The Rouse Connection

Strategic Leisure's founder and President, Michael McCall, has been at the vanguard of what is now known as urban entertainment since the early 1980s. As a Vice President of Development for landmark developer, Jim Rouse, at The Enterprise Development Company from 1982 to 1992, he had the extraordinary experience of learning placemaking from the master.

From 1985 to 1988, Michael led Mr. Rouse's team in a joint venture with The Walt Disney Company. A decade before the term urban entertainment was coined, Michael and his team worked with Disney's development, Imagineering, strategic planning, and attractions operations divisions - strategizing and conceptualizing the future of urban entertainment. Michael later consulted to Disney on repositioning of Pleasure Island.

Following the Disney experience, Michael conducted international leisure-based development consulting for Mr. Rouse in Australia, England, Japan, Singapore, Spain and the United States and led the product repositioning strategy for the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago. Michael also worked on the site of the New Jersey Performing Arts Center and Port Imperial.

In 1992, Michael founded Strategic Leisure to leverage the extraordinary experience of working for Jim Rouse and with The Walt Disney Company, by developing urban entertainment places infused with social fun and entertaining brand information.