Jayme Lucas – Shaker Heights Department of Neighborhood Revitalization

Nominated by: Jeri E. Chaikin – The City of Shaker Heights

We are proud to nominate Planner Jayme Lucas, in the Shaker Heights Department of Neighborhood Revitalization, as a Sustainability Champion. She became interested in the subject of sustainability about three years ago. As she has learned and gained experience in the field, and has displayed great personal and professional leadership, not only in the City, but regionally, we feel she has all the attributes of a Sustainability Champion.
Because of her efforts, Ms. Lucas has had both a direct and indirect impact in inspiring and promoting the development of a number of sustainability initiatives, including:

• The passage by Shaker`s City Council of a local ordinance encouraging and supporting high performance building techniques;
• The incorporation of sustainability principles into the City`s approach to housing preservation;
• The development of the City`s "Go Green" initiative which provides technical assistance and financial assistance to Shaker residents to make energy efficient upgrades to their houses;
• The approval of Parkview Federal Bank as the first bank in NE Ohio able to serve as a pass through for the State`s Energy Efficient Loan Fund dollars, making these funds available finally to NE Ohio residents.
• The inclusion of sustainability standards in the City`s design criteria for its infill housing project, resulting in Rysar Properties commitment to building 10 single family homes in Shaker, which incorporate these sustainability principles;
• The development with the CGBC of a green building training program available to all City departments and contractors as the City`s infill housing is being built;
• A collaboration between the City & the Nature Center to provide free landscape plans using native plants;
• The establishment of a citizen advisory group to the City on matters pertaining to sustainability called the Shaker Green Team;
• The development of linkages between Lakewood citizens interested in sustainability and Shaker Heights "Green Team";
• Collaboration with the CGBC to share the City`s experiences with its infill housing project online so that others can benefit from our learning curve.

This is an amazing list of accomplishments for anyone, and is a testimony to Ms. Lucas` personal drive, passion, commitment and ability to work with a variety of different interest groups to weave sustainability into the fabric of our lives. Ms. Lucas has been successful in large part because she leads by example, doesn`t shy away from taking risks, is always willing to volunteer so that things can get done, is open to diverse opinions and learns from mistakes. But probably most importantly, Ms. Lucas is successful because she never forgets the human element. People matter more than anything else to Ms. Lucas, and she never loses sight of this principle. It is her sincere caring for others that people see, admire and that causes them to take time to listen to what she says and follow her lead. It is this interest in improving the welfare of individuals, one person at a time that makes Ms. Lucas a true Sustainability Champion.

This is not to suggest that Ms. Lucas relies only on her personal charisma to influence others. She works hard to educate herself about all aspects of an issue and addresses challenges armed with data, statistics and alternatives. This gives her great credibility with others. She never presumes that just because she is a believer it is not important to provide others with the information that can change their beliefs. While idealistic, Ms. Lucas is also pragmatic. She has demonstrated time and time again her willingness to accept compromises without losing sight of her ultimate goal. As she had managed the City`s infill project with Rysar, there are weekly debates and discussions about most appropriate materials and techniques to be used on these houses. Ms. Lucas is constantly called on to create the right balance between pushing the envelope to encourage the builder to incorporate sustainability elements into the project, and ensuring that the builder ends up with a profitable product. She manages this with both finesse and humor.

The City of Shaker Heights is both fortunate and proud to have Jayme Lucas as a member of our City staff, and we consider her a true asset to the entire Greater Cleveland area because her vision knows no municipal boundaries, and her passion is an inspiration to us all.