Ann Arbor DDA's Susan Pollay named vice chairwoman of International Downtown Association
The International Downtown Association has elected a new slate of officers for the 2010-11 fiscal year, naming Ann Arbor's Susan Pollay as its vice chairwoman.
Pollay, executive director of the Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority, will serve a one-year term on the IDA's board of directors, running through September 2011.
Ann Arbor DDA Executive Director Susan Pollay speaks at a recent press conference announcing a $1 million federal grant for the reconstruction of the Blake Transit Center downtown.
Ryan J. Stanton | AnnArbor.com
The full slate of officers includes:
- Chairman: Andy Taft, Downtown Fort Worth Inc.
- Chairman Elect: James Robinson, Downtown Yonge Inc., Toronto
- Secretary: Tamara Zahn, Indianapolis Downtown Inc.
- Treasurer: Kurt Weigle, Downtown Development District, New Orleans
- Vice Chairpersons: Thomas Chatmon, Orlando Downtown Development Board, Scott Knies, San Jose Downtown Association, and Susan Pollay, Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority
- Immediate Past Chair: Barbara Askins, 125th Street BID, New York
The IDA, founded in 1954, hails itself as a world leader and champion for vital and livable urban centers, with more than 650 member organizations worldwide.
Pollay and a handful of Ann Arbor DDA board members recently attended the IDA's fall conference held in Fort Worth, Texas, from Oct. 1-5.
The program for the conference shows Pollay was one of the presenters at a roundtable discussion on the topic of downtown parking management. She also moderated a roundtable discussion called "Economic Development for Downtowns on a Shoestring Budget."
In years past, the Ann Arbor DDA has budgeted $30,000 for travel to IDA conferences, but this year it cut those costs in half by not funding attendance by Ann Arbor City Council members or representatives of downtown merchant associations.
For this month's conference, the DDA paid to send Pollay and board members Joan Lowenstein, Keith Orr, Gary Boren and Sandi Smith at a cost of about $2,400 per person. That includes conference fees, hotel costs and air travel.
Pollay is expected to serve as the IDA's vice chairwoman until the next fall conference in Charlotte, North Carolina, which runs from Sept. 22-27, 2011. The IDA also plans to hold a conference in the spring, April 6-8, at the Palmer House Hilton in Chicago.
Ryan J. Stanton covers government and politics for AnnArbor.com. Reach him at ryanstanton@annarbor.com or 734-623-2529.
Comments
Veracity
Fri, Nov 5, 2010 : 10:02 a.m.
And exactly what will Ann Arbor gain from spending $12,0000 to send *FIVE* DDA members to the Fort Worth, Texas conference? I hope that an itemized expense account will be published for each participant so that Ann Arbor citizens can see how their money has been spent. In view of the DDA's present budgetary problems I can imagine the title of Susan Pollay's talk regarding downtown parking management: "How to Out Spend Your Revenue and Get the Local Tax Payers to Pick Up the Tab" (like for the conference itself).
Betsy Jackson
Tue, Oct 19, 2010 : 1:54 p.m.
Having a long affiliation with the International Downtown Association, I can say that IDA is just as lucky to have Susan as a V-P as the citizens of Ann Arbor are to have her at the helm of the DDA. She'll do a great job for IDA and will bring home great new ideas for downtown Ann Arbor. Congratulations Susan!
LiberalNIMBY
Tue, Oct 19, 2010 : 11:13 a.m.
Congratulations! And if you're one of those downtown Ann Arbor boosters who has yet to speak with Susan, I suggest you take her out for a cup of coffee and get to know her. She is a great resource and we are lucky to have her!
Snarf Oscar Boondoggle
Mon, Oct 18, 2010 : 11:33 a.m.
congrats to susan...