October 2025: Community Planning Month

WHEREAS, change is constant and affects all cities, towns, suburbs, counties, townships, rural areas, and other places; and,

WHEREAS, planners can help navigate this change with data-driven insights and expertise that provide better choices for how people work and live; and,

WHEREAS, community planning provides an opportunity for all residents to be meaningfully involved in making choices that determine the future of their community; and,

WHEREAS, the full benefits of planning require public elected and appointed officials who understand, support, and demand excellence in planning and plan implementation; and,

WHEREAS, the month of October is designated as National Community Planning Month throughout the United States of America and its territories, and,

WHEREAS, the American Planning Association endorses National Community Planning Month as an opportunity to highlight how planning is essential to every community, and how planners are uniquely positioned to identify solutions to communities’ most difficult housing, transportation, and land use questions, and,

WHEREAS, the celebration of National Community Planning Month gives us the opportunity to publicly recognize the participation and dedication of appointed planning commission members who have contributed their time and expertise to the improvement of state of Michigan; and,

WHEREAS, we recognize the many valuable contributions made by the professional community and regional planners of the state of Michigan and extend our heartfelt thanks for the continued commitment to public service by these professionals;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Gretchen Whitmer, governor of Michigan, do hereby proclaim October 2025 as Community Planning Month in Michigan.