mr. Nicholas’ Caltrans stint includes a 10-month temporary rotation at Caltrans District 6 within the Division of Planning, Local Programs, & Environmental Analysis where he worked on Overall Work Plans, MPO/RTPA Sustainable Transportation Planning Grant and reviewing local development projects’ impacts on the State Highway System. His most recent assignment was with Caltrans Headquarters for 6 months as acting Branch Chief managing a statewide staff of 80+ with budget of over 7 million dollars.

Mr. Nicholas grew up in Vallejo and spent 12 years on the east coast between school and jobs. In his free time, Christopher enjoys traveling with his Fiancée and daughter, working out, reading, and exploring new places. As a Senior Planner, Christopher looks forward to bringing his land use and transportation experiences to working on high level policy planning, project management, presentations, and transportation demand management projects.