Greg Flisram will be the next head of Pittsburgh’s Urban Redevelopment Authority.
Mayor Bill Peduto and URA board chair Sam Williamson made the announcement Thursday morning. Flisram is the interim president of the Economic Development Corporation of Kansas City. Flisram previously worked as development director for the city of Green Bay, Wis.
“Pittsburgh is a national model of economic renewal and reinvention that many people have had their eyes on for a long time,” Flisram said in a statement released by the mayor’s office. “I’m looking forward to helping write the city’s next chapter and to help spread prosperity to neighborhoods and populations that have not been lifted by the rising tide.”
Interim executive director Diamonte Walker will become deputy executive director for the URA. Walker said the hiring of Flisram signals a “bold, new direction” for the organization, which is the main driver of development in the city.
The strategy of the URA is forever changed, says Mayor @billpeduto—to make an economy for all. Says Greg Flisram knows how to make not just the economic changes, but needed cultural changes, too
— Margaret J. Krauss (@MargaretKrauss) November 14, 2019
Peduto said the city will also hire a chief economic development officer and the Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh will hire a development officer.
“I’m ready to hit the ground running,” Flisram said.
The URA is in the midst of several large development projects, including the former Civic Arena site in the Lower Hill District and the Produce Terminal in the Strip District. Both projects have the potential to impact the identities of entire neighborhoods.
Robert Rubenstein stepped down as executive director of the URA in April, a post he held for seven years.
