Meet the Staff

The Maryland Department of Planning (Planning) is proud to introduce its newly confirmed Secretary, Rebecca L. Flora, AICP. Secretary Flora introduced herself to Planning staff at a department-wide meeting on January 25, spent a half-day at MHT to meet and learn from their staff, and ran in a 5K at JPPM in mid-February.

“I am excited to bring my professional experience to the talented Planning team so we can work together to accomplish the goals and initiatives of the Moore/Miller administration. Governor Moore has built an executive staff that is dynamic, diverse, highly qualified, and is representative of the entire state of Maryland,” said Secretary Flora.

“It is truly an inspiring time to work with our Planning team to see how we can better integrate our services and initiatives with other state agencies. We do critical and complex work at Planning and I want to use all of our collective experience to collaborate with our customers, deliver our goals, and bring attention to the great work we produce every day.”

Following graduate school, Secretary Flora spent about two decades in Pittsburgh, working in community development, project management and performance-based metrics, including management of the massive Hazelwood Green project, a 178-acre mixed-use waterfront development, advancing more than $20 million in infrastructure improvements. During her time in Pittsburgh, when the city was one the nation’s leader in green buildings, she also served as the founding executive director of the Green Building Alliance, one of the first in the U.S.

In 2010, Rebecca L. Flora launched ReMAKE Group, LLC a certified woman-owned business providing strategy development, predevelopment, and project management services for non-government, government, and private sector clients with a deep commitment to sustainable development practices and collaborative processes.

A resident of Chestertown, MD, Secretary Flora graduated from SUNY Plattsburgh with a Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies and received a master’s degree in Urban and Regional Planning from Virginia Tech. From her initial time in rural New York to working in urban Pittsburgh to owning a business on Maryland’s Eastern Shore, Secretary Flora brings a wealth of leadership and planning experience from numerous unique perspectives.

This is just a short summary of her background and accomplishments; be sure to watch for a one-on-one conversation with Secretary Flora in a future edition of Planning Practice Monthly!