The Urban Land Institute
The Urban Land Institute was founded in 1936, when many American cities were experiencing both suburban expansion and urban decay, with limited public sector planning and no guidance available to the private sector.
No organization existed in the country to research, analyze, or encourage responsible patterns for long-term urban growth, or to conduct inquiries into what constitutes sound real estate development projects and practices. These circumstances led Cincinnati real estate entrepreneur Walter Schmidt and six other prominent community builders to petition the National Association of Real Estate Boards (the forerunner of today’s National Association of Realtors) to establish a separate research institute within NAREB. This proved to be too limiting, and in 1940, ULI became a completely independent institute.
Born during the Great Depression, the Urban Land Institute had original objectives that were very similar to its guiding principles today. These early objectives were: to study and interpret real estate trends; to examine principles through which private enterprise could effectively develop real estate; to develop a body of knowledge in real estate and allied subjects; to publish informative texts and technical journals based on that knowledge; and to act as a statistical clearinghouse for the dissemination of real estate data. The Institute’s continuing focus on nonpartisan research and education has made it one of the world’s most respected and quoted organizations in urban planning, land use, and development.
ULI membership has grown from 230 members at its start to some 17,000 professionals in 50 states and 52 countries today. Through the direction and support of its members, the Institute is well positioned to provide responsible leadership in the use of land.
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