CWA staff includes three past presidents of the Michigan Association of Planning

Carlisle/Wortman Associates is home to three past presidents of the Michigan Association of Planning: Dick Carlisle, Dave Scurto and Paul Montagno.CWA President Dick Carlisle served on the MAP board from 1995 to 2002 and as president in 2000 and 2001. During that time, the Michigan Society of Planning Officials (MSPO), an organization of citizen planners -- planning commissioners and zoning board members – merged with the Michigan chapter of the American Planning Association, which represented professional planners.“I was vice president during the merger negotiations then became the first president of the newly merged organization, facing the challenges of that blended board,” Carlisle said.Dave Scurto was on the board from 2004 to 2011, serving as president in 2009-2010.“The merged organizations had remarkable resources,” Scurto said. “We had 5,000 dues-paying members. We had a full time executive director and other staff. We were and are one of the largest chapters of the American Planning Association, which has helped give us a greater voice with APA.” During Scurto’s tenure, the MAP board extended its outreach, including a multi-day member event in Sault Ste. Marie and the creation of a social equity committee to encourage communities to make sure their plans are fair and just for all.Paul Montago began his service to MAP prior to joining Carlisle/Wortman this year. He’s been on the board since 2010 and was president in 2013-2014.“MAP establishes land use policies that members can use to inform and guide their plans,” Montagno said. “During my tenure on the board we worked hard to close the loop between MAP policies and our legislative advocacy. We also dove deep into the often fractious relationship between planners and real estate developers, resulting in some valuable sessions at MAP’s spring and fall conferences.”“No other Michigan planning firm has three MAP past presidents on staff,” said the organization’s executive director, Andrea Brown, “But Carlisle/Wortman’s service to our organization goes far beyond this unique record. They are an elevated corporate member of the association, sponsoring our events and providing training and conference speakers and editorial content for our publications. We deeply appreciate all they do for the organization.”