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Detroit Regional Chamber > Tracey Nichols

Tracey Nichols

Director, Economic Development, City of Cleveland

Tracey Nichols is the director of economic development for the city of Cleveland. She joined the city after serving 17 years for Cuyahoga County, where she was the assistant director of economic development for four years.

Since joining the city, Nichols has led her team to complete over 560 projects that will create over 11,800 new jobs and retain over 8,000 jobs. Her efforts have resulted in $146.8 million in new grants or pass-through loan funding. Her team has been recognized for innovative projects both locally and nationally.

Nichols is well known for creating new, innovative programs, such as the Vacant Property Initiative, which has resulted in over 2.6 million square feet of space in vacant buildings and 85 acres of vacant land being returned to productive use, creating and retaining over 5,900 jobs.

In 2010, she was presented with the Cleveland Foundation’s Homer Wadsworth Award for excellence in public service. As a member of Mayor Frank Jackson’s cabinet, she continues to work on the city’s cluster-based and place-based economic development strategies to bring new investment and jobs to the city of Cleveland.