Storyland Studios, a global experience design and strategy firm, has announced that its co-founder and chief creative officer Mel McGowan, AICP, DBIA, LEED AP, has been appointed to Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU)’s Board of Directors.
CNU is a prominent group of architects, urban designers, developers, and policymakers working together to shape policy at local and national levels. The organisation contends that contemporary city planning restricts housing supply and affordability, adversely affecting the environment.
McGowan has been a long-time attendee at CNU’s Annual Congress, where he has also appeared as a speaker.
Giving back to the community
“I’m deeply appreciative of all that the CNU and its founders have done, in terms of inspiring me to study urban planning and urban design,” he says. “The first book on new urbanism I ever picked up was written by one of the CNU founders, Peter Calthorpe.
“I’m thankful for the opportunity to give back to this community and its leadership.”
McGowan combines his ten years of experience at the Walt Disney Company with a background in film and design to develop a multidisciplinary approach to the built environment.
“This multidisciplinary approach is the only way to really make things happen,” McGowan says. “It’s not just about an architect with a better design or better vision. You’ve got to be about economics, politics, design, and vision casting. And that models the approach Storyland is founded on, as well.
“It’s important to establish and bring the power of storytelling to the table. Storytelling is the foundation — that shared reality and collective vision of what the future should be.”
Besides his role at CNU, McGowan serves on the Western Board of Directors for the Themed Entertainment Association (TEA) and hosts the TEA Masters. He authored Design Intervention, hosts The Themed Attraction Podcast, and teaches as an adjunct professor at CBU’s College of Architecture, Visual Arts & Design.
OC Metro Magazine has recognised him as a top 25 influencer, while he was featured on the blooloop 50 Theme Park Influencer List in 2021 and the Immersive Influencer List in 2025.Â
3D storytelling
Storyland is bringing its 3D storytelling approach to various global projects, from South Dakota to Saudi Arabia. McGowan’s team has designed and master-planned several major, world-class city projects.
This includes the Town of Trilith, a live-work-play development connected to Georgia’s iconic Trilith Studios film lot; Trinity, Florida, a sports city anticipated to be the United States’ largest sports entertainment destination; and Kebulania, a first-of-its-kind film city in Lagos designed for the flourishing Nigerian movie industry.
Working alongside developer Darren Sloniger and Marquette Development, Storyland has also played a role in Edgehill Commons, a revitalisation project in downtown Nashville; Park Fulton, a redevelopment initiative in Chicago; and Catalyst Houston, a high-rise project with views of Minute Maid Stadium in Houston, Texas.
Reforms in urban development
CNU promotes nationwide reforms in urban development. New urbanism emphasises human-scale design in neighborhoods, towns, and cities, fostering community and family growth, reducing environmental risks, and enhancing overall quality of life. For over thirty years, CNU has been at the forefront, guiding advocates and practitioners who embrace the new urbanist philosophy.
“New urbanism was formed around the idea of social, economic, spiritual, and sustainable principles,” McGowan says. “It’s about reconnecting the brokenness: restoring connection with the land and with neighbors. Rather than the suburban tendency to isolate and separate families as far apart from each other as possible, new urbanism is about creating gathering places, returning to what we forgot in the rush toward suburbanism.”
CNU’s primary goals include reforming outdated city-building regulations that impose red tape on developers and communities, increasing access to affordable urban housing, and addressing climate change through strategic urban planning, development, and architectural design.Â
Earlier this year, Storyland Studios announced that it is seeking attraction, retail, dining and entertainment developers and operators as part of phase one development of LIBERTYLAND, a family Retail, Dining and Entertainment District (RDE) located near Mount Rushmore and Rapid City, South Dakota.
