UPLAND

What UPLAND does

UPLAND Planning + Design Studio is a professional services consultancy founded in 2014 and headquartered in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The firm operates as a multi-disciplinary planning, urban design, landscape architecture, GIS analytics, and community engagement practice, self-described as the largest planning consultancy in Atlantic Canada, serving municipal governments, First Nations communities, and private developers across Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Newfoundland, and selectively in British Columbia. The team of approximately 15-20 includes planners, urban designers, GIS analysts, landscape architects, and engagement coordinators, with leadership held by Partners Steffen Käubler and Ian Watson.

The firm delivers six interconnected service lines — Planning Services (municipal planning strategies, land use bylaws, community plans, active transportation, accessibility plans), Design Services (urban design, streetscapes, waterfronts), Parks and Trails (park design, trail planning, wayfinding), Landscape Architecture (residential, commercial, public projects), Mapping + Data Services (GIS analytics, spatial and demographic analysis), and Engagement Services (stakeholder consultation, workshops, participatory planning). Core technical differentiators are context-sensitive planning grounded in local character and community-led participatory processes that have earned the firm over a dozen awards from bodies including the Canadian Institute of Planners, Atlantic Planners Institute, and Canadian Society of Landscape Architects.

UPLAND generates revenue through fee-for-service professional consulting engagements with government and municipal clients, acquired via direct relationships, public procurement (RFP) processes, and reputation-based referrals. The firm executes projects — typically spanning months to years — through both solo delivery and teaming arrangements with engineering, architecture, design, sustainability, and cultural heritage partners (e.g., CBCL Limited, Crandall Engineering, RHAD Architects, Breakhouse, O2). Distribution is regional and direct-sales led, and the firm has no disclosed funding, public listing, or external investors.

Name

UPLAND

Legal name

UPLAND Planning + Design Studio

Website

https://uplandstudio.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

UPLAND Planning + Design Studio is a Halifax-based professional services consultancy providing planning, urban design, landscape architecture, GIS analytics, and community engagement services to municipalities, First Nations, and private developers across Atlantic Canada.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Urban Planning and Design Services

NAICS

Landscape Architectural Services (541320)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAHAKAD

Urban Planning & Master Planning

Business & Public Services/Professional Services (Legal, Accounting, Consulting)/Architecture, Design & Planning Services

SECONDARYBPAHAKAC

Landscape Architecture & Site Design

Business & Public Services/Professional Services (Legal, Accounting, Consulting)/Architecture, Design & Planning Services

SECONDARYBPAHAKAE

Regional & Land Use Planning

Business & Public Services/Professional Services (Legal, Accounting, Consulting)/Architecture, Design & Planning Services

SECONDARYBPAHAKAO

Community Engagement & Participatory Planning

Business & Public Services/Professional Services (Legal, Accounting, Consulting)/Architecture, Design & Planning Services

Keywords

• Urban planning services
• Landscape architecture design
• Community engagement consulting
• Municipal planning strategy
• GIS analytics mapping

Headquarters

HQ city

Halifax

HQ country

Canada

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

Revenue model

1. Professional Planning and Design Consulting Services: Fee-for-service professional consulting engagements for municipal planning, urban design, landscape architecture, and community engagement services. Projects typically span several months to years with government and municipal clients.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

UPLAND Planning + Design Studio is an award-winning planning and design consultancy that delivers professional planning, urban design, landscape architecture, GIS analytics, and public engagement services to municipalities, First Nations, and private developers. The firm produces comprehensive planning documents (e.g., municipal planning strategies, land use bylaws, community plans, active transportation and accessibility plans), urban and landscape design frameworks for public spaces and waterfronts, and participatory engagement programs that support community-led decision-making across Atlantic Canada.

Product overview

UPLAND Planning + Design Studio is an award-winning planning and design consultancy serving Atlantic Canadian communities. The company offers a unified portfolio of six interconnected service areas: Planning Services (municipal planning strategies, land use bylaws, community plans, active transportation plans, accessibility plans), Design Services (urban design, streetscapes, waterfronts), Parks and Trails (park design, trail planning, wayfinding), Landscape Architecture (residential, commercial, public projects), Mapping + Data Services (GIS analytics, spatial analysis), and Engagement Services (public consultation, community outreach). These services are delivered as integrated professional consulting offerings rather than as modular software products, with the company collaborating with municipalities, communities, and multi-disciplinary teams to develop locally-appropriate planning and design solutions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Planning Services Comprehensive planning services for municipalities and communities, including municipal planning strategies, land use bylaws, community plans, comprehensive community plans, growth management strategies, active transportation plans, and accessibility plans.
• Design Services Urban design and landscape architecture services for public spaces, streetscapes, waterfronts, parks, and trails delivered for municipalities, developers, and private clients.
• Parks and Trails Design and planning services for parks, trails, recreation facilities, and outdoor public spaces, including trail planning, wayfinding, and signage systems such as the Bicycle Nova Scotia Wayfinding System.
• Landscape Architecture Professional landscape architecture services for residential, commercial, and public projects, including master planning, detailed design, and construction administration (e.g., Purdy's Wharf Park for GWL Realty).
• Mapping + Data Services GIS analytics and mapping services providing spatial analysis, demographic analysis, and data visualization to support planning decisions and engagement processes.
• Engagement Services Public engagement and community consultation services including stakeholder interviews, workshops, surveys, and participatory planning processes such as the Project Lunenburg engagement that involved over 400 participants.

