Jeff Hermann
Chair
A resident of Fairfax City since 2009, Jeff is the Section Chief for Site Analysis in the Fairfax County Department of Transportation and has worked in the planning field for over 15 years. His team of planners and engineers evaluate development applications and site plans on their transportation merits and challenges across Fairfax County.
Kathleen Paley
Vice-Chair/ Secretary
Kathleen Paley serves as the Special Counsel for Covington & Burling LLP where she focuses on legal issues facing the firm’s pharmaceutical clients at the federal and state courts level. Previously, she served for one year as the Grant Officer at the International Republican Institute where she assisted with various projects related to democracy education.
Fred Cornett
Treasurer
Fred Cornett, Jr. is the Senior Vice President/CFO of HHH Properties Corp., a real estate firm located in Fairfax, VA. He has over twenty years of retail property knowledge related to the performance, profitability, leasing, and development of retail shopping centers. One of his responsibilities includes the asset management of Fair City Mall, the largest grocery-anchored retail strip center in the City of Fairfax.
Soledad Portilla
Commissioner
A Fairfax City resident since 2005. Soledad has over 10 years of experience in real estate development and management including new deal sourcing and acquisitions. She currently serves on the Board of the Northern Virginia Builders Industry Association and on the Board of HomeAid Northern Virginia.
Tom Ross
Commissioner
Tom Ross is the Principal of Ross Co., LLC. A consultancy that provides marketing, operations, design solutions, and support for retail marketers. He previously worked with Mobil Oil Corporation and ExxonMobil Fuels Marketing Company for over 30 years. Tom held both domestic and global management positions in fuels marketing and convenience retailing. As the Global Marketing Projects Manager, Tom focused on the development and implementation of new retail concepts.
Paula Sorrell
Commissioner
Paula Sorrell is the Associate Vice President of Innovation & Economic Development at George Mason University. She oversees the Office of Technology Transfer, the Virginia Small Business Development Center state headquarters, the Procurement Technical Assistance Center, the entrepreneurial programming at Mason, and business incubators in Fairfax, Warrenton, & Loudoun County. She currently serves on the American Lightweight Materials Manufacturing Insitute, the Virginia Innovation Partnership Authority, and GMU Institue for Biohealth Innovation.
Fairfax City EDO Staff
Chris Bruno
Director of Economic Development, Fairfax City
Director Bruno serves as the City liaison to the Economic Development Authority and is responsible for coordinating the economic development priorities of the City’s leadership with the Authority’s strategic plan.
Danette Nguyen
Assistant Director of Economic Development/Programs Manager, Fairfax City
As the Assistant Director of Economic Development/Programs Manager for Fairfax City’s Office of Economic Development, Danette assists businesses as they navigate various city processes and partners with them on direct-to-business city programs.
Trinh Scott
Assistant Program Manager, Fairfax City
Trinh helps manage Fairfax City’s ReConnected+ and ReConnected Grant Series 1 & 2. She is responsible for the reimbursement process and business outreach.
Emily West
Fairfax City ReConnected Grant Program Manager, Fairfax City
Emily is responsible for the creation of our Fairfax City ReConnected Grant. She handles all applications, guidelines, and the grant program as a whole.
Nikki Lopez
Economic Development Communications Fellow, Fairfax City
As the Communications Fellow, Nikki works alongside Destinee, working on the creation of Social media and the promotion of Fairfax City businesses. She conducts online research and also assists with administrative tasks.
Nancy Montes
Fairfax City ReConnected Outdoor Restaurant Program Manager, Fairfax City
Nancy is responsible for assisting restaurants with