Principals

Mr. Phillips joined the firm in 1977 and became its managing principal in 1983. In addition to his land use planning and master plan work, Mr. Phillips directs Phillips Preiss’ real estate, redevelopment and condemnation-related assignments. For over 30 years, he has served as the planning consultant to various municipal boards and governing bodies, and has also obtained approvals for hundreds of private development projects.

As a highly regarded expert witness, Mr. Phillips displays an outstanding knowledge of New Jersey zoning, redevelopment and condemnation law. He has testified on numerous occasions as an expert in New Jersey Superior Court and was the planning witness in several landmark rulings by the Appellate Division/Supreme Court. Mr. Phillips is widely recognized as one of New Jersey’s prominent redevelopment planners, advising such public sector clients as Bloomfield, Fort Lee, Hoboken, Millburn, Montclair, Morristown, Newark and Woodbridge, New Jersey. He has been a featured panelist on redevelopment issues, including recent case law, at conferences organized by the New Jersey Chapter of the American Planning Association, New Jersey Future and the New Jersey League of Municipalities.  His work has won awards from the NJ Chapter of the American Planning Association, New Jersey Future, New Jersey Planning Officials and Downtown New Jersey.  Mr. Phillips has a master’s degree in urban planning from Hunter College.

Mr. Grygiel joined the firm in 2000 and became a principal in 2002. He specializes in comprehensive and neighborhood planning, development review and zoning analysis. Mr. Grygiel is an experienced expert witness who has appeared before planning and zoning boards in over 150 municipalities throughout New Jersey, as well as in Superior Court. He also regularly presents at planning conferences and seminars, and is a member of the New Jersey Planning Officials' Board of Planning Advisors.

Mr. Grygiel directed the preparation of the City of Hoboken Master Plan, which won the New Jersey Chapter of the American Planning Association (APA-NJ) Outstanding Comprehensive Plan Award. His recent projects include preparation of a master plan update for North Bergen, New Jersey, zoning amendments for New Milford, New Jersey and Roslyn, New York, and redevelopment studies and plans for Fort Lee, New Jersey. He also is the consulting planner for multiple municipalities and has reviewed complex development applications on behalf of land use boards in municipalities including West Orange, New Jersey and Mineola, New York. Mr. Grygiel received a Master of Regional Planning degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a Bachelor of Arts in Urban Studies from Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey.

Ms. Leheny joined Phillips Preiss in March 2005. Ms. Leheny has expertise in master planning, zoning, affordable housing compliance, expert testimony, redevelopment, and historic preservation. In addition to private sector work on behalf of developers, Ms. Leheny has also worked as a consulting planner for a number of municipalities throughout New Jersey providing services such as development review, writing of master plans and zoning ordinances, and affordable housing compliance. Ms. Leheny authored historic preservation plans for the City of Bethlehem, PA and Fort Monmouth, worked on an overhaul of the zoning code for the City of Newark and prepared studies and plans for redevelopment sites in Fort Lee, Netcong, and Cranbury. She is the co-author of the Fort Monmouth land use rules and has worked closely with FMERA on the redevelopment of the former fort. Ms. Leheny holds an M.S. in Historic Preservation from Columbia University and a Master of City Planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Ms. Keller joined Phillips Preiss as a planner in 2012, became an associate principal in 2020, and became a principal at the end of 2021. She is experienced in local zoning review and land use planning, and has a comprehensive academic background that includes economic development, real estate market analysis, and site planning skills. Ms. Keller, whose work with Phillips Preiss has included preparation of redevelopment studies, reviewing development applications and advising planning and zoning boards, is a licensed Professional Planner in New Jersey and a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners. She holds a master’s degree in planning with a concentration in urban development from the University of Pennsylvania, from where she also earned an undergraduate degree.

Mr. Preiss joined the firm in 1981 and served as a partner from 1984 until his retirement in 2021. In his 40 year career at the firm, Mr. Preiss became a highly regarded expert in the field of land use planning working for both public and private sector clients.  In 2012 the New Jersey Planning Officials recognized Mr. Preiss’ contribution to the planning profession by awarding him the Achievement in Planning Award.  He also found time to co-author the Illustrated Book of Development Definitions (4th edition), which is the authoritative resource on planning and zoning terms for planning, development, and design professionals.