Two Finalists Emerge To Become Downtown’s Next Leader

Two candidates whose skillsets officials say fall on “opposite ends of the spectrum” are in the running to become the next leader of downtown Traverse City.

Grand Traverse County Director of Community Development and Codes Jean Derenzy and Rockford (Illinois) Area Convention & Visitors Bureau Director of Marketing & Public Affairs Joshua Albrecht are both up for consideration to become CEO of the Downtown Development Authority (DDA). DDA board members interviewed four finalists for the position Monday at the Governmental Center, using a voting process at the end of the interviews to cut two candidates from consideration. Hamtramck City Manager Katrina Powell and real estate and marketing consultant Jeff Sattler of Norwich, Connecticut were eliminated from further consideration by a majority consensus of the board.

Derenzy’s and Albrecht’s resumes – as well as interview answers – highlighted competing areas of strengths DDA board members indicated they were seeking in a candidate. The deputy director of planning and development for Grand Traverse County since 1998 (before receiving a promotion earlier this year), Derenzy touted her decades of experience working with multiple local governmental entities, skills in building collaborative relationships, and familiarity with real estate, development and funding mechanisms in her interview with the board.

“I think it brings an added benefit to the DDA…with me knowing how those tools work and being able to leverage those in different ways,” Derenzy said. She told board members the DDA “needs to be a leader throughout the city,” working to make sure other partners and stakeholders are at the table but taking the initiative on more projects. “There are numerous economic engines that are trying to move forward, but there needs to be a cohesive leadership to move business development forward,” she said.

Derenzy highlighted her experience working in leadership roles within the Grand Traverse County Brownfield Redevelopment Authority, Land Bank Authority and Economic Development Corporation, saying she wanted to use her knowledge to help recruit and retain local businesses while protecting the “unique character” of downtown. But Derenzy acknowledged she lacked experience in marketing within the retail sector – an area Albrecht highlighted as one of his key strengths.

As leader of marketing and public affairs for the official tourism bureau of Rockford and Winnebago County in Illinois since 2014, Albrecht told DDA board members he had overseen award-winning social media campaigns, created high-profile events to bring business owners and community groups together, and specialized in communications, marketing, sponsorship programs, and media outreach. As the former executive director of Dixon Main Street – a nonprofit organization in Illinois dedicated to downtown revitalization and historic preservation – Albrecht said he wore a range of “diversified” hats on a daily basis. “I think the biggest trait (in that position) is you have to be quick on your feet and be able to adapt to whatever’s coming,” he said.

Albrecht shared several examples of creative marketing efforts he planned in communities in which he’s worked, including bringing rock band Mumford & Sons to Dixon – temporarily doubling the town’s population of 16,000 during the concert – and recruiting Toronto Raptors player Fred VanFleet to serve as a sports ambassador for VanFleet’s hometown of Rockford.

“I really pride myself on my leadership abilities…in each position I’ve held,” Albrecht said. He cited Traverse City’s burgeoning public arts commission as an example of the types of programs he hoped to encourage within the DDA, looking to create “magical” experiential spaces and events within the city that would encourage visitors to return again and again.

“There’s a lot of great groundwork that’s already been done (in Traverse City),” he said. “It’s a vibrant, thriving city.”

Albrecht acknowledged having less experience in some areas in which Derenzy touted her strengths, including real estate development and implementation of tax increment financing (TIF) plans. Following the interviews, DDA board members told The Ticker they believed the interview process had produced two strong candidates with very different qualifications.

“I think they both come from different backgrounds, with Jean being more into government and development and Josh being more into marketing,” says Chair Bill Golden. “So you’re really coming from two opposite ends of the spectrum. Both have roles (within the DDA), but different roles, so it’s going to be interesting.” Traverse City Mayor Jim Carruthers notes Derenzy has “the advantage of knowing the players and knowing the town," but says Albrecht “did a good job answering questions, and is in an appropriate position because of what he’s been trying to do in the areas (of expertise) he’s been building on.”

Assisted by consultant NorthSky Nonprofit Network, DDA board members will next send an online leadership assessment to the two finalists to complete, conduct background checks, solicit input from DDA staff, and evaluate the candidates against the DDA’s six strategic objectives before conducting a final second interview with each candidate. Board members Monday indicated they hoped to meet with the finalists again as soon as next week, with a hiring decision soon to follow.

“We’re in a time crunch, because we’ve only got Rob (Bacigalupi) until December 15,” says Carruthers, referring to the DDA’s departing executive director. “It’ll be interesting to see what we can do in a short amount of time.”