Will Lippitt
The strength of this community and deep connectivity among the neighbors stand out as core values that resonate deeply for Will. Alongside the high quality of life, verdant gardens, tree lined streets, many parks, and walkable coffee shops in two directions, the community spirit was among the many qualities that drew his family to this particular pocket of Philadelphia from Seattle last year. Will draws on his passion for stewardship of public space as a Master Watershed Steward for Carpenters Woods, and brings his real estate development expertise to the neighborhood zoning committee.
Will is excited to bring his years of construction and real estate experience to the neighborhood board to assist in navigating the current wave of development activity. An alumni from Brown in Architectural History and Urban Studies, he is passionate about urban design and the shared experience of public space. Having served in board positions with community nonprofits in the past, Will has earned some useful perspective on how to draw forth the voices of all of the stakeholders that may not otherwise be heard or empowered. As a member of the WMAN board, he hopes to be an advocate for robust discussion that brings the neighbors together and collaborative effort that delivers proactive and thoughtful progress.
Rob Pelszynski
Rob and his wife Elizabeth have lived in West Mount Airy since 2006. They opened the Mount Airy Taproom in 2019. Rob holds a Bachelor of Business Administration specializing in Risk Management and Insurance. He has a wide range of experience in restaurant management. Rob is interested in deepening his roots in the community by serving on the WMAN Board.
Morrie Zimmerman
Morrie is Principal of O Z Collaborative, an award-winning architectural firm established in 1988 that serves clients in the Philadelphia region with a range of project types, including affordable housing, non-profit, higher-ed, K-12 schools, institutional, sustainable design and historic preservation. Morrie and his wife, Anne Deaner, moved to West Mt. Airy a year after purchasing a fixer-upper in 2000, and raised their son with all the amazing amenities that we have around us, including the Wissahickon, Lovett Library, and Mt. Airy Baseball. Morrie has a deep interest in community, historic fabric, and the built environment. He has served on the WMAN Zoning Committee for the past 12 years.
Kristin Haskins-Simms
Kristin was born and raised in West Mt. Airy. She graduated from Germantown Friends School and attended University of Penn. Upon graduation in 1993, she lived in NYC before earning an MFA from RISD in 2000. Kristin accepted a position as visiting professor at UCONN while also starting her own graphic design studio in Philadelphia. After a year at UCONN, she moved back to Philadelphia and accepted various adjunct positions at UPENN, Philadelphia University, Rutgers and Rowan. She also continued to grow her graphic design studio.
Kristin started a t-shirt line called “Strangefruit” which was intended to use fashion to educate about Black History. She taught herself how to sew using her grandmother’s old sewing machine. Eventually she made a whole fall line and debuted at a Philadelphia fashion week which elevated her to a “one to watch fashion icon” status. She was cast to Season 8 of Project Runway. Even though Kristin was the 5th one eliminated, she learned a lot from that experience and vowed never to apply to a competition reality show ever again. The best thing about that experience was netting and spending quality time with Tim Gunn. Kristin continued with fashion with a new line “Krysi” and a small manufacturing company helping independent designers develop their lines. (2011-2020). When COVID occurred, she dissolved the business and is now working in her family’s Real Estate business as the Interior Architect and Designer. They have been renovating and flipping houses.
Steve Kendall
Dr. Kendall is a registered architect and holds a PhD in Design Theory and Methods from MIT. His career in architectural practice, research and education spans more than 35 years. Before his retirement in 2014, he taught in the US, Japan, China, Taiwan, Indonesia, South Africa and Italy. His teaching, research and writing focus on the Open Building approach, needed to make buildings more adaptable, easier to customize to meet changing preferences and thus more sustainable. He has authored more than 50 published papers and research reports and three books. He is Co-Founder and Vice President of the Council on Open Building, a professional non-profit advocating that buildings be prepared for change.