Mayor Freddie O’Connell has named Benjamin (Ben) York, PE as the first Chief Executive Officer of the East Bank Development Authority (EBDA). York, a senior engineer with 14 years of experience with Metro Nashville, has worked with the Nashville Department of Transportation since 2011.
“I have seen Ben York’s excellent work over the past 14 years at Metro, and his intimate knowledge of the East Bank will give him a head start in his new role as CEO,” Mayor O’Connell said. “I am confident he will help us deliver on the vision Nashvillians shared for what has long been an underutilized part of our urban core.”
In one of his first moves as CEO, York is appointing Anna Grider to serve as Chief Operating Officer. Grider most recently served as a ‘senior urban planner’ with Metro Nashville’s Planning Department, and she led the Imagine East Bank visioning effort, which included the department’s most robust public engagement effort since the 2015 adoption of NashvilleNext. York and Grider have worked together on the East Bank since 2021.
“Anna’s work in the visioning process for the East Bank produced one of the strongest examples of successful community engagement in our city’s history,” York said. “Her expertise in urban design and as a planner will be a valuable asset in her new role with the East Bank Development Authority. I am excited by the opportunity to continue our partnership.”
The East Bank Development Authority will provide continuity as Metro Nashville starts construction on the East Bank and will help deliver the neighborhoods Nashvillians envisioned during the Imagine East Bank process.
Ben York, a Nashville native, was hired by Metro Public Works in 2011, and his role has grown into its current one as a senior engineer. Anna Grider has worked as a planner in multiple cities before coming to Metro Planning in 2016. Her work began on the East Bank in 2020.
“I am thrilled to have the opportunity to see through to implementation the work ofImagine East Bank,” Grider said. I look forward to working with our partners to enliven a part of the city that has long been in need of invigoration.”
