Development Commission Captain Resigns

PORTLAND-The executive director of the Portland Development Commission is leaving the city’s urban renewal agency on June 1. At the helm of the city’s urban renewal agency since May 2001, Don Mazziotti says he is leaving the city’s urban renewal agency unsure if he will return to the public sector.”The position … entails long hours and great commitment,” he says in a prepared statement. “In the short term, it is my desire to concentrate on more time with my family. I also intend to spend some time weighing various private sector opportunities… .”During Mazziotti’s tenure, the PDC created or rehabbed about 6,800 housing units, established two new urban renewal areas and extended the Downtown Waterfront URA in order to focus on the Old Town/China Town area and the north-end of the waterfront. During his four years in office, Portland residents saw the completion of such major projects as the Eastbank Esplanade and Airport MAX light rail, as well as the emergence of the Pearl District and the beginnings of the South Waterfront area, the next new neighborhood and jobs center. Matt Hennessee, chairman of the PDC Board of Commissioners says the board will make certain that the right leadership is in place to keep up the momentum built up during Mazziotti’s tenure. “The board is committed to seeing that this important work continues… ,” he says in a prepared statement. “We feel confident that the PDC staff has the commitment, the financial resources, the skills and the talents to move forward.” Mazziotti holds a law degree and a M.A. in Urban Planning from the University of Iowa. Prior to joining PDC, Mazziotti served as Chief Information Officer for the State of Oregon from 1997 to 2000. Other public sector positions included Deputy Assistant Secretary of Transportation for the United States from 1978 to 1981 and, immediately prior to that, chief planner for the City of Portland for four years. In the private sector, Mazziotti served as CEO of Delta Development Group Inc, a real estate development, management and financing company.