ASC's Intersections Newsletter — June 4, 2026
Congrats to Caroline Ibarra on her promotion to Associate Director of Arch Street Communications!
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Nora's Note
Celebrating Caroline Ibarra's Promotion to Associate Director.
Some promotions mark tenure. This one marks something different.
Caroline Ibarra joined Arch Street Communications in 2019 with a rare combination: a planner's instinct for complex systems and a communicator's gift for making them legible to the people they affect. Six years later, she's become one of the clearest examples of what ASC's civic and transportation practice is capable of—and we're thrilled to announce her promotion to Associate Director.
Caroline's project work spans some of the most demanding public engagement challenges in the region. She's helped Battery Park City residents engage directly in the design of major resiliency projects through walkshops, workshops, and public hearings. She's brought New Yorkers into the NYSDOT Statewide Transportation Plan through digital strategy and virtual engagement. She developed EV charging corridor engagement for Somerset County and helped the public weigh in on the Rockland Riverway Trail design. Across all of it, the throughline is the same: communities who might otherwise be left out of consequential decisions getting a real seat at the table.
At NYMTC, she manages ASC's award-winning Public Information Office support team—a role that earned her team the 2025 Stevie® Award for Social Media Team of the Year. It's recognition, but more than that, it's a reflection of how Caroline builds teams: with clear strategy, high standards, and a commitment to reaching people where they are, including underrepresented communities too often left on the margins of planning conversations.
Beyond client work, Caroline carries ASC's values into the broader field. She serves as Membership Co-Chair of the IAP2 National Young Professionals Committee, shaping the next generation of public participation practitioners. She's active in WTS chapters in both Greater New York and Philadelphia. She holds dual IAP2 certifications in public participation. She graduated from Villanova summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa—and then went out and built a career that's lived up to that beginning.
The Associate Director title is well-earned. But what it really signals is that ASC has a leader ready for whatever comes next.
Please join us in congratulating Caroline.
Transportation
New York City will convert 42nd Street into a bus-only corridor and restrict traffic around Penn Station on World Cup match days to manage the expected influx of 1.2 million visitors to the New York and New Jersey area. The midtown transportation plan has a bus-only restriction on 42nd Street between First and 12th Avenues is part of and will be in effect for six hours before each match and three hours after. Ticketholders will have two main transit options to reach MetLife Stadium: $98 round-trip NJ Transit trains from Penn Station, or $20 shuttle buses picking up at Grand Central Terminal, Columbus Circle, and the Port Authority Bus Terminal. Read more on the conversion here. (Source: Gothamist)
AMNY: Brooklyn business owners urge MTA to shift G train weekend shutdowns to weeknights
Streetsblog: Data shows why Mamdani must pedestrianize the financial district
Mass Transit Magazine: LIT and WTS International renew partnership at WTS International annual conference
Climate
Five years ago, a pocket forest took shape in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Rather than following the conventional urban approach of spacing trees evenly along a corridor, this project clustered a diverse mix of native species in close proximity. Communities across the northeastern United States are now embracing this method, developed by Japanese botanist Akira Miyawaki, to create fast‑growing, low‑maintenance urban forests. Instead of taking a century to mature, these compact ecosystems reach full development in just two to three decades, providing habitat for pollinators, birds, and other wildlife, strengthening local ecosystems, reducing erosion, and helping cool surrounding neighborhoods. Read more here. (Source: Happy Eco News)
Inside Climate News: A Georgia wildlife haven forged by fire and peat nears UNESCO recognition
Grist: Wall Street is betting big on clean energy tech
Canary Media: Thanks to two new laws, more Virginians can save with community solar
Economic Development
New York Governor Kathy Hochul officially signed the $268.5B state budget which pairs affordability measures with workforce and climate-related initiatives. The budget expands access to childcare, advances clean energy, and invests in climate driving demand for skilled workers, infrastructure improvements, and private-sector innovation across the state. By reducing costs for households and supporting emerging industries, the budget aims to strengthen New York's workforce pipeline and create conditions for sustainable economic growth. Read more on the budget here. (Source: The City)
Smart Cities Dive: Preapproved housing designs can cut costs—and cities are embracing them
Planetizen: Colorado creates wildlife crossings fund
CBS: Mamdani announces plan for 400,000 affordable housing units
Digital
As artificial intelligence rapidly transforms industries, growing concern has emerged about tech leaders becoming infatuated with AI while disconnected from actual implementation work. The term “AI psychosis” was coined to describe executives who claim incredible AI efficiency gains without actually using the tools themselves. Read more about this polarizing debate and about whether AI hype has gone too far. (Source: TechCrunch)
GovTech: Louisville, KY builds an AI team, considers sustainability
Route Fifty: Massachusetts establishes nation’s first union for app drivers
Forbes: What Adobe is doing to prepare curious and creative workers for AI
About Arch Street Communications
At ASC, we help government agencies, corporations and nonprofit organizations across the globe communicate issues that affect people’s lives. We’re the bold, nimble, women-owned small business (WBE) that has supported strategic communications programs to build stronger communities for 30 years.
Ready to find the “simple truth” solutions to build a better future? We want to hear from you! Get in touch to learn how our signature approach can work for you.
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