March 18, 2021 – Benedict Dubbs, AIA RA, LEED AP, Principal of Murray Associates Architect was a panelist along with Garry Gilliam, a former NFL athlete, for the Workplace Evolutionaries Community of the International Facility Management Association (IFMA)’s virtual workshop “Co-Creating Sustainable Villages that Build Systemic Empowerment & Re-Imagine Real Estate”.

Gilliam, a former NFL athlete, is the founder of The Bridge, a new development or “eco-village” designed to revitalize inner-city communities nationwide. Dubbs is also The Bridges’ Senior Vice President of Architecture.

The Bridge acquires abandoned properties such as shopping centers, malls, and schools and transforms them into a sustainable mixed-use “eco-village” with housing, retail, co-working, urban agriculture, education center, and entertainment. The Bridge recently broke ground on its inaugural location in Harrisburg, PA, and has an aggressive national expansion plan to cities such as Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Houston, Kansas City, Newark Detroit and Seattle.

The workshop discussed Gilliam’s background, vision for the ecovillages and how The Bridge can positivity impact the wider community and of social equity.