The City of Wauwatosa announced that Development Director Mark Hammond is stepping down after nearly two years in the job to take a new position with a nonprofit organization focused on affordable housing.
Hammond, who was hired in 2024 and began work that September, is scheduled to conclude his tenure with the city on May 15, according to a city news release posted online.
"Since joining the city’s leadership team, Hammond has been a driving force behind diversifying Wauwatosa’s housing stock, modernizing city planning, and encouraging commercial growth," the city said in its news release. "Hammond’s tenure is marked by the successful completion of the Comprehensive Plan, a document that will guide the city’s growth for years to come."
The news release did not identify which nonprofit has hired Hammond.
Before joining the city's staff, Hammond served as vice president of development for MSP Real Estate and Heritage Senior Living.
Hammond's exit puts the city back in recruitment mode less than two years after filling the development director role previously held for 12 years by Paulette Enders, until her retirement in 2024.
"The city will begin a formal recruitment process led by the Human Resources Department to identify a new development director," the city's release said. "The goal is to have someone hired by late summer."
When the job description was posted in 2024, it said the development director is responsible for "overseeing the strategic and day-to-day operations of the Development Department," as well as "leading community and economic development initiatives and negotiating complex public and private real estate and economic development deals."
