Rick Rybeck, Founder

As an attorney with a master’s degree in real estate and urban development, Rick Rybeck's success in devising and implementing new policy directions lies in his ability to listen and understand stakeholder concerns. Assured that their views and concerns are valued, stakeholders can relinquish their grip on the status quo and collaborate on problem-solving. He uses humor and stories to illustrate economic ideas. This helps people think about old problems in new ways. 

Rybeck established Just Economics, LLC, in 2009 to assist communities in promoting job creation, affordable housing, transportation efficiency, and sustainable economic development. Among other things, Just Economics:

• serves as a subject-matter expert for the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Every Day Counts program regarding infrastructure funding;
• leads classes, workshops, and webinars on re-engineering taxes and fees to integrate infrastructure investments with land use objectives to promote job creation, affordable housing, and sustainable development;
• advises clients about the establishment of fair, efficient, and equitable infrastructure funding mechanisms for new and existing communities;
• advised UN Habitat about an infrastructure funding guidebook for local officials;
• prepared a report for the DC Tax Revision Commission regarding infrastructure funding;
• assisted in the update of the Anacostia Waterfront Initiative Transportation Plan;
• prepared a report for The Brookings Institution on congestion mitigation; and
• prepared a report for the Montgomery Housing Partnership about retaining affordable housing near proposed Purple Line transit stations; 

Prior to founding Just Economics, Rybeck spent 12 years as the Deputy Associate Director for Transportation Policy & Planning at the District of Columbia Department of Transportation. In this capacity, he:

•  facilitated private landowner funding for a new Metrorail transit station. See “Using Value Capture to Finance Infrastructure and Encourage Compact Development.”
• helped design and implement a performance-based parking pricing program in the area surrounding a new baseball stadium. With many games set to begin at the end of evening rush hour, many people predicted a parking and traffic disaster. Rybeck drafted legislation and regulations to encourage transit use, avoid gridlock around the new ballpark, and preserve curbside parking for neighborhood businesses.
• designed and implemented a public-private partnership with car-sharing companies to provide limited curbside parking designated for car-sharing vehicles to increase the visibility of these parking spaces and educate the public about car-sharing services.
  

             To accomplish this, Rybeck:

• drafted regulations to designate curbside space for car-sharing purposes. To get buy-in, 
• attended numerous public meetings and addressed concerns of residents and businesses, including the two competing car-sharing companies; and 
• drafted contracts, pursuant to the promulgated regulation, establishing the conditions under which car sharing companies could avail themselves of these curbside spaces.

In 1997, Rybeck was selected as a member of the inaugural class of the George Washington University Center for Excellence in Municipal Management (now known as the Center for Excellence in Public Leadership). Rybeck earned a certified public manager degree after completing this year-long program. 

Earlier, Rybeck was a legislative assistant to the Honorable Hilda H.M. Mason on the Council of the District of Columbia. Among other accomplishments, Rybeck:

• drafted the Clean Air Compliance Fee Act (CACFA) which placed a pollution management and mitigation fee on all free commuter parking. 
• organized a grassroots campaign to support this legislation. The Council enacted CACFA and the Mayor signed it in 1995.
• negotiated a local funding agreement between the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority and the District of Columbia.

Rybeck also authored Meeting America’s Housing Needs, published by the Conference on Alternative State and Local Policies in 1982. Rybeck received training in conflict resolution and prejudice reduction from the National Coalition Building Institute. 

For more information about Just Economics’ founder, Rick Rybeck, click here to download a copy of his resume.