Good City Company

What Good City Company does

Good City Company is a privately held professional consulting firm based in Redwood City, California, providing local government and land use planning services to municipalities throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. The firm operates four integrated service lines: Planning Services (policy planning, major project review, in-house staffing, community engagement); Housing Services (housing element updates, affordable housing strategy, state law compliance guidance); Economic Development Services (strategy plans, small business assistance, business recruitment); and City Manager/Executive Office Services (special projects, organizational assessments, RFP management, public agency communications). Its business model is project-based, contract-driven professional services sold directly to municipal procurement — there is no software platform, subscription product, or technology stack; revenue is generated from billable consulting hours and multi-year staffing engagements with city and county clients. Customers include at least 14 named municipalities (e.g., Redwood City, San Carlos, South San Francisco, San Bruno, Palo Alto, Mountain View, San Mateo, Campbell) and the County of San Mateo, with additional private sector developer clients for entitlement support.

The firm was originally founded in 1972 as Neal Martin & Associates, re-established in 2019 as Good City Company under the current California corporation co-owned by principals Lisa Costa Sanders (with the firm since 1992) and Aaron Aknin, AICP. The leadership team is the principal differentiator: nearly every senior member is a former municipal executive — former Assistant City Managers, Community Development Directors, Planning Managers, and Housing Managers from Bay Area cities — which allows the firm to embed seasoned staff into client planning departments on contract. The team stands at 28 individuals including principals, planners, housing specialists, economic development staff, and administrative support. Distribution is purely direct sales via professional reputation, word-of-mouth referrals from prior municipal clients, conferences, and a LinkedIn presence. The firm has no external funding, no parent company, no disclosed revenue, and operates as a stable, owner-operated professional services practice.

Name

Good City Company

Legal name

Good City Company

Website

https://goodcityco.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Good City Company is a privately held Bay Area municipal consulting firm providing planning, housing, economic development, and city management services to local governments across Northern California through direct professional service contracts.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Municipal Consulting Services

NAICS

Administration of Housing Programs, Urban Planning, and Community Development (9251), Management Consulting Services (54161)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Mayor/City Manager & General Administration (BPAIACAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Urban Planning & Master Planning (BPAHAKAD), Housing & Neighborhood Services (Local Housing Programs) (BPAIACAJ), Economic Development & Business Licensing (Local) (BPAIACAN)

Keywords

• Municipal consulting services
• Land use planning
• Housing element compliance
• Economic development consulting
• CEQA environmental review

Headquarters

HQ city

Redwood City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Professional Consulting Services: Good City Company generates revenue through professional consulting service contracts with local government agencies and private sector clients. Services include local government staffing, planning, policy development, economic development, and executive office services. Revenue is derived from project-based work and ongoing contractual relationships with municipal clients across the Bay Area.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Good City Company is a professional consulting firm providing local government and land use planning services to municipal agencies and private developers throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. The firm delivers four integrated service lines — Planning Services, Housing Services, Economic Development Services, and City Manager/Executive Office Services — through contract-based engagements. Services include policy planning, major project review, housing element updates, CEQA compliance, economic development strategy, affordable housing programs, and executive office support.

Product overview

Good City Company is a local government and land use consultant firm offering four integrated service areas: Planning Services (policy planning, major projects, staffing, community engagement), Housing Services (element updates, affordable housing strategy, state law compliance), Economic Development Services (strategy plans, project management, small business assistance), and City Manager/Executive Office Services (special projects, organizational assessments, RFP facilitation, communications). The firm serves public and private sector clients in Northern California, providing technical services tailored to the local area.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Planning Services Comprehensive planning services for municipal and private sector clients, including policy planning and implementation, major projects review and project management, in-house staffing for development applications, and community engagement and outreach.
• Housing Services Housing-related consulting services including housing element updates and implementation, affordable housing strategy development, and state law guidance and implementation for policy documents and local regulation review.
• Economic Development Services Economic development consulting encompassing preparation of strategy plans, project management and implementation for programs including small business assistance, advocacy, training, outreach, and business recruitment.
• City Manager / Executive Office Services Executive office support services including special projects leadership for City/County Manager's Offices, priority setting facilitation, organizational assessments, RFP preparation and management, and social media and communication campaigns for public agencies.

Quantifiable outcome

• Processed over 4,000 new housing units and several million square feet of office space during tenure at Redwood City
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• MIG (Moore Iacofano Goltsman): Berkeley-headquartered planning, design, communications, and environmental services firm. Direct peer in California municipal planning, public engagement, and environmental review, with broader service mix but overlapping clients in the Bay Area.
• Dyett & Bhatia: Urban and regional planning consultancy with deep California municipal practice. Direct peer offering general plans, specific plans, housing elements, and zoning code updates to city and county clients across the Western U.S., with similar boutique scale and senior-led model.
• Raimi + Associates: Berkeley-based planning, urban design, and sustainability consulting firm serving California municipalities. Directly comparable as a Bay Area/California planning consultancy with overlapping service areas (general plans, specific plans, CEQA, sustainability) and similar client base of public agencies. Good City staff have prior tenure at Raimi, evidencing direct labor market overlap.
• PlaceWorks: California-based planning, urban design, and environmental services firm with offices statewide. Direct peer in municipal planning, housing element updates, CEQA compliance, and specific plan preparation for cities and counties — closely matched service portfolio and customer segment.
• Mintier Harnish: Sacramento-based planning and environmental consulting firm focused on California cities and counties. Direct peer in general plans, specific plans, housing elements, and zoning — competing in the same California municipal planning market.
• Urban Planning Partners: California urban planning consultancy offering current and long-range planning, housing, and economic development services to municipalities. Closely comparable boutique peer in size, geography, and service mix, frequently competing for the same municipal contracts.
• Lisa Wise Consulting: California municipal consulting firm specializing in housing, planning, and real estate economics for cities and counties. Closely comparable boutique peer with similar housing element, fee analysis, and affordable housing consulting focus, often competing for the same RFPs.

Regional players

• Fehr & Peers: California-founded transportation planning and traffic engineering consultancy with strong Bay Area presence. Adjacent peer in municipal technical consulting — Good City staff have interned at Fehr & Peers, and the firm often serves as a subconsultant to planning firms on transportation elements.

Broad incumbents

• ICF International: International consulting firm with a substantial U.S. climate, energy, environment, and community development practice serving state and local government. Broad incumbent in municipal advisory services, often competing for housing, climate, and community development RFPs at the state and regional level.
• PlaceWorks / AECOM (broad incumbent comparison): Global professional services firm with a large California planning, environmental, and economics practice. Broad incumbent competing for larger municipal and regional engagements; often engages Good City or comparable boutiques as subconsultants on scale-constrained work.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/goodcityco

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Good City Company