The McMinnville Economic Development Partnership Board of Directors is excited to announce Scott Cooper has accepted the position as Executive Director for the McMinnville Economic Development Partnership. Cooper comes to MEDP with over 20 years of economic development experience most recently as the Economic Development Director for the Town of Fountain Hills, Arizona.

 

Having visited McMinnville multiple times, Cooper is thrilled to get started in his new role stating, "I am honored to become a part of a great organization and such a warm community. McMinnville is a city with wonderful people, a tremendous sense of place, a culture of success and a business community that leads.  MEDP has been committed to building an organization the right way and created something to be proud of. I look forward to working with the community to build and grow a lasting, future-oriented organization that competes with the best - locally as well as nationally and globally."

 

Cooper has experience providing economic development for both small and large communities ranging from the town of DeWitt, Iowa, population 5,218, to the city of Scottsdale, Arizona, population 249,950. Cooper has also been recognized as a Certified Economic Developer (CEcD) by the International Economic Development Council.

 

In his most recent role, Cooper successfully developed new economic development projects and expansions resulting in over $200 million in capital investment. He also established a public-private partnership to form EVITBA, a business accelerator and co-working space for job creation and entrepreneurial development. The accelerator is a partnership with the Town of Fountain Hills, the East Valley Institute of Technology, and JumpStartBiz Arizona Business Advisors and provides networking, student interaction, workspace, and business advice to local entrepreneurs.

 

The Board of Directors noted Cooper has a tentative starting date of March 25, 2019. Board Chair, Kelly McDonald, stated about the decision, "While we were fortunate to have many qualified applicants to choose from, the board is confident that Scott's experience and personality will have an immediate and positive impact on the future of economic development in McMinnville.  We look forward to introducing Scott and his wife Rashell to our community in the coming weeks."

 

MEDP will be available throughout the transition to assist businesses and will continue to work towards our mission of creating economic vitality in McMinnville. The MEDP team looks forward to Cooper joining the organization, introducing him to the community, and working together to further MEDP's mission and goals.