Land Use Law Center Staff

CONSULTANTS

Meg Byerly Williams
Attorney Consultant, Land Use Law Center

Meg Byerly Williams is a consultant based in Charlottesville, Virginia, where she works on sustainable development projects promoting renewable energy, distressed property remediation, and sustainable neighborhood development, among other related subjects. Previously, Meg worked as a staff attorney at Pace Law School’s Land Use Law Center in White Plains, New York, where she served as lead author on several Center publications, administered academic seminars, guided student research projects, and wrote for legal publications on various sustainable development topics. She holds a JD from Pace Law School, as well as an MEM from the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies and an MS in Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences from Texas A&M University.

Kevin Dwarka, J.D., Ph.D.
Attorney Consultant, Kevin Dwarka LLC

Dr. Kevin Dwarka is a land use and economic consultant specializing in urban revitalization. Broadly trained in both land use law and urban economics, Kevin helps localities throughout the metropolitan New York Area unlock the economic value of their train stations, enhance the fiscal performance of their main streets, build vibrant mixed-use neighborhoods, finance sustainable infrastructure and implement affordable housing policies.

Kevin’s practice offers clients an unusually comprehensive scope of consulting services including market analysis, neighborhood planning, zoning revisions, real estate financial modelling, infrastructure financing, fiscal impact analysis, and environmental impact assessment.

Kevin currently teaches land use law at NYU’s Schack Institute of Real Estate. He has also taught urban economic development at the City University of New York and Israeli Politics at Yeshiva University. His dissertation at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, examined the use of global capital and public private partnerships for financing light rail projects in Israel, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Kevin is admitted to practice before the New York State Bar and serves on the New York City Bar Association’s Housing and Urban Development Committee. He also serves as a Senior Fellow at Pace Land Use Law Center and on the board of the New York chapter of the Congress for New Urbanism.

Prior to launching his own consultancy in 2007, he held senior positions at the MTA, Nelson Nygaard Consulting Associates, and the Israel Union for Environmental Defense.

He received his BA from Columbia University, JD from Pace Law School, MCP from UC Berkeley, and PhD from Hebrew University.

Dexter H. Locke, Ph.D.
Science Advisor

Dexter H. Locke is a Research Social Scientist at the USDA Forest Service, within the Urban Forests, Environmental Quality and Human Health Research Unit. Prior to this role, he was a postdoctoral fellow at the National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center at the University of Maryland. Dexter describes himself as an Urban Ecologist with a doctorate from the Graduate School of Geography at Clark University. Prior to Clark, he received a Master's of Environmental Science from The Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies at Yale University, and graduated Summa Cum Laude from The Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources at The University of Vermont with a Bachelor of Science in Natural Resource Planning, with Minors in Economics as well as Forestry.

Dexter also worked for the NYC Department of Parks and Recreation and the USDA Forest Service Northern Research Station in the People and Their Environments: Social Science Supporting Natural Resource Management and Policy work unit.

Conducting applied research with urban natural resource managers is Dexter’s passion. When not doing urban ecology, he can usually be found rock climbing and hiking throughout the Mid-Atlantic region, listening to classic rock music, popping wheelies, and hopping off curbs on a kids-sized BMX bike throughout Baltimore City.

For complete works, including peer-reviewed publications, reports, self-published material, posters, datasets, and select presentations, his curriculum vitae can be accessed here. 

Rosemarie Noonan, J.D.
Executive Director, Housing Action Council

Ms. Noonan has held the position of Executive Director since 1986 and has been with the Council since 1979. She began her housing career as Director of the National Leased Housing Association, the leading trade association for government assisted rental housing development and management located in Washington, DC. She has held program and policy positions at the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development and the New York State Division of Housing & Community Renewal. She attended Trinity College in Washington, DC, received an advanced degree in Government from Georgetown University, and is a graduate of Pace University School of Law.

