New director to lead re-organized development department

A veteran public servant with two decades of experience in law, housing and development grants has been tapped to head up a newly re-organized department to deliver business development and customer services. Tammie Grossman will become director of the Community & Economic Development Department on Jan. 6. An Oak Park resident for more than 15 years, she served as manager of the Village’s Housing and Community Development Block Grant programs and interim director of human resources. Grossman’s appointment came as the Village restructures its building, business services, housing and planning operations into a single department to streamline and improve customer services. The new position will serve as the primary point of contact for all development efforts, and Grossman will be the liaison between Village Hall and the development community. The Village Board likely will rename the department, but duties will remain focused on serving Oak Park’s development and business community. Grossman, who has a law degree from DePaul University and a political science degree from Northern Illinois University, was selected from a pool of more than 100 candidates. During her five years at the Village, Grossman’s accomplishments included a complete transformation of the housing department refocusing efforts on its core mission and securing outside funding for new programs. She also spearheaded the creation of the West Cook County Housing Collaborative, which has secured more than $14 million for Oak Park and nearby communities. Grossman took over supervision of the Village’s CDBG program in 2012 and served as interim HR director following the retirement of its previous director in July 2013. Before joining the Village, Grossman worked as an attorney in housing and urban development and served as executive director of Housing Action Illinois. For more information call 708.358.5770 or email village@oak-park.us.