City Collective

What City Collective does

City Collective is a privately held, multidisciplinary architecture and urban design practice headquartered in Adelaide, Australia. Founded in 2016 by David Cooke and Justin Kearnan—both UC Berkeley postgraduates—the firm delivers integrated services across architecture, urban design, landscape architecture, interior design, city planning, and economics advisory. Its work is organized around three market sectors: Housing & Mixed-Use, Urban Design & City Planning, and Sports & Community, serving government agencies, professional sports clubs, social and affordable housing providers, and private developers.

The firm operates from eight offices across Australia (Adelaide, Melbourne, Bendigo, Brisbane, Fremantle) and the United States (Raleigh, Atlanta, Boston). It cites $12.5 billion+ in cumulative development value across 6 continents and 16 countries, alongside a notable US civic mandate—the Downtown Selma Action Plan, a $750M USD revitalization vision delivered as lead consultant with a consortium of partners. Major clients named in source material include Adelaide Football Club, UnitingSA, Essendon Football Club, Development Victoria, City of Fremantle, City of Selma, Edgewater Development Group, Housing Choices Australia, Believe Housing Australia, and Unity Housing. A dedicated thought leadership platform, City Chats, publishes themed issues, articles, and a podcast.

Revenue is generated on a project-by-project basis through professional services contracts; pricing is described as a percentage of construction value or fixed fees per engagement, with acquisition occurring through direct client engagement, proposals, and RFPs. The firm employs 11–50 staff and uses Building Information Modeling (BIM) for project delivery, with no disclosed AI/ML, software, or platform products. City Collective has no parent company, no external disclosed institutional investment, and remains founder-led, with Kearnan now leading US operations following the firm's 2024 American market entry.

Name

City Collective

Legal name

City Collective

Website

https://citycollective.com.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

City Collective is a multidisciplinary architecture and urban design firm headquartered in Adelaide, Australia, delivering integrated design services across housing, sports, and city planning sectors to governments, sports clubs, housing providers, and developers in Australia and the United States.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Architecture and Urban Design Services

NAICS

Landscape Architectural Services (54132)

akta.pro primary industry

Urban Planning & Master Planning (BPAHAKAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Urban & Regional Planning (Land Use, Zoning, Master Planning) (BPAIANAD), Master-Planned Community & POA Management (BPAJAHAD)

Keywords

• Architecture design services
• Urban design planning
• Landscape architecture
• Interior design
• City master planning

Headquarters

HQ city

Adelaide

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices8 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Professional Design Services: City Collective generates revenue through providing architecture, urban design, landscape architecture, interior design, and city planning services on a project-by-project basis. Projects range from small-scale housing developments to large stadium redevelopments and comprehensive city master plans. Revenue is project-based, typically calculated as a percentage of construction value or fixed fees for planning and design services.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

City Collective is a multidisciplinary architecture and urban design practice that delivers integrated design services across urban design, architecture, city planning, landscape architecture, and interior design. The firm operates as a one-stop design shop, organizing its work around three market sectors—Housing & Mixed-Use, Sports & Community, and Urban Design & City Planning—supported by an Economics advisory practice. Projects range from affordable housing developments and sports/community facilities to downtown renewal plans, master plans, and large-scale stadium redevelopments across Australia and the USA.

Product overview

City Collective is a multidisciplinary architecture and urban design firm operating as a 'one-stop-design-shop' that provides integrated design services across five core offerings: Urban Design, Architecture, City Planning, Landscape Architecture, and Interior Design. Their services are organized around three market sectors—Housing & Mixed-Use, Sports & Community, and Urban Design & City Planning—all supported by an Economics advisory practice. The firm delivers projects ranging from housing developments and sports facilities to master plans and public realm enhancements. Additionally, City Chats serves as the company's thought leadership platform featuring publications on urban design topics. City Collective functions as a service-based design consultancy rather than a software platform, with no individual software products or modules offered.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• City Chats: City Collective's thought leadership platform featuring themed issues, feature articles, case studies, interviews, polls, newsletters, and podcasts on the future of cities.

