AveArts 2.0

Sam is a Principal co-leading OJB’s Philadelphia office where he works closely with clients and design teams across the country to lead design, development, and execution of complex projects.  He highly values a collaborative work model and is dedicated to creating landscapes that are accessible and welcoming to all. Growing up in the greater Philadelphia area, he is keenly attuned to the potential for landscapes and outdoor environments to enhance and rejuvenate urban communities.

Oliver is a design leader, architect, and urban strategist with 30 years of experience shaping cities, districts, campuses, and resilience frameworks around the world. As a Practice Leader for Cities & Urban Design and a Principal at Gensler, he works at the intersection of design, sustainability, and urban transformation. His work connects systems thinking with practical implementation, and his thought leadership explores how cities can evolve as more resilient, living systems.

Sam is a Project Manager at Langan Engineering with over 13 years of experience. He manages traffic and transportation projects throughout the Philadelphia region and across the state of Pennsylvania, overseeing projects from the concept phase through construction. Sam takes a collaborative, hands-on approach to implementing clients’ needs while ensuring regulatory requirements are fulfilled.

Grace Reynolds is a Development Manager at Aegis Property Group, where she represents owners through all phases of project development, from early planning and feasibility through design and construction.  Grace has experience managing complex, mission driven projects, including those supported by city and state funding, requiring coordination across public agencies, design teams, and stakeholders.

Desaree K. Jones is a seasoned community advocate and leader with over two decades of experience driving civic engagement, public policy, and strategic partnerships across Eastern Pennsylvania. She currently serves as the Executive Director of Avenue of the Arts, Inc., where she leads transformative initiatives to revitalize Philadelphia’s cultural corridor and expand access to the arts.

Her career spans senior leadership roles in government, nonprofit, and corporate sectors. At Aetna, as Senior Community Development Director, she built partnerships that advanced health equity. As Interim Executive Director of Sky Community Partners, she administered statewide scholarship programs and health initiatives. Earlier, she served as Chief of Operations for Pennsylvania State Senator Anthony H. Williams, where she managed a multimillion-dollar community fund, developed signature health and education programs, and led the constituent services team.

She holds a Master of Public Administration from Widener University and a Bachelor of Science in Telecommunications from Kutztown University, with additional licensure in Accident and Health, Life, and Fixed Annuities. Honored as a 2023 “Woman on the Move” by the City of Philadelphia, Desaree is recognized for her visionary leadership, ability to mobilize communities, and commitment to building inclusive, resilient, and vibrant neighborhoods.

Entrepreneur and civic leader Carl E. Dranoff has earned national recognition for his game-changing approach to luxury residential development in the urban core. For more than 50 years, he has been a leader in the urban revitalization movement with projects ranging from ground-up skyscrapers to adaptive reuse and mixed-use developments.

As President and CEO of Dranoff Properties, the Philadelphia-based development company he founded, Dranoff has developed over 1.4 million square feet of prime real estate valued at $1 billion. His playbook is to be the first in, with a big, game-changing project that validates an emerging neighborhood, sparking massive investment and redevelopment. Neighborhoods like Old City, West Philadelphia, Filter Square, Franklintown, and the Avenue of the Arts went from dark and neglected to vibrant and beautiful following Dranoff's anchor investments.

In Philadelphia, Dranoff has brought more luxury high-rise condominiums to market than any other developer. The city's most prestigious high-rise addresses — One Riverside, 10 Rittenhouse, Two Liberty, and Symphony House — are his work. Arthaus Condominiums, a 400,000 square-foot, 47-story, $275 million skyscraper designed by world-class architect Kohn Pedersen Fox, is his largest and latest achievement.

Over the past 25 years, transforming the Avenue of the Arts into a world-renowned street has been Dranoff's driving mission. He has developed over 500 residential units, a 35,000-square foot performing arts venue, and 617 covered parking spaces. As Board Chair of Avenue of the Arts, Inc. (AAI), Dranoff is leading AveArts 2.0, a $150 million, decade-long initiative to reimagine the one-mile corridor stretching from City Hall to Washington Avenue into a green, pedestrian-focused cultural boulevard on par with the world's great streets.

Dranoff's other notable projects include World Café Live and WXPN radio studios in partnership with the University of Pennsylvania, and One Theater Square in Newark, NJ — the city's first ground-up high-rise in 50 years, which triggered enormous downtown investment.

Before founding Dranoff Properties, he made his mark as CEO of Historic Landmarks for Living, a national development firm specializing in adaptive reuse projects that transformed neglected industrial buildings into vibrant communities across Philadelphia, Chicago, Pittsburgh, Milwaukee, and other cities.

Dranoff has been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Fortune, and The Philadelphia Inquirer. His accolades include Developer of the Year (Pennsylvania Builder's Association), Entrepreneur of the Year (Ernst & Young), and recognition on Philadelphia Magazine's "Most Influential People" and the Philadelphia Business Journal's "Power 100" lists.

Dranoff earned his B.S. in Civil Engineering from Drexel University and his MBA from Harvard University. He was also awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Engineering from Drexel, which cited him as "a nationally recognized civic leader and entrepreneur...whose work has brought a renewed sense of history to Philadelphia and urban Americans throughout the country."