Florence Director of Business and Community Development Joshua Wice is leaving the city to take a senior-level position with REDI Cincinnati.
Wice has been named Vice President for Investor Relations and Strategic Resources with REDI Cincinnati and will assume the new role May 9.
“I absolutely love what I am doing with the city and I love the Florence community,” Wice said. “I will always be grateful to Mayor (Diane) Whalen and (former city coordinator) Pat Wingo for offering me this position and I am very excited about this new opportunity. It’s a chance to serve on more of a regional scale.”
Wice has a career of more than 15 years focused on economic development, government relations, and stakeholder engagement for both public and private sector organizations. In addition to eight years as Director of Business and Community Development for the City of Florence, he previously held roles with Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center and the Campbell County Judge/Executive’s Office.
Regional Economic Development Initiative (REDI) Cincinnati has been consistently recognized as one of the top economic development organizations in the country. Its primary focus is to create jobs in Greater Cincinnati.
Wice has a longstanding professional rapport with Johnna Reeder, president and CEO of REDI Cincinnati, dating back to her previous position in local government affairs and economic development at Duke Energy.
Reeder said she is excited to have someone of Wice’s caliber joining REDI Cincinnati.
“Josh is a seasoned economic and community development professional with many accomplishments during his time at the City of Florence,” Reeder said. “As the regional economic development initiative, we look forward to him joining our team and continuing to showcase Greater Cincinnati as one of the best places in the U.S. for businesses to locate and grow.”
During Wice’s tenure with the City of Florence, the city experienced consistent increases in private sector investment and job creation.
Wice designed the city’s first local economic development incentive program, modernized the city’s tracking of commercial real estate activity. He engaged a firm to nationally market Florence and initiated a business visitation program focused on retention and expansion opportunities.
He also guided an annexation agreement between the City of Florence and the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport that makes approximately 180 acres of airport property available for commercial development in the city.
During Wice’s tenure, the City of Florence maintained a “wish list” of desired merchants that it hoped to attract the city’s thriving retail corridors.
Working closely with developers and merchants the city was successful in attracting many on that list to the city. That includes, most recently, the addition of Costco, Dave & Busters and Menard’s to the Florence Heights project on Mall Road.
It’s not the first time Reeder has spoken to Wice about joining REDI Cincinnati, but he said this was a great opportunity at the right time.
“It’s always difficult when you make a decision like this,” Wice said. “But I’m very excited about joining REDI and being part of the team that advocates for private investment and job creation in the region.”
Whalen said she has mixed feelings about Wice’s decision to leave the city.
“I understand and I would never want to stand in his way, but I think it’s a big loss for the city,” Whalen said. “We’ve had an excellent relationship and we both have benefited from that, as has the city. It certainly is an opportunity that is difficult for him to pass up.”
Whalen said she has already begun to contact candidates for the position and is confident she will be able to fill it with a qualified candidate in the near future.
Wice’s last day with the City of Florence is May 6.