Ms. Noonan has developed various programs which have assisted in the development of housing, including tax-exempt financing, mortgage insurance, and housing rehabilitation programs. She has advised State and local housing officials on designing and implementing affordable housing programs and plans. She manages the Yonkers Affordable Housing Office which is responsible for implementing a housing desegregation order. She has designed housing seminars and trained professionals nationwide. She is experienced in integrating the housing development process with health and human service programs.

She has fostered the creation of several Westchester not-for-profit organizations, e.g. The Preservation Company, Washingtonville Housing Alliance, and the New Rochelle Neighborhood Revitalization Corporation. The goal of these organizations is the development of housing which serves low income families and individuals of modest means. She has advised many civic groups, religious groups, and community organizations on appropriate roles for themselves in housing development and assisted them through the development process. Her services are primarily focused in the Hudson Region; however she has provided this service throughout New York State and in many areas throughout the country. She has a strong working knowledge of Federal, State, County and local housing programs and is skilled in integrating them to develop financially feasible and affordable housing developments.

She is the author of over a dozen guidebooks and manuals on housing programs and developing housing.

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RESEARCH ASSISTANT & SENIOR SCHOLAR OF HOUSING

Sophie Coassin

Sophie Coassin graduated from the University of California San Diego (UCSD) in 2022 where she earned her Bachelor of Science in Marine Biology and her minor in Political Science. At UCSD she worked on projects that focused on ocean-based climate mitigation and adaptation. Sophie is a rising 3L at the Elisabeth Haub School of Law pursuing a JD with an Advanced Certificate in Environmental Law. In addition to her work at the Land Use Law Center, she serves on the editorial board for the Pace Environmental Law Review. Sophie is engaged in exploring all the ways in which land use law can address environmental justice issues. When she is not working on climate change solutions she can be found at the beach or playing with her dog Rosalita.

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LAND USE SCHOLARS

Madison Bishop
Madison is a rising 2L at the Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University. She received her Associate's from Fullerton College and her Bachelor's in Environmental and Sustainability Studies from the University of Utah. For the 2024-2025 year, she will be a 2L Land Use Scholar and also serving as Judges' Committee Vice Chair for the National Environmental Law Moot Court Competition (NELMCC). She enjoys hiking with her dog, board games, and playing the piano.

Erick Munoz
Erick is a 3L at the Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University, working towards his Juris Doctor degree with an expected graduation date in May 2025. Throughout his time at the law school, Erick has been recognized with various honors, including a Merit Scholarship, the Pace Law Opportunitas Award, and inclusion in the Dean’s Honor List in 2023. In the summer of 2024, he took on the role of Student Associate at the Land Use Law Center, delving into the realm of sustainable development and contributing to the Center’s initiatives to formulate a Climate Resilient Development framework. Prior to his law school journey, Erick pursued his undergraduate studies at CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice in Hell’s Kitchen, New York City. There, he excelled academically, earning a place on the Dean’s Honor List in 2018 before completing his studies in 2019. His major was in Law and Society, and he also pursued a minor in Alternative Dispute Resolution.

Stephanie Panicali
Stephanie graduated from the University of Scranton in 2023 where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in History with a concentration in Environmental Studies. She is a rising 2L at the Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University. She joined the Land Use Law Center in the summer of 2024 as an extern and will continue to work with the center as a Land Use Scholar throughout her second year in law school. Stephanie is grateful for the opportunity to be involved at the Land Use Law Center. She looks forward to developing her legal skills and understanding of land use law.

Alexandra Phillips
Alexandra graduated from Queen's University, studying English literature, film, and media. Additionally, she has received a master's in journalism from the University of British Columbia. A passion for environmentalism has always been Alexandra's driving force. The decision to study law at the Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University was motivated by her desire to change our environment by understanding its laws and policies. Alexandra is a rising 2L. As a 1L, she contributed as a 1L Scholar at the Land Use Law Center, where she worked on a study about rising sea levels. Alexandra is excited to continue her work with the Land Use Law Center as a summer associate.