Dick Carlisle is named a Fellow of the American Institute of Certified Planners
Richard “Dick” Carlisle has been inducted into the AICP College of Fellows, the highest honor bestowed by the American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP). He is one of 53 planning professionals and educators across the country chosen in 2020 for the biannual honor.
“Over many decades (Dick) has expanded the scope of the profession in ways meaningful both to his colleagues and to officials and residents in many communities throughout the state,” said nominator Norman Tyler, an AICP Fellow. “Dick has developed plans and regulations that brought new life to established communities and shaped growing communities in sustainable ways that consciously served the best interests of people, businesses, the environment and the economy.”
The honor is based on the accomplishments Dick achieved in his 47 years in the planning profession and his service to the profession.
Service to the profession
In 1990, Michigan had two planning organizations, one for lay planners and the other for professionals. Dick helped bring the two organizations together under one umbrella, the Michigan Association of Planning. He served as president of the merged body and supported four other CWA planners as MAP presidents or APA board members.
Dick has been an expert witness in more than 120 land use cases. He served as a technical advisor to the governor’s Land Use Leadership Council and currently is retained by the Michigan attorney general as an expert witness regarding native American ancestral homelands.
He has conducted more than 150 educational workshops, and authored articles for state and national professional journals.
Dick was one of the first professional planners to conduct planning commission basic training workshops in Michigan. The Michigan Municipal League uses CWA professionals to train local officials in planning, zoning and economic development.
Dick is outspoken against legislative initiatives that remove local control of planning and zoning, most recently opposing statewide legislation that prohibited local regulation of short-term rentals.
Planning accomplishments
Dick developed the master plan and zoning ordinance for Cherry Hill Village in Canton which remains the largest neotraditional new town in Michigan. He co-chaired “Re-Imagine Washtenaw,” a four-community coalition to redesign the aging, auto-oriented corridor connecting Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti. He pioneered a new approach to master planning for the city of Troy then led that city to form-based solutions along its Big Beaver corridor, resulting in $35 million in new tax base.
Dick early on recognized the effects our aging population will have for planners. He helped Macomb County develop its prescient, 2008 plan for aging and was the keynote speaker for Oakland County’s 2015 aging in places conference.
As the president of Carlisle|Wortman Associates, Dick has inspired and guided staff to innovate in the disciplines of sustainability and environmental stewardship, technology and community and economic development.