Administration

Deputy Director

Pronouns: She/Her/Hers

Morgen Wade is the deputy director of Capital and Strategic Planning. Morgen guides the long-term planning, investment and stewardship of the city’s parks, trails, facilities and public spaces. Her areas of oversight include Capital and Strategic Planning, Design and Construction, Data, GIS and Property Management.

Since joining the department in 2019, Morgen has shaped the Capital Improvement Plan and Budget, secured grant funding for park and facility improvements, and advanced the department’s strategic and land planning efforts. She co-led the 2019-2024 Mission Forward Strategic Plan, as well as Playbook Columbus, Recreation and Parks’ 2026-2036 Vision Plan, to ensure Columbus’ parks and recreation system continues to grow and evolve alongside the community it serves.

Morgen heavily supported the department’s first Commission for Accreditation of Park and Recreation Agencies (CAPRA) process in 2022, and in 2020, she had the opportunity to serve alongside dedicated staff to develop a COVID-19 Recreation Program Continuity Plan, which resulted in our department being one of a few agencies able to safely offer summer youth camp programming and critical resources in the first summer of the pandemic.

Before joining the City, Morgen spent more than a decade with Homeport, a central Ohio nonprofit affordable housing organization. Her work spanned grants management, strategic planning, program evaluation, volunteer engagement and neighborhood initiatives, building a foundation in connecting people and resources to strengthen communities. She has earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Otterbein University and has completed graduate level coursework in public administration and city and regional planning.