Fighting Blight: Tools for Reclaiming Our Communities 2026

Jaime Perez is the Executive Director at Berks County Redevelopment Authority. Education and professional development encompass construction management, building systems design, community planning, and drafting technology. Studies at Pennsylvania State University–Penn State Berks focused on Construction Management, including Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe), Lean Agile principles, Agile Release Trains (ART), and Program Increment (PI) Planning. Additional coursework in Building Systems: Design and Construction emphasized building systems design, systems implementation, facilities and site management, code compliance, and construction management. Further professional education was completed through Albright College’s Center for Excellence in Local Government, earning Master Planner certification with concentrations in land use, zoning administration, subdivision and land development ordinances (SALDO), community planning, and the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code (MPC). An Associate of Science degree in CAD/CADD Drafting and Design Technology was earned from Pennsylvania College of Technology (1999–2002), providing a strong foundation in computer-aided design (CAD), drafting, and technical design practices.

David Barr is the director of Community Development with the City of Reading. Prior to joining the City of Reading he spent almost 28 years at the U.S. Department of State in various positions. He is an accomplished engineer, planner, facility and construction manager. Highly organized with global and high threat experience and proven skills managing master planning, site acquisition planning, construction, design, consulting, facilities and product management. A team builder with experience managing in-person, telework, remote, and hybrid environments. He received his B.A. from the University of Maryland.

John H. Rushford is a Senior Attorney in Cafardi Ferguson + Wyrick’s Municipal, Labor & Employment, Real Estate and Litigation Groups. John has over 20 years of experience representing school districts and municipal governments in all areas including special education, due process hearings and federal court litigation. On May 7th, 2020, John was elected to the Council of the Pennsylvania Bar Education Law Section. At CF+W John represents public and private entities in matters related to governmental affairs including: contract negotiations; grievance arbitrations; personnel matters; construction issues; tax assessment appeals; zoning; planning; and development issues. John has litigated a number of employment and civil rights claims in federal and state courts and administrative proceedings. His passion is in helping clients avoid liability issues before they give rise to expensive and protracted litigation. In addition, to his municipal practice, John is an advocate on special education issues serving as counsel for both school districts and parents throughout the state. John’s experience and achievements include:

• Bringing the first ever conservatorship under the Abandoned and Blighted Property Conservatorship Act. (Act 135 of 2008) in Allegheny County;
• Obtaining a defense verdict for a school district in gender discrimination suit.
• Successfully defending a validity challenge for a local municipality under the Fair Housing Act.;
• Frequent lecturer across the state on municipal and school law related issues.

John is an active member in the Pennsylvania and American Bar Associations. He earned his B.A. from Boston College and his J.D. from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law. He previously served as vice chair of the Shadylane Preschool board of directors and is a former member of the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh Family Forum Board. John is currently serving a 4 year term on the PACE School Board of Directors and is also a member of the Board of Trustees for the Provident Charter School. The PCS specializes in service to children with dyslexia.

Ms. Turnbull is a Partner at Weiss Burkardt Kramer LLC, where she works with municipalities and school districts in the role of Solicitor, Labor Counsel and Special Counsel. Megan is an experienced municipal solicitor. She has a particular focus on blight and redevelopment where she seeks creative, sustainable solutions to improve communities. She has served as Special Blight Counsel to Allegheny County communities and to the Congress of Neighboring Communities (CONNECT), offering training and legal representation. Megan has been named a 2023 Pennsylvania Super Lawyers in the areas of municipal and school law. She currently serves as the Chair of the PBA Municipal Law Section. Megan is a member of the Allegheny County Bar Association, where she has served as the Chair of the School and Municipal Section and the Political Action Committee. She is a Fellow to the Allegheny Bar Foundation and a member of the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy Board of Directors. Megan is admitted to practice in the Courts of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, and the United States Supreme Court. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Penn State University, and her Juris Doctor from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law in 2004.

Mr. Flenner is a Vice President, Corporate Counsel, and Facility Security Officer with Gannett Fleming, Inc., a global infrastructure consulting firm based in Camp Hill that specializes in natural resources, transportation, water, power and facility-related projects. He focuses on professional services agreements, compliance with industrial security requirements, occupational safety and real estate matters, and advising engineers, architects, and other design professionals with respect to the legal aspects of their services. Prior to joining Gannett Fleming, Mr. Flenner was an associate with High Swartz LLP in Norristown, where he concentrated his practice on matters associated with the built and natural environments, with a particular emphasis on land use and municipal law. In addition to his legal career, Mr. Flenner is a retired Captain with the U.S. Navy Civil Engineer Corps. His Navy experience includes operational assignments with the Naval Construction Force (Seabees) and staff assignments with the Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) in Washington, DC, including Deputy Chief of Staff. Mr. Flenner has commanded a naval construction battalion, coordinated battle damage repair in Fallujah, Iraq, and directed environmental programs at installations in Philadelphia and Mechanicsburg. He received his J.D. from the Pennsylvania State University, an M.S. in Civil Engineering from the University of Illinois, and a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering degree from the University of Delaware. Mr. Flenner is a past Chair of the Pennsylvania Bar Association Municipal Law Section, a Registered Professional Engineer in Pennsylvania and Delaware, a credentialed Envision Sustainability professional with the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure, and a Registered Environmental Manager with the National Registry of Environmental Professionals.

Ms. London is a Shareholder with the firm of Kozloff Stoudt, Professional Corporation in Berks County, PA, practicing in the areas of municipal law, land use, employment law, and appellate practice. Born in Philadelphia, she is a graduate of Villanova University, with a BA and MA in Political Science, and a J.D. from The Dickinson School of Law in Carlisle. Ms. London is a member of the Berks County and Pennsylvania Bar Associations (PBA). She is past Chair of the Municipal Law Section of the PBA and served as a member of the PBA House of Delegates. Ms. London served as President of the Berks County Bar Association in 2018, served as its Treasurer from 2003 to 2006, and now serves as Co-Chair of its Municipal/Education/Environmental/Real Estate Section. Ms. London has planned and taught seminars and appeared in programs offered by the Pennsylvania Bar Institute, the Pennsylvania State Association of Boroughs, the Albright College Center for Excellence in Local Government, the Berks County Bar Association, the Society for Human Resources Management, the PA Association of Sewage Enforcement Officers, the Pennsylvania Planning Association, and the Pennsylvania Housing Alliance. These programs have addressed topics including validity challenges to land use ordinances, zoning for agricultural preservation, the Sunshine Act, the Right to Know Law, wage and hour law, employment discrimination, ethics for professional land use planners, administrative search warrants, and blighted property remediation. Ms. London authored the chapter titled “Meetings and Records” for the Solicitor’s Handbook published by the Governor’s Center for Local Government Services of the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development, and co-authored a cover article for the May-June 2013 issue of The Pennsylvania Lawyer magazine titled “Emerging from the Red: What to do About Municipalities In Financial Trouble.”  She is a regular contributor to the Berks County Bar Association quarterly magazine, The Berks Barrister.