Market One names interim director and outlines local business events for Cass County

Julia Rose, external affairs manager for Market One, informed the Cass County Board that Zach Morris has left the organization and that Dan Pete will begin as interim director as soon as next Monday. Rose said Market One intends to increase its presence at county meetings, offering updates at least monthly or every other month and scheduling individual meetings between commissioners and the interim director.

"With that transition...our interim is Dan Pete and he will be starting this coming Monday," Rose said, and encouraged commissioners to meet with Pete and Market One staff in the coming weeks.

Market One also told the board it is shifting the municipal summit from spring to the fall and is planning an annual awards event on June 24 at Mary and Magnolia Farms in Casopoulos, which drew about 215 attendees last year. The presentation highlighted Market One's expanding development pipeline and noted it is advocating for state incentive parity for border communities, citing Edwardsburg and neighboring counties.

Molly McFed, Market One's community development manager, said the organization is administering community development block grant activity for homeowner-rehab projects and is working with four Cass County communities that applied and received funding. She described Market One's offer to serve as a third-party administrator where local capacity is limited.

Katie Moltoff, who identified herself as Market One's business development manager, said the organization's pipeline of projects has grown substantially and that a major announcement and groundbreakings are imminent. She told commissioners that Market One will continue to support local priorities and encouraged commissioners to bring ideas for summit programming.

Commissioners thanked Market One for the update and expressed support for the interim director appointment and upcoming events.