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After nearly four years helping WithersRavenel’s economic development clients grow and evolve, Jenny Mizelle, CEcD is building the next chapter of her life in retirement.
Photos from Jenny’s retirement celebration
Jenny joined WithersRavenel full time in 2017. She had previously served as the Director of Economic Development for the Town of Holly Springs, and she maintained a close relationship with the Town once on our team.
Troy Beasley, Director of Natural Resources, shared how Jenny’s knowledge, client focus, and warm personality won the respect of clients and colleagues alike. “When Jenny joined the WithersRavenel team, her passion for economic and business development was apparent. Jenny is amazing at building relationships, and quickly endears herself with anyone she spends time with.”
In 2018, she relocated from the Triangle to the Wilmington area to enhance the firm’s public- and private-sector business development efforts along the North Carolina coast. While there, she became a resource for the Towns of Surf City, Emerald Isle, and Boiling Springs Lake, among others.
“Jenny has been such a key part in the Wilmington’s office recent successes and expansion,” enthused Joe Boyd, PE, Project Manager and one of Jenny’s Wilmington colleagues. “Before Jenny came here, we had an image problem lots of locals thought we had packed up and left the area during the recession. Jenny was very influential in changing that mindset, and now we are known around the area as a big player for all of our services!”
Troy added, “I really enjoyed working with Jenny and will miss her, and I’m thankful for everything she did for the Wilmington Office, both professionally and personally.”
Jenny took an active project management role on economic development projects. She assisted Wayne County with securing financial support for the Goldsboro Industrial Campus, netting $1.785 million in grant funding to construct public infrastructure, with priority given to water, sewer, and industrial access improvements.
She also led due diligence studies, conceptual site planning, and marketing strategy development for the Town of Troy’s Economic Development Master Plan Phase 2. Her work directly supported the Town’s goals to capitalize on the economic development opportunities for approximately 100-acres of Town-owned land near the southern intersection of Business NC 24/27 (Albemarle Road) and the new NC 24/27 Bypass.
As a trusted member of the economic development community, Jenny was also called upon to provide general consulting services in her field. In 2018, for example, she worked with the Town of Clayton’s new Director of Economic Development to review their program’s initiatives and practices. Her recommendations strengthened the department as they entered a new era of business.
“Jenny had a great heart to help people, which was an asset in her business development role,” noted Ty Colwell, one of her business development colleagues. “She should be so proud of the positive legacy she left in economic development in NC.”
Jenny is an alumna of Virginia Tech, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Urban Studies/Affairs. She graduated with the class of Leadership North Carolina XXI, a program committed to informing, developing, and engaging a select group of diverse leaders to address the issues and opportunities that affect the state.
WithersRavenel and the many clients she has worked with in the Triangle and Coastal Carolina regions wish Jenny a relaxing and rewarding retirement!