Metro economic development director stepping down – Nashville Post

Jamari Brown, director of the Mayor’s Office of Economic and Community Development, is stepping down at the end of the year.

Brown joined the then-Mayor David Briley’s administration earlier this year, succeeding longtime director Matt Wiltshire. He stayed on after the election of new Mayor John Cooper, whose office this week said economic development would take a back seat for the time being as the city seeks to balance its budget.

“We are tremendously grateful for Jamari’s work and insight over the first few months of Mayor Cooper’s administration,” Cooper spokesperson Chris Song said. “He’s been a wonderful asset to Metro and to the city. We all look forward to following his future work.”

At a groundbreaking event for a new Tennessee Titans facility on Friday, Brown declined to comment.

A graduate of the University of Tennessee-Martin, he joined Metro after working for the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development, where he began as an intern in 2008 and rose to director of business development.

Cooper has so far declined to fill a number of vacancies created by the departure of top Briley officials, but Song said Cooper plans to hire a new ECD director.