James Dean Ellis is an urban planner with a decade of experience in community economic development with a focus on stakeholder participation. James has spent years managing commercial revitalization programs that had him working in over a dozen of NYC's diverse neighborhoods including Bedford Stuyvesant, Crown Heights, Downtown Far Rockaway, South Williamsburg, Park Slope, and Red Hook. James currently manages the portfolio of neighborhood-based community economic development projects for Perch Advisors, including business engagement and community projects as the Executive Director for the North Flatbush Avenue Business Improvement District in Prospect Heights/Park Slope, Brooklyn. James also head's up our team's BID development portfolio that supports communities in pursuing formal Business District formations.

A proud Master's graduate of CUNY-Hunter College's esteemed Urban Planning program, James spent 10 years volunteering for his Crown Heights Community Board, is also an 2012 alum of the Coro NY Neighborhood Leadership program, and has gone to Vegas to play in a national 8-ball pool tournament. James is keen on identifying and making connections, strengthening networks, managing diverse stakeholders, and providing opportunities for positive change.