Announcement & Gratitude

After twelve years in professional civic service - first with Downtown South Bend, Inc. followed by the City of South Bend - I am writing to announce that I’ve accepted a new career opportunity. This is an extremely emotional decision to make, but I do so knowing three things to be true:

1. Thanks to the efforts of so many who will read this message, South Bend is more loveable and liveable than it was when I first began.?I’m confident and grateful that the people, resources, and vision are in place for this trend to continue in exciting ways.
2. I’m starting a new job that will engage my passion for cities even further, strategically supporting and providing solutions for communities across the entire country.?Undoubtedly, many of these places will become the beneficiary of South Bend’s stories, lessons learned, and successes.
3. Long before I committed to a formal role in public service, I was investing in the community as a volunteer.?I will continue to call South Bend home and look forward to rediscovering what it means to serve outside of my capacity as a city official.

Approaching a crossroad like this, it’s difficult to not get a little sentimental about our shared impacts over the past several years.?Among the memories that stand out most vividly are the major milestones we commemorated together.?I’m thinking of the year-long celebrations of South Bend’s 150th anniversary, the inauguration of the South Bend River Lights, the grand re-opening of Howard Park, the Morris Performing Arts Center’s 100th birthday, and some of the Best. Weeks. Ever.

Equally memorable are the moments we stood together in solidarity, the occasions we fought for local and global change, or the season we navigated major budget reductions.?We mourned the loss of team members and also encountered a horrific global pandemic, senseless acts of violence, occasional disagreements, and unplanned structural failures.?It’s hard to forget that time we rallied together to keep our downtown open during a multi-day downtown power outage on one of busiest weekends of the year.?Relatedly and more frequently, we jointly tackled extreme weather situations including two historic floods and ones that taught us new words like “micro-nado”, “polar vortex” and “snowmageddon."

We created an entirely new city department in Venues Parks & Arts, reorganizing assets to enhance our quality of life and place-based economic development strategies. I’m particularly proud how this produced the MY SB Parks & Trails initiative which has become the single largest investment in our shared public spaces throughout the city’s history.?This represents more than 50 projects totaling nearly $100 million, found in every part of the city.?Some were marquee, such as the renovation and expansion of the Charles Black Center or the redevelopments of Howard, Pinhook, Pulaski, Kernan, and Leeper Parks.?Others were minor but equally important, such as upgrades to every park restroom building, dozens of new playgrounds, new splash pads, and reconstructed athletic courts.

We designed and adopted a new city flag which has quickly become a recognizable symbol of civic pride. Everyone cheered as we welcomed the South Bend Cubs and the transformation of Coveleski Stadium to Four Winds Field. Rum Village received a high-ropes course, the Century Center gained an E-Sports arena, and the zoo adopted some high profile new residents, including giraffes. Boomer and Spark both made their debuts. We introduced innovative programs, such as the municipal development district liquor licenses which attracted dozens of new bars and restaurants.?The Downtown Dining Alliance formed, exterior enhancements grants helped create new business spaces, the streets got smarter, and the Studebaker Fountain was both rediscovered and restored. In a dramatic comeback story, we even turned around the fate of municipal golf in South Bend.?

Introducing the Ecological Advocacy Committee, we’ve made significant strides in our environmental acumen and care.?We poured a tremendous amount of resources into projects and initiatives to ensure our facilities and programs are more accessible and inclusive than ever.?New technology, new staff, new recreational opportunities, and even a new Winter City mindset combine to help ensure we’re positioned as a welcoming and healthy city.?All the while, we’ve crafted strategic business models and intentional partnerships to help us improve and expand our impact.?

Our collective efforts have earned us recognition across the country.?We’ve excelled in national rankings, increased usage, improved bottom lines, and created record-breaking economic impacts.?Our stories and experiences are reaching more people than ever, all in pursuit of our mission to create emotionally engaging opportunities that connect us to one another.?Among the dozens of articles written and awards received, one accolade stands above the rest.?Just last year we were named the top agency in the country, winning the National Gold Medal Award from the American Academy of Parks & Recreation Administration.?This is truly a testament to not only our quality spaces and programs, but also an extremely talented staff and supportive community.

In a job like this, the work is never done.?The stage is set to open a new Seitz Park later this year along with dozens of neighborhood park projects – including a pickleball complex at Boehm Park.?We’ll soon see a brand new Martin Luther King Jr. Dream Center, an expanded Four Winds Field, an extension of the Morris Performing Arts Center, and redevelopments at several neighborhood spaces, such as Kennedy Park, Walker Field, Potawatomi Park, and Byers Softball Complex.?We recently announced an ambitious goal to reach a city-wide 40% tree canopy coverage by 2050 while we also have plans to improve park access by creating entirely new public spaces.?We look forward to modernizing the Century Center, growing our new Arts Equity program, and introducing new trail connections between key areas of the city.?To promote, program, and sustain all these initiatives, a significant amount of planning is already underway.

Beyond nostalgia, the past several paragraphs establish a foundation upon which I can recognize the countless people involved in these accomplishments. Undoubtedly, I’ll try my best to thank as many of you as possible personally during the next few weeks, but for the purposes of this message, I’d like to acknowledge three distinct groups.

To my friends and family: Thank you all for cheering me on during the good times, for holding me up when things were challenging, and for always keeping me grounded.?I appreciate your willingness to always assist with projects, events, or advice.?Thank you for understanding that jobs like these don’t start at 9am and end at 5pm, Monday through Friday.?Thank you for enduring interruptions at the grocery store, in church, at social events or during vacations and holidays.?Thank you, especially, to my wife who always supports me and understood from the moment we met that community development work requires sacrifice.

To my colleagues: You may be the most difficult group to address because you all know what it takes.?You’re in the arena, wholly absorbing both the joys and the burdens of our community.?I’ve repeated this often: while it’s typically me who is in front of the camera or podium, you all are truly the reasons we’ve been able to accomplish so much.?Thank you for your commitment, for teaching me continuously, for your confidence and at times, for your grace.?This gratitude doesn’t only go to the current team at VPA of whom I’m incredibly proud.?It’s also shared by those who previously worked here, city employees at all levels, collaborative staff in other city departments, and very supportive elected officials.?You all give of yourselves for the betterment of our city and, as a resident, I will continue to be grateful for your love and care of this city.?

To those who have supported our work: The amount of belief and trust that you have extended to my colleagues and I over the past dozen or so years is humbling.?You have given of yourselves beyond my wildest imagination.?You have served on boards and committees, partnered with us, offered wisdom, volunteered your time, and have contributed financially in extraordinarily generous ways.?Your resources and advocacy fueled my work.?While no words of thanks could ever suffice, I hope the value of your contributions are reflected well in the things you cherish most in our city.

It takes everyone to move a city forward.?We’re all stewarding this community in unique ways, just as many did before us and just as many will do long after us.?As this chapter of my career concludes, I will forever remain thankful for the small professional role I was able to play in the story of South Bend.?I’d like to formally thank Mayor Luecke, Mayor Buttigieg, and Mayor Mueller for the opportunity to serve my hometown.?While this is far from a farewell, it has been the privilege of a lifetime.