XENIA — The dream of every economic developer is to make their community the best it can be, and new Greene County Development Director Jason Foster is no different.
Foster was the zoning administrator and then economic development coordinator for Huber Heights for 13 years before moving to Bellbrook. While working as the community development administrator in Bellbrook, Foster heard about the opening for development director of Greene County.
Former development director Eric Henry was recently named assistant city manager in Xenia, creating the opening.
“It’s been a bit of a whirlwind,” Foster said about his first few weeks in the position. “Going from city government to county is a bit of a change, an exciting change for me, and an opportunity to be a director was great.”
A love for the Greene County area also motivates Foster to work hard at his job. He aims to help all of the communities under his responsibility thrive.
“Can we make Greene County the place to be? That’s the goal,” Foster said. “Is it lofty? Probably. But on the other hand, there are so many great things here. There are great cities, there are great townships, there are great villages, there are a tremendous amount of activities to do.”
County Administrator Brandon Huddleson said Foster’s experience in Greene County and in the development field made him stand out as a good candidate. But Huddleson noticed other factors that led him to hire Foster just a little more than a month after his first interview.
“Jason has a can-do attitude that made him a perfect fit for the position,” Huddleson said. “He starts with ‘Yes’ and because of that I think he will be able to accomplish a lot for the county.”
Under Henry, the development department thrived and evolved. Huddleson wanted to make sure whoever filled the position would keep the progress alive.
“There is nothing broken that needed to be fixed,” Huddleson said. “I just asked Jason to continue the momentum of what has been going on.”
On Aug. 12, Foster officially began his position.
In the past month, Foster met with people across Greene County including real estate agents, business owners, and community leaders. The message he spreads: We are here to help.
“The development business is a lot of relationship building,” Foster said. “Finding out the people’s needs, and our ability to help them with those needs, is key. That may not have always been their thought process, but we are here to help them grow and succeed. If everybody in the county succeeds as a region, everybody wins and that’s what we’re all here for, to make the community better for everybody that lives here.”
