Five things to know about Canton's new economic development director

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6 days ago

CANTON – Canton has a new person leading efforts to attract new companies and jobs, support existing city businesses and find new ways to grow the city's tax base.
Peter K. Zahirsky has been hired as the new economic development director.
The 40-year-old Cleveland resident, who works under the mayor's direction, is responsible for overseeing business attraction, retention and expansion, job creation, creating and monitoring financial incentives, promoting city assets and providing other help and guidance to businesses and city officials.
Zahirsky, who will earn an annual salary of $115,575 a year, started June 23 and has been working alongside the outgoing economic development director, Christopher Hardesty, who starts his new job as executive director of the Downtown Akron Development Corp. on July 7.
Here are five things to know about Canton's new economic development director:
Zahirsky, an Erie, Pennsylvania native who grew up in Steubenville, was pursuing his law degree and master of public administration at Cleveland State University when a professor introduced him to the economic development workgroup that was helping Cuyahoga County transition to a charter government in 2011.
'I found the field of economic development and haven't looked back,' said Zahirsky, who had previously worked for governmental legal departments and a Cleveland law firm.
Zahirsky, who graduated from Cleveland State in 2012 and passed the bar exam to become a licensed attorney in 2013, said economic development appeals to him because it affects so many facets of life, although most residents likely don't realize it.
"I like economic development because it gives me a chance to contribute to my community and help it advance, and because you are constantly learning new things with every project you work on and every business you help," he said.
Zahirsky spent seven years with the Lake Development Authority, formerly known as the Lake County Ohio Port and Economic Development Authority, which is the economic development arm of the Lake County commissioners.
He largely focused on Lake County's coastal development, such as enhancing public access to the lakeshore and identifying opportunities for Lake Erie-related tourism and private investment.
He left the authority in 2021 to become director of site strategies for Team NEO, the economic development nonprofit organization for 14 Northeast Ohio counties, including Stark.
He focused on identifying industrial sites, responding to leads and site searches and bringing resources together to make sites and buildings in the region more competitive to businesses.
Last year, Zahirsky said he started to miss working with local businesses and communities.
'When you are working at the regional level, you are the middle person between the local level and the state level and nobody likes being a middle man,' he said. 'At the local level, you have your piece of ground to advocate for and fight for and bring wins to it.'
He also wanted more flexibility to help his mother recover from a health issue.
He left Team NEO in November 2024 and opened Green Stone Consulting, where he provided consulting services for site acquisition, utility infrastructure, due diligence and transportation and project financing.
He doesn't intend to continue providing consulting services while working for Canton.
'I want to make my focus the city,' he said. 'There's plenty enough here to keep me busy.'
Zahirsky said he already was aware of some of the projects happening in Canton from his time at Team NEO where he worked with Hardesty.
'I know Chris has been putting a lot of work in attracting data centers,' Zahirsky said. 'I also know there's a lot of activity in redeveloping downtown. I love historic downtowns and this is a beautiful one.'
His immediate goals are to continue the projects and programs that Hardesty has started, support the city's existing businesses and identify other opportunities that could help the city bring in new revenue that will help improve the quality of life for city residents. He said he's already contacted some of his former coworkers at Team NEO about some of the agency's programs that could benefit Canton.
Canton Mayor William V. Sherer II said the city received numerous applications for the position, particularly from business owners. But he wanted someone who already was familiar with annexations, joint economic development districts, tax-increment financing and other incentives that could be used to support businesses.
'We needed someone who could hit the ground running day one, and I firmly believe that we found our guy,' Sherer said. '… I think he's going to be a great fit for the city of Canton.'
Sherer said Zahirsky's background in law and his time working for Team NEO helped his application stand out.
'I would consider this to be a long-term investment,' Sherer said.
Canton's job posting for economic development director applicants said the person hired would need to move into the city limits within six months unless council waived the requirement.
But Canton officials removed the requirement after consulting with the city's law department, which found that the residency requirement conflicts with state law. Ohio Revised Code Section 9.481, which was enacted in 2006, states that no political subdivision shall require any of its employees, as a condition of employment, to reside in any specific area of the state. The law makes an exception for volunteers. Previously, council had waived the residency requirement for Hardesty.
While he's not required to live in Canton, Zahirsky didn't rule out moving to the city.
'I'm looking at my options,' he said. 'I definitely don't want to be commuting for an hour every day.'
Reach Canton Repository staff writer Kelli Weir at 330-580-8339 or [e-mail].
This article originally appeared on The Repository: Peter Zahirsky selected as Canton's economic development director