Assistant Director of Economic Development

Nestled in the heart of the DFW Metroplex, Cedar Hill offers the rare combination of big-city access and breathtaking natural beauty. With scenic rolling hills that feel more like the Texas Hill Country than North Texas, over 3,000 acres of preserved natural habitat, and 20% of the city dedicated to parks and green space—more than double the national average—Cedar Hill has become a premier destination for outdoor enthusiasts, shoppers, diners, and visitors alike.

As a thriving city in a park setting, Cedar Hill is poised for continued growth and investment. We are seeking an innovative, strategic, and forward-thinking Assistant Director of Economic Development to help lead transformative projects, attract new investment, support redevelopment, and advance a vision for sustainable growth while preserving the unique character and quality of life that make Cedar Hill an exceptional place to live, work, visit, and do business.

The primary purpose of this position is to develop and lead Cedar Hill’s existing business support programs and to assist the Economic Development Director on establishing economic development programs and practices; these efforts should lead to new business attraction/expansion and private investment in the City. This investment will result in job creation, expanded tax base, creative and niche development, recreation and entertainment venues, and other quality developments, helping to ensure that the department accomplishes the Economic Development Strategy.

The Assistant Director will delegate and assign work to other Economic Development staff, as appropriate, and act in the absence of the Director.

The starting salary for this position is up to $115,000/annually, depending on qualifications of the selected candidate.

• Business Retention & Expansion
  : organizes and implements a robust existing business support program, including visitations, development of a small business guide and creation of a new business welcome program; analyzes company data (employment, lease expirations, expansion plans) to assess risk levels and identify opportunities for growth.
  • Economic Impact Modeling
    : projects the fiscal impact (sales, property tax) of new projects, business expansions, or closures on the local economy.
  • Competitive Benchmarking
    : utilizes tools to measure local economic resilience against other regions.
• Business Engagement
  : develops and strengthens relationships with the business community, key local allies, representatives of local shopping centers and office buildings, regional development professionals and others to facilitate open communication about company needs.
  • Key Industry Clusters and Targeted Groups
    : convenes business groups to provide specialized support, including small businesses, women and minority owned businesses and targeted industries such as retail, restaurant and industrial.
• Business Attraction
  : meets with developers, engages with prospects and responds to information requests in conjunction with Director; ability to pitch the community to prospects and market local assets.
  • Labor Market Analysis
    : tracks labor force participation, unemployment rates, wages, commuting trends, and occupational skill gaps to understand workforce quality.
  • Industry and Economic Trends
    : identifies target industry clusters, tracking employment growth, and monitoring business activity to identify growth sectors.
  • Demographic Assessment
    : analyzes population shifts, age, educational attainment, and income levels to understand consumer trends and align developers with opportunities within the city.
  • Real Estate and Site Selection
    : monitors land use, commercial vacancy rates, and rent costs to identify development opportunities.

• Provides premier customer service to citizens, internal and external customers by responding to requests in a positive, timely, effective and professional manner. Works cooperatively and in partnership with other City departments, as needed, to achieve economic development goals.
• Organize and oversee business retention and expansion program; manage a local business visitation program, meeting with a targeted list of companies…