OUR STAFF

• Owen Byrd, President
• Shelley Ratay, Acquisition and Development Consultant
• Patrick Brock, Outreach and Property Manager
• Deana Link, Office and Property Manager

Owen Byrd founded Byrd Development in 2002 to support his increasing development activities, which began in partnership with architect Tony Carrasco in 2000. He performs or supervises all of the company’s development and property management activities and personally provides the company’s consulting services.

Prior to establishing Byrd Development, Mr. Byrd practiced land use, real estate, environmental and municipal law, representing some of the largest infill developers in Silicon Valley. He began his career in a variety of staff positions with political campaigns and nonprofit groups, including serving as Policy Director and Attorney for Greenbelt Alliance, the Bay Area’s leading land conservation and urban planning organization.

Mr. Byrd’s community service history includes serving as chair of the Palo Alto Planning Commission, chair of the Housing Action Coalition of Silicon Valley, member of the Palo Alto Community Development Block Grant Committee, the Santa Clara County Transportation Task Force, the boards of numerous nonprofits, the Palo Alto Weekly's Board of Contributors and host of Border Crossings, a regional public affairs television program.

Mr. Byrd holds a B.A. in Political Science (Phi Beta Kappa) from Colorado College and a J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School.

Shelley Ratay joined Byrd Development in 2005 to manage the firm's day-to-day development activities.

Prior to joining Byrd Development, Ms. Ratay managed land acquisitions for the Trust for Public Land, helping to purchase and conserve for recreational enjoyment nearly 3,000 acres of scenic lands along California's central coast. She has also held project management and consulting roles at Lenders for Community Development in San Jose, Conservation International in Washington, D.C. and Industrial Economics in Cambridge, MA.

Ms. Ratay holds an M.B.A. and Certificate of Public Management from Stanford University's Graduate School of Business and a B.A. (Magna Cum Laude) from Brown University. She has earned LEED Professional Accreditation from the U.S. Green Building Council and is a member of the Urban Land Institute and the Nonprofit Housing Association of Northern California. Ms. Ratay provides pro-bono consulting services to Bay Area nonprofit organizations through Stanford's Alumni Consulting Team.

Patrick Brock is a community outreach specialist, permit expediter and property manager with deep experience in public communications, event production and facilities management. He provides services to clients via Brock & Co.

Mr. Brock is also a partner in Brock & Mendoza restaurant and operates Brock Plaza, a small-business incubator. He has previously operated other retail businesses.

Since 1992, he has helped to found and lead numerous non-profit organizations in East Palo Alto, including: Free at Last, a substance abuse recovery center; Plugged In, a technology access center; and Start-Up, a business training and support center for entrepreneurs.

Deana Link is responsible for all financial, administrative and property management for Byrd Development.

She has previous experience as a property manager at Pellarin Construction Group and as an office manager and billing specialist for Bottom Line Billing. Ms. Link has also held multiple positions at Hughes Airwest Airlines. She earned a secretarial degree from Heald Business College.

Ms. Link actively supports a variety of youth and community development nonprofits. She has volunteered with Odd Fellows for more than 30 years, raising funds for the organization's youth camp, and is co-coordinator of East Palo Alto Children's Day.