The Waukesha County Business Alliance has tapped Brookfield economic development administrator Timothy Casey to lead the county’s new economic development organization.
The entity will be called the Waukesha County Center for Growth Inc. The WCBA was awarded the contract to administer the nonprofit economic growth engine in May. Marketing and administrative support will be provided by the 10-employee Alliance, which will co-locate the organization at its offices, 2717 N. Grandview Blvd. in Waukesha.
Casey has been in his current role since 2010, helping to drive Brookfield’s development with projects such as the Milwaukee Tool headquarters expansion, commercial development along Bluemound Road and reinvestment efforts in the city’s Historic Village area. He previously was a founding principal at Equity Commercial Real Estate LLC, vice president of industrial properties at Wangard Partners, vice president-Wisconsin region at CenterPoint Properties, and director of economic development for Milwaukee County. He served 10 years on the Wauwatosa City Council and was president of the Wauwatosa Chamber of Commerce and the 30th Street Industrial Corridor Corp. He holds a bachelor’s from Michigan State University and a Master of Urban Planning degree from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
“Tim’s strong economic development background and relationships throughout the region and state will be a tremendous asset to helping businesses throughout the county grow,” said Waukesha County Executive Paul Farrow. “I look forward to partnering with him, our local communities and other stakeholders to drive business growth in Waukesha County and our region.”
Farrow has led the effort to create the Center for Growth, identifying funding sources and partnering with businesses and municipalities to create it after the previous economic development organization was shut down in October 2014 for lack of sustainable funding.
The new organization, funded by Waukesha County, the city of Waukesha, the University of Wisconsin Small Business Development Center and the WCBA, will offer workforce, financial and site selection assistance to businesses throughout Waukesha County.
“Tim demonstrates an understanding of economic development that only those who have spent their careers helping businesses grow can have,” said Suzanne Kelley, president and chief executive officer of the Waukesha County Business Alliance. “The Alliance looks forward to working closely with Tim and the Center for Growth to grow businesses and jobs throughout Waukesha County.”
“Waukesha is a premier county in its size and demographics, the strength of the business base, the quality of development, natural resources, and quality of educational and cultural institutions,” Casey said. “We look forward to working with public, private and nonprofit partners to grow existing businesses, and attract additional investment, jobs and tax base to Waukesha County.”
