About Us

Nicole advocates and strategizes for business to ensure the best results for her real estate clients. From regulatory challenges to development projects, Nicole specializes in a comprehensive advocacy approach and is known for integrating community outreach, communication with elected officials and community leaders, and honesty backed up by evidentiary support, to ensure a positive and desired result.

Nicole practiced Land Use Law at major law firms in Los Angeles for 13 years before going into consulting. Her practice included management and entitlement of highly-visible and controversial development projects; plan approvals, modifications, and compliance with existing entitlements; strategic advice; managing teams of consultants on large scale land use projects; and California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) compliance and review. She was integral in the entitlement of a large project in Beverly Hills, including a five-star hotel and luxury residential units, and has worked on a variety of projects including shopping centers, museums, hotels, Coastal visitor-serving uses, and residential projects. Several of her projects have survived CEQA challenge or referendum efforts.

Nicole specializes in historic preservation and related issues, and has also worked on numerous projects subject to the jurisdiction of the California Coastal Commission and successfully settled a Coastal Commission appeal against a Malibu shopping center. Nicole has worked on numerous regulatory approval processes required for different land uses across the region and is often brought in to work with neighbors to gain approval and/or settlement of difficult issues. Nicole also specializes in resolving regulatory conflicts for private businesses.

Nicole founded her current consulting practice after selling her public affairs firm, Collaborate, to private equity in 2024. She has become best-known for establishing strategies related to land use, planning, and settlement. She has established numerous thoughtful and diverse community outreach programs and strategies for government and private entities. She has created detailed outreach programming working with community partners, diverse stakeholders, and harder-to-reach communities. Nicole is also an expert facilitator, using her skills to obtain important information about how ideas impact communities. Nicole’s strategy expertise extends beyond traditional lines to include community outreach, legal knowledge, detailed communication concepts, and traditional campaign methods.

Nicole graduated from the University of California, Berkeley and Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, DC. She is a lecturer at the University of Southern California, where she teaches Planning Law and Entitlement at the Sol Price School of Public Policy and the Lusk Center for Real Estate, and has guest lectured at Temple University and UCLA School of Law. She is also a published author, having authored a guest chapter in “Public Relations in Practice” by Professor Kate Kurtin at California State University, Los Angeles. Nicole is a licensed real estate broker and a tired Girl Scout Leader. She lives in Los Angeles with her two amazing children and rescue labs, Sal and Gidget.