Members' 25-Year Reminiscences

Richard T. Anderson, FAICP

President, New York Building Congress
New York, New York

The actress Diane Keaton is well known for her Oscar-nominated performance in Something's Gotta Give and in many other films. Less well known is her role in the formation of the American Planning Association 25 years ago.

In 1977, I was elected to the board of the American Society of Planning Officials and subsequently invited to join the 12-member group of board members from ASPO and the American Institute of Planners to negotiate a possible merger. We were led by ASPO's Dorothy Walker and AIP's Connie Lieder (no connection with Diane Keaton yet), and forged a consolidation agreement approved by both memberships in 1978.

Where Diane Keaton comes into the picture is the following year, when I was flying to the National Planning Conference in Miami. She was on my flight from New York and was leaving the plane hauling an unbelievable amount of camera equipment in a large tote bag. Naturally, I volunteered to assist. She declined at first, but eventually agreed to share the heavy load, with each of us holding one handle of the bag as we marched down the Miami Airport concourse. She thanked me as she entered a taxi, and I thought that was the end of it.

The conference that year was at the Fontainebleau Hotel, a landmark complex known for its ornate splendor and setting. Shortly after checking in, there was Ms. Keaton, camera in hand, photographing everything in sight. She didn't see me at the time, nor did I attempt to bother her.

Later in the day, I ran into Fred Bosselman, who served on the ASPO-AIP merger committee with me, and was chairing the newly formed APA Nominating Committee. He was sitting with other committee members and asked whether I was willing to be a candidate for APA President-Elect. After I indicated my willingness, up marched Diane Keaton. Still with camera in hand, she thanked me once again for helping carry her camera equipment, said hello to the awe-struck APA members, and marched off to shoot still more photographs.

I have never asked Fred or his colleagues whether Diane Keaton influenced their deliberations that year, but I was nominated by the committee, ran for APA President-Elect, and became the first elected President of the American Planning Association, serving during 1980-1981.

Twenty-five years later, Ms. Keaton is more famous than ever, and APA has taken great strides forward as the nation's leadership organization for planning and the planning profession. We in planning may not be as famous as those in the entertainment industry, but our lives sometimes intersect and prove time and again that it only happens in America.

Image: Richard Anderson (left) and Irving Hand at APA's 1981 National Conference in Boston.

Dick Anderson has been President of the New York Building Congress since 1994. He has overseen the re-emergence of the 83-year-old public policy coalition, which brings together the design, construction, and real estate communities. Among his accomplishments, he has helped to increase the organization's membership, strengthen its financial position, foster industry-wide cooperation, and, most importantly, establish the Building Congress and its 400 constituent organizations as an influential coalition, advocating sensible long-term investment in New York's physical environment.

Prior to the Building Congress, Mr. Anderson served as Executive Director of The Dallas Plan, a nonprofit group formed to prepare a long-range capital improvements strategy for that city, and as President of the Regional Plan Association, the nation's oldest metropolitan planning organization.

Mr. Anderson is a nationally recognized association executive and urban planner. An advocate of effective infrastructure and economic development, he has promoted the long-term growth of America's urban centers, primarily New York City.

He is past chairman of the Presidents' Council of New York City professional and civic organizations and was APA's first elected president.

A graduate of Rutgers University, Mr. Anderson earned a Master of Regional Planning from Cornell University and completed post-graduate doctoral studies in public administration at New York University.

He is a fellow of the American Institute of Certified Planners and served as Chairman of the College of Fellows in 2003. He is a member of the Urban Land Institute, a Director of Regional Alliance for Small Contractors, ACE Mentorship program, the Salvadori Center, and the Brooklyn Sports Federation; a Trustee of Big Brothers/Big Sisters of New York City; a member of numerous local and national organizations; and a 1995 Ellis Island Medal Honor recipient. In 2001, he received the George S. Lewis Award from the New York Chapter of the American Institute of Architects.