FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla.
Stacy Ritter will replace the retiring Nicki Grossman as president of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau, according to the Sun Sentinel, a South Florida newspaper.
Grossman announced in October 2015 that she would be retiring on June 1, 2016, after 21 years as head of the Greater Fort Lauderdale CVB. Broward County Administrator Bertha Henry was in charge of selecting the next president of the CVB and said she consulted with others before reaching a decision.
"I wanted someone who could be a strategic thinker, who's a good communicator, who's very passionate about our destination,'' Henry told the Sun Sentinel. “… Stacy's been around, she's tough, she can be very focused ... [and] she has a track record of getting things done.''
The news of Ritter’s application for president of the Greater Fort Lauderdale CVB drew controversy from those outside of the Broward County Board of County Commissioners and even the Sun Sentinel editorial board, who wrote that “Ritter lacks the experience and background needed.”
Ritter is a former state legislator with a law degree, who currently serves as the Broward County Commissioner, though she does not have direct convention marketing experience. She also has drawn some controversy in her current role after facing investigations for claims of “filing error-filled campaign contribution reports,” and “having received a gift from developers seeking project approvals.”
However, the state attorney found insufficient evidence to show Ritter had committed a crime in those two investigations and one other investigation involving a vote on a county health insurance contract.
According to the Sun Sentinel, Ritter will resign her County Commissioner seat to begin her new role as president of the Greater Fort Lauderdale CVB on Sunday, June 5, 2016.
