Quilian Riano, currently a senior strategic design initiatives specialist for New York City’s Department of Design and Construction, Office of the Chief Architect, has been selected as the new associate director of the Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative (CUDC) at Kent State University in Ohio. 

The announcement of Riano's hire was made in May of 2019.

Riano holds a Master of Architecture degree from Harvard's Graduate School of Design as well as a Bachelor of Design from the University of Florida. Riano is the founder of DSGN AGNC, a group that "experiments with new forms of space, policy, and process creation through political engagement," according to the studio's website. 

I am very exciteed to announce that I’m the new Associate Director of Kent State’s Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative (@ksuCUDC) https://t.co/AIPiZqr39a
— Quilian Riano (@quilian) August 12, 2019

As part of his work with the Design Trust for Public Space, Riano led the design of a new public space pilot project located underneath the elevated Gowanus Expressway overpass in Brooklyn's Sunset Park neighborhood. The project, which consists of a series of large planters and adjacent pedestrian areas, captures runoff from the roadway located above to feed the park's vegetation. 

According to a press release announcing Riano's selection, he has led over 25 undergraduate and graduate studios and workshops at a variety of universities, including Parsons New School of Design, Pratt Institute, and Columbia University. 

Through his work at Parsons, Riano has also led a series of urban design projects with students in Northeast Ohio. In a statement on Twitter, Riano said, "over the past 5 years I have admired the [CUDC's] work in the region, I now look forward to joining a great team to help it continue and expand its excellent community-centered urban design work."