Quantifiable outcome

• Project Lunenburg Comprehensive Community Plan adopted November 2020; MPS and LUB adopted July 2021
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

18 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• BreakhousecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDesign firm collaborating on multiple projects including Purdy's Wharf Park and Stratford Waterfront Core Area Plan. Breakhouse brings design expertise to UPLAND's planning and landscape architecture projects.
• Turner Drake & PartnerscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPlanning and real estate consultancy partnering on Project Lunenburg, Region of Queens, and other comprehensive planning projects.
• CBCL LimitedcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEngineering and planning firm collaborating on multiple projects including Stratford Waterfront, Halifax Centre Plan, Project Lunenburg, Charlottetown Growth Strategy, Inverness Growth Management, Plan Cumberland, and Potlotek First Nation projects.
• RHAD ArchitectscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerArchitecture firm collaborating on Antigonish Accessibility Plan, Halifax Common Revitalization, Stratford Community Campus, Inverness Central Avenue, and Sparwood Recreation projects.
• Crandall EngineeringcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerEngineering firm collaborating on Active Kings County AT Plan, Peninsula South Complete Streets, and Rothesay Secondary Plan projects.
• REConsulting GroupminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerRecreation consulting firm collaborating on Sparwood 2030 Recreation Plan and Shediac Recreation Plan.
• Economic Growth SolutionsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTourism and economic development consultancy collaborating on Fundy Discovery Site Development Plan.
• ViridisminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEnvironmental consulting firm partnering on Recreation Assets and Gap Analysis project for Southeast Regional Service Commission.
• O2minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSustainability consultancy collaborating on Halifax Centre Plan project.
• IBI GroupminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerEngineering and technology firm collaborating on Bedford Highway Functional Plan.
• SHS ConsultingminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerAffordable housing consultancy collaborating on Akoma Housing Needs Assessment.
• rma tourismminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTourism marketing agency collaborating on Cape d'Or Development Plan.
• EnglobeminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerEngineering and environmental firm collaborating on Peninsula South Complete Streets and Inverness Central Avenue projects.
• RVAminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerArchitecture and design firm (now part of EXP) collaborating on Inverness Central Avenue Detailed Design.
• Wendy Shearer Cultural Heritage ConsultingminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerCultural heritage consultant collaborating on Project Lunenburg and Halifax Common Revitalization projects.
• Mélanie Morin TranslationminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerTranslation services for developing bilingual (English/French) planning documents for Rural Municipality of Wellington.
• LaMeia ReddickminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerCommunity engagement facilitator collaborating on East Preston Active Transportation Plan and Akoma Housing Needs Assessment.
• NationalminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPlanning consultancy collaborating on Halifax Centre Plan.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• WSP Global: Global professional services firm with a substantial planning, urban design, and landscape architecture practice. WSP competes for larger municipal planning contracts and offers the kind of multi-disciplinary delivery (engineering + planning + environment) that UPLAND assembles via sub-consultants.
• Dillon Consulting: Canadian-owned multi-disciplinary consulting firm with a planning and urban design practice. Dillon competes with UPLAND for municipal planning mandates across Canada and offers broader engineering and environmental capability as part of a national footprint.
• IBI Group (Arcadis IBI): International architecture, planning, and technology firm (now part of Arcadis) with a strong Canadian planning practice. IBI Group collaborated with UPLAND on the Bedford Highway Functional Plan and competes for municipal planning mandates nationally.
• Stantec: Global design and consulting firm with significant urban planning, landscape architecture, and community development practices. Stantec is a broad incumbent competing for municipal and First Nations planning work in Canada.

Direct peers

• The Planning Partnership: Canadian urban planning and design consultancy with a similar size and service profile to UPLAND. The Planning Partnership delivers municipal plans, urban design, and landscape architecture across Ontario and represents the kind of mid-sized direct peer UPLAND competes against outside Atlantic Canada.
• CBCL Limited: Atlantic Canadian engineering and planning firm headquartered in Halifax. CBCL Limited is UPLAND's most direct peer — both deliver municipal planning, urban design, and landscape architecture across the same Atlantic Canada market, and the firms actively co-deliver projects (Stratford Waterfront, Halifax Centre Plan, Project Lunenburg, Potlotek First Nation, Charlottetown Growth Strategy).
• Hemson Consulting: Canadian planning and land economics consultancy with a long-standing municipal and provincial planning practice. Hemson is comparable to UPLAND in scope (planning strategy, growth management, land use policy) and represents a similar-sized direct peer in Ontario/Canadian markets.
• DTAH (DuToit Allsopp Hillier): Canadian planning, urban design, and landscape architecture firm. DTAH delivers comprehensive community plans, urban design frameworks, and landscape architecture for municipalities — closely matching UPLAND's integrated service offering and serving as a comparable direct peer.
• Turner Drake & Partners: Atlantic Canadian planning and real estate consultancy. Turner Drake is a direct peer to UPLAND's municipal and regional planning practice, and the two firms partner on Project Lunenburg, Region of Queens, and other comprehensive planning engagements.

Emerging players

• NAK Design Strategies: Canadian landscape architecture and planning firm with comparable scale and public-sector focus. NAK Design Strategies competes for landscape architecture and public realm work and represents an emerging peer that overlaps with UPLAND's design services.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/uplandstudio
• Facebookfacebook.com/uplandstudio
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/upland-planning-design-studio
• Instagraminstagram.com/upland_studio

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles15 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 UPLAND