In the short time since he relocated from Brooklyn to San Jose in 2008, Garrett Herbert has become one of the South Bay’s most engaged citizens. The managing partner for Deloitte’s Silicon Valley practice keeps finding new ways to translate his mergers and acquisitions experience to the civic sector, connecting people and promoting organizational development in his volunteer work for nonprofit organizations. He chairs SPUR’s San Jose Board of Directors, serves as board president of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, and is an active member of a board committee for American Leadership Forum, Silicon Valley. Garrett works in downtown San Jose and lives a couple of miles away in the Willow Glen neighborhood.
How did you first become interested in cities?
I first became interested in cities growing up in suburban New Jersey. Both of my parents were born in New York City, and in my early childhood we would frequently enjoy family activities in Manhattan. In high school, I took advantage of a strong rail transit system to spend weekend days wandering around New York.
How did you first learn about SPUR?
I learned about SPUR through the Urban Catalyst Team in San Jose. The UCT was a group of senior leaders convened by 1stACT Silicon Valley that met regularly to talk about downtown issues. It included elected officials, city staff, business leaders, senior civic leaders and other urbanists. It was a network of networks that would get together to talk about urban issues ranging from activating downtown through the arts to urban design and land use challenges.
[Editor's note:The Urban Catalyst Team is now convened by SPUR and is made up of SPUR members in the architecture and urban design community who meet to discuss urban design, placemaking and the workplace of the future.]
What's your favorite city and why?
My favorite city is New York. I lived near or in New York for over 35 years. My fundament love for New York is the energy: Everything happens there at an extreme. Walking out of one’s apartment feels like the doorstep to the world.
Favorite view?
The Bay Area has many of my favorite views; it has a great balance of the natural and the man-made. A few that come to mind include the view of San Francisco from Marin, the view from Buena Vista Park in San Francisco and the view of Silicon Valley from the Mountain Winery at night.
Favorite book/work of art/film about cities?
One of my favorite openings of a movie is Woody Allen’s Manhattan. The opening few minutes captures the city in black and white, with Gershwin playing and Allen delivering a handful of failed attempts to express his love for the city.