Susan K. Hori Joins Board of Directors

We are excited to announce the appointment of Susan K. Hori as PlaceWorks’ newest Board member. Susan’s appointment will provide strategic guidance and key insights as we look to the future. “We’re delighted to welcome Susan to our Board of Directors,” said Keith McCann, Chairman of the Board. “Susan’s deep understanding of California’s evolving legal landscape—especially around land use, environmental regulations, and permitting—will further enhance our ability to guide clients through increasingly complex challenges.”

Susan is a highly esteemed land use attorney and partner at Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP. With over four decades of experience, she specializes in securing land use development entitlements and navigating complex regulatory landscapes for a diverse clientele, including landowners, developers, and financial institutions. Her expertise includes local land use approvals and compliance with state and federal regulations, such as CEQA, NEPA, the California Coastal Act, Clean Water Act Section 404 permitting, National Historic Preservation Act, and Endangered Species Act permitting, including habitat conservation planning.

“Susan’s reputation within our industry is unparalleled,” said PlaceWorks CEO Brian Judd, and with the recent passage of AB 130 and SB 131, her insights have already proven invaluable.”

Susan has been recognized as a “distinguished land use practitioner” by Chambers and Partners numerous times and listed in The Best Lawyers in America every year since 2005. She has been honored by the Daily Journal as a Top 25 “Land Use Leader” and named among the Top 100 Women Lawyers in California. Prior to entering private practice, Susan clerked for the Alaska Supreme Court and served as an attorney with the Solicitor’s Office in the Department of the Interior in Washington, D.C., where she represented the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Susan joins Tim Lattimer, Administrator for the Office of Community Sustainability for Howard County, Maryland, and Michael Bishop, Sr., retired Chief Business Officer and owner of Michael Bishop & Associates, as outside directors. “By bringing together leading experts in sustainability, school facilities planning and finance, and now land use and environmental law,” noted PlaceWorks Principal and Board Member Dwayne Mears, “we’re further strengthening our ability to serve clients across California and tackle the full range of challenges they face.”

Please join us in welcoming Susan!