Chicago Convention Center Agency Hires New CEO

navy-pier-ferris-wheel-istock-357.jpg

CHICAGO — The Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority board has hired former Chicago planning veteran and mayoral aide Lori Healey as its next chief executive officer.

The city/state public agency owns McCormick Place Convention Center in Chicago, an adjacent convention center hotel, and Navy Pier.

Healey most recently served as CEO of Tur Partners LLC, an investment and urban economic development firm, launched by former Mayor Richard Daley. Healey served as a chief of staff to Daley after a stint as the city's top planner. She helped lead Daley's failed bid to host the 2016 Olympic Games. Mayor Rahm Emanuel tapped her to lead the city's host committee for the 2012 NATO Summit and she serves on the board of World Business Chicago.

The authority board unanimously approved the appointment on April 15. The board has nine members, four appointed by the governor and four by mayor with the chairman selected by the board. Healey will earn a salary of $300,000 a year.

"We are very fortunate to have someone with Lori's caliber of experience to lead the MPEA team during these exciting times, with construction of the event center and the headquarters hotel set to begin shortly," said MPEA board chairman Jack Greenberg. "We are confident that Lori is the right person for the job and that she will excel in this important leadership position."

The authority has been searching for a CEO to succeed Jim Reilly, who had announced more than a year ago his intention to retire this year. Reilly first ran the agency in the mid-1990s and then returned as a state-appointed trustee in 2010. He became CEO in 2012. Reilly steered the agency through the implementation of work rule changes, helped secure state approval for a debt restructuring, and has overseen the planning of several major expansion projects.

"Jim has accomplished so much in his service as the authority's top executive. He has been an exemplary public servant who has demonstrated time and again that he knows how to get things done," Greenberg said.

The agency's projects include a new nearly $400 million hotel to serve the convention center and a $160 million arena that will be used by the DePaul Blue Demons basketball team.

The authority's $2.6 billion of debt carries ratings that range from the single-A category to triple-A, based on support from Illinois. The authority's debt is repaid by its taxes on hotel rooms, restaurant meals, Chicago airport taxicab rides, and car rentals. A state sales tax backup pledge subject to appropriation also supports the debt.

For reprint and licensing requests for this article, click here.
Illinois
MORE FROM BOND BUYER