Kansas State University

MANHATTAN -- A Kansas State University architecture professor has been recognized for his work with students to revitalize downtown Kansas City, Mo.

Vladimir Krstic, a professor in the College of Architecture, Planning & Design who serves as director of the Kansas City Design Center, or KCDC, has received the Urban Hero award from the Downtown Council of Kansas City. The council is a nonprofit membership organization committed to the revitalization and resurgence of Kansas City's downtown. Its Urban Hero award recognizes small businesses and individuals who are passionate about making downtown a more vibrant place to live, work and play.

As director of the Kansas City Design Center, Krstic focuses student research and design efforts in coordination with civic organizations, leaders and design professionals on helping realize the design future of Kansas City. The center has been recognized nationally and regionally for its projects and publications.

"This recognition of Vladimir's leadership is testament to his passion for design, his qualities as a teacher and mentor, and his overall belief in the potency of visioning the future of Kansas City," said Tim de Noble, dean of Kansas State University's College of Architecture, Planning & Design. "I'm am so pleased to see Vladimir, and by extension, his students, recognized for all the qualities that have long made him one of our finest faculty members."

As center director, Krstic engages university faculty and some of the region's most talented architecture and planning students in a learning laboratory that actively explores alternatives for Kansas City's future development. The center also serves as an independent forum for critical dialogues about architecture and planning issues, offers technical assistance to public agencies and local community organizations, and promotes excellence in the design of Kansas City's built environment. The center's educational programs are built around its resident urban design studio, through which faculty and students form partnerships with local client groups to develop design concepts and implementation proposals addressing major architectural, urban design and urban planning issues throughout metropolitan Kansas City.

"Though the award may be in my name, it is a testament to the talent, ability and perseverance of the KCDC students I taught. Without them, the success of the program and its contribution to the improvement of urban environment in Kansas City would not have been possible," Krstic said.

Krstic has taught at the center since 2009. He was named interim director in 2011 and was named director in July 2012. Since joining the center, Krstic has led several student award-winning projects, including the "Independence Avenue Urban Vision Study" that won an Honor Award from the Kansas City chapter of the American Institute of Architects in fall 2013.

More information on the Downtown Council of Kansas City's Urban Hero awards is available at http://www.downtownkc.org/about/get-involved/downtown-kc-awards/urban-heroes.

A faculty member of Kansas State University's College of Architecture, Planning & Design, or APDesign, since 1988, Krstic was promoted to full professor in 2002. He earned an Engineer of Architecture degree from the University of Sarajevo in Bosnia -- formerly Yugoslavia -- and a Master of Engineering in architecture from Kyoto University in Japan.