2026 APA Colorado Chapter Awards
APA Colorado Announces 2026 Chapter Award Recipients
Annual awards celebrate planning excellence, community impact, and distinguished service across Colorado
KEYSTONE, Colorado — The Colorado Chapter of the American Planning Association (APA Colorado) celebrated the recipients of its 2026 Chapter Awards during the Colorado Planning Conference, held October 28–30 in Keystone. This year’s honorees reflect the breadth of planning in Colorado, with work spanning accessible recreation, comprehensive planning, transportation, water conservation, environmental resilience, and student research.
The annual awards recognize outstanding plans, projects, and people advancing the planning profession and helping communities address their needs and prepare for the future. This year, APA Colorado recognized eight Honor Award recipients, three Merit Award recipients, and two individuals for their contributions to the chapter and profession.
Chapter Recognition
APA Colorado celebrated Shaida Libhart, AICP, recipient of the Outstanding Chapter Volunteer Award from the American Planning Association Chapter Presidents Council for the Colorado Chapter. The chapter also honored Susan Wood, FAICP, with Lifetime Achievement Recognition.
2026 Honor Awards
- Colorado School for the Deaf and the Blind Playground — Advancing Diversity and Social Change Award
- Imagine Alamosa County Comprehensive Plan — Comprehensive Plan Award
- Connecting Aurora Multimodal Transportation Master Plan — Planning Excellence Award
- Byers Subarea Plan — Projects with a Small Budget Award, recognizing projects with a planning budget under $20,000
- North Star Nature Preserve Management Plan — Resilience, Sustainability, and Environmental Design Award
- Larimer County Regional Plan Inventory, Noah Biemeyer — Student/Recent Graduate Projects Award
- A Framework for Community Classifications in Colorado, Peyton Robbins — Student/Recent Graduate Projects Award
- Tracking Irrigation Rate in the Town of Mead to Inform Water Conservation — Growing Water Smart Award
2026 Merit Awards
- Community Co-Created Plan for Parks & Trails — Advancing Diversity and Social Change Award
- Year of Main Street — Planning Excellence Award
- Hayden Resiliency Project — Resilience, Sustainability, and Environmental Design Award
Together, these honorees demonstrate the many ways planning supports Colorado communities - from shaping long-term visions and improving transportation options to conserving natural resources and creating more inclusive public spaces. Recognition of student and recent graduate projects also highlights the contributions of emerging professionals to the future of planning.
APA Colorado congratulates all of this year’s recipients and thanks the planners, community members, public officials, project partners, and volunteers whose collaboration made these achievements possible.
Learn more about the recipients and their work at colorado.planning.org/community-outreach/chapter-awards/award-winners/.
About APA Colorado
APA Colorado is the Colorado Chapter of the American Planning Association. The chapter supports the planning profession through education, professional development, collaboration, and recognition of outstanding planning efforts throughout the state.