Development and Engagement Director

Cool Spring Downtown District (CSDD) seeks a Development and Engagement Director to work closely with the President/CEO to lead and manage advancement and economic growth initiatives for the organization and the downtown Fayetteville district. This includes fundraising and grant activities for CSDD, developing and implementing strategies to attract new businesses and support existing ones, and enhancing the overall economic vibrancy of the organization and the District through arts, culture, placemaking, and other downtown management best practices. The Development & Engagement Director will engage with staff, board of directors, funders, elected officials, small business merchants, and other community stakeholders to achieve CSDD development goals.

Key Responsibilities: Working closely with the CSDD President/CEO, staff, and relevant partners, the Development & Engagement Director will:

• Grants and Sponsors: Support existing and planned grants and sponsorships for CSDD programming and development initiatives; identify, define, and develop new funding sources, generate proposals, budgets and narratives.
• Business Development Strategic Planning: Conduct research on regional and national downtown/urban market conditions and development trends, and other relevant factors to inform strategies for diverse small business recruitment, retention, and expansion within the District; implement strategically aligned projects and initiatives to support CSDD cultural and economic enhancement and growth goals for the District.
• Marketing and Promotion: Work with the Director of Design & Strategic Storytelling to develop engagement and communications plans to best promote CSDD and the District in support of programming and development initiatives.
• Community Engagement and Relationship Building: Establish and maintain relationships with key partners, businesses, elected officials, community leaders, and other relevant stakeholders to foster collaboration and support for CSDD programming and development initiatives.
• Reporting and Compliance: Prepares reports, tracks performance metrics, and ensures compliance with relevant regulations and policies.
• Other Duties: All staff attend and assist with all CSDD events including setup/breakdown and event logistics leading up to and on the day of the event. This includes but is not limited to our monthly 4th Fridays (Mar-Oct), NYE Night Circus (Dec), and Juneteenth Jubilee (June).

The ideal Development and Engagement Director (DED) candidate will possess:

• Strong grant writing and management talent, including highly effective research, writing and budget development skills. Needs to be able to clearly and persuasively articulate CSDD and the District’s accomplishments, goals, and needs.
• Demonstrable financial acumen. Must be comfortable working with budgets, financial data and reports, and be able communicate financial information at all levels.
• Organizational, project, and stress management skills. The DED must be comfortable managing multiple projects, meetings, and deadlines, often with competing priorities
• Highly developed interpersonal and relationship building skills. This talent is crucial to the success of this role and the organization as a whole. We are in the people business!

Highly Desired:

Demonstrable understanding/relevant prior experience of non-profit structure and management; arts and culture management, particularly as a tool for growth and development; urban management, place-making, design, or event management experience or demonstrable talent. Strong cultural fit with CSDD values of communication, transparency, respect and kindness, creativity, and joy-making; CSDD has a significant scope of work – sense of humor, work/life balance and staff wellness are supported within the work culture.

Qualifications:

A minimum of three years of experience in the field of economic/ downtown/ commercial corridor development and engagement, business or arts district administration, or related fields such as fundraising/philanthropy, with a proven track record of successful planning and implementation of fundraising and development. A minimum bachelor's degree in urban planning, economic/community development, arts administration, or a similar degree level of study and/or appropriate certification is required.

About Cool Spring Downtown District:

Cool Spring Downtown District is a 501c3 at the heart of Fayetteville’s ongoing downtown vitality efforts, aimed at transforming the area into a vibrant, mixed-use district that combines residential, commercial, and cultural elements. Founded in 2017, CSDD is a unique organization with a two-fold organizational purpose: to manage the arts and entertainment district as well as manage the municipal services district in historic Downtown Fayetteville, NC. Activities include but are not limited to: large-scale festivals such as the Juneteenth Jubilee and the Night Circus NYE Spectacular, monthly cultural events including the 4th Friday street festival series (Mar-Oct), the Safety and Engagement Ambassador (SEA) Program, Clean Streets (shared waste management program), downtown merchant and business engagement and advocacy, business recruitment, resident engagement, and active partnership and collaboration with key stakeholders in cultural and economic development initiatives in downtown Fayetteville.