Mayor Johnson appoints HKS Director of Integration to Dallas Environmental Commission

DALLAS — Julie Hiromoto, a Principal and Director of Integration at Dallas-based architecture and design firm HKS, will join the city’s new Environmental Commission as Mayor Eric Johnson’s citywide representative.

Mayor Johnson, who has made environmental resiliency and sustainability a top priority, nominated Hiromoto to serve on the Commission to help implement the city’s first-ever Comprehensive Environmental and Climate Action Plan. The City Council confirmed Hiromoto’s appointment in a unanimous vote Wednesday.

“My administration is committed to creating safer, cleaner, and more resilient neighborhoods in our city,” Mayor Johnson said. “Julie Hiromoto has demonstrated the passion, communication skills, and unique expertise needed to help our city meet and exceed our environmental goals. I am thrilled to have her join our efforts, and I believe she will be an excellent addition to the Environmental Commission.”

Hiromoto late last year was part of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) delegation to COP26, the United Nations Global Climate Change Conference in Glasgow.

Hiromoto has worked for HKS in New York and Dallas. HKS is a global company with more than 1,400 employees in 25 offices around the world.

“The City of Dallas has set a high bar for our community, businesses and real estate assets with the adoption of our first Comprehensive Environmental and Climate Action Plan,” Hiromoto said. “I’m so pleased to be joining this group of dedicated and concerned leaders assembled by Mayor Johnson and the City Council for this new commission. I truly believe architects and design thinkers have an important role to play in creating a more socially and environmentally responsible built environment, beyond the four walls of a building. We have an opportunity to lead on the global and national stage as part of the climate solution by holding ourselves accountable for our impact on the quality of life here in Dallas and beyond.”

The Dallas City Council voted to create the Environmental Commission in April 2021. Each City Councilmember appoints a member, and the Commission is supported by a non-voting technical advisory panel. All general public members of the Commission must have a minimum of two years of environmental experience or a minimum of two years of neighborhood environmental advocacy.

Mayor Johnson previously appointed Kathryn Bazan as the Commission’s chair. Bazan was appointed to the Commission by District 9 City Councilmember Paula Blackmon, who Mayor Johnson had appointed as chair of the City Council’s Environment & Sustainability Committee.