Products and services

• Urban Design Services

Quantifiable outcome

• $12.5 billion in development value delivered
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers17 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• Edgewater Development GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Partnered with Edgewater Development Group for the Lakeview at White Oaks master-planned community project in Laconia, New Hampshire. City Collective provided urban design services for this 11-acre, $45M USD lakeside development.
• Sekou Cooke StudiocoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Collaborated with Sekou Cooke Studio on the Downtown Selma Action Plan, bringing together urban design and planning expertise for the transformative vision to revitalize Selma's historic downtown, aligned with community needs and civil rights legacy.
• HR & A AdvisorscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Partnered with HR & A Advisors as part of the Downtown Selma Action Plan team, providing economic advisory expertise for the urban revitalization initiative.
• Toole DesignsupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Collaborated with Toole Design on the Selma Downtown Action Plan, providing transportation and active mobility design expertise.
• LISCcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Partnered with LISC (Local Initiatives Support Corporation) on the Downtown Selma Action Plan, bringing community development finance expertise to support equitable urban renewal.
• PlanningNextsupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Collaborated with PlanningNext on the Selma Downtown Action Plan, providing planning consultation services for the revitalization framework.
• Housing Choices AustraliacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Collaborated with Housing Choices Australia to develop a master plan for publicly owned assets in Adelaide's South East, focusing on the Angas/Hume residential development with sensitivity to heritage-listed items.
• Kennett BuilderscoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 January 2022Collaborated with Kennett Builders as the construction partner for the Uniting on Second affordable housing development in Bowden, SA. The project progressed from EOI and concept design through to completion.
• Food & DesirecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Partnered with Food & Desire for the Carousel & Albert Park Master Plan project in Albert Park, Victoria, a $20M AUD lakeside destination transformation.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• HASSELL: Australian-headquartered architecture and urban design firm with integrated practices across housing, sports, civic, and workplace sectors and offices in Australia, Asia, the US, and the UK. Directly comparable as a multidisciplinary design firm competing for the same marquee Australian civic, housing, and sports engagements.
• Sasaki Associates: US-based integrated design practice spanning architecture, urban planning, landscape architecture, and interior design. Closely comparable in scope, multidisciplinary model, and emphasis on community-centered planning and large master plans.
• Bates Smart: Australian architecture and urban design practice with a long track record in civic, residential, commercial, and sports projects. Comparable peer for Australian civic and housing commissions, especially in Melbourne and broader Victoria.
• Field Operations: Landscape architecture and urban design practice known for large-scale public realm and waterfront master plans. Comparable in their focus on landscape-led urban design, master planning, and civic-scale regeneration work.
• Architectus: Australian architecture, urban design, and landscape practice with offices across Australia and New Zealand. Directly comparable for the same housing, civic, and urban regeneration project profiles that City Collective pursues, particularly with government and housing authority clients.
• Populous: Global sports architecture specialist behind many AFL, NFL, and major stadium projects worldwide. Closest comparable for City Collective's Sports & Community sector work, including AFL club redevelopments and elite/community venues.

Broad incumbents

• Woods Bagot: Australian-founded global architecture practice with broad sector coverage across commercial, residential, education, and sports. A larger incumbent competing for similar large-scale, multi-discipline design commissions in Australia and the US.
• Gensler: World's largest architecture and design firm with broad practice across commercial, sports, hospitality, and urban sectors. A scaled incumbent that competes for the same high-profile civic, sports, and mixed-use commissions globally.

Emerging players

• SWA Group: Landscape architecture and urban design firm with studios across the US and Asia, focused on waterfronts, parks, and large master plans. Comparable for landscape architecture and master planning scope within City Collective's Urban Design & City Planning sector.

Others

• Arup (Cities, Planning & Design): Global engineering and design consultancy with urban planning, city strategy, and built-environment advisory practices. Adjacent peer often co-delivering on the same civic, transport, and regeneration master plans as City Collective (e.g., the Selma Downtown Action Plan partnership ecosystem).

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/_citycollective
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCCph3lQVG-phE8OJm8-F4Aw
• Facebookfacebook.com/JoinCityCollective
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/city-collective-1
• Instagraminstagram.com/city_collective

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 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 City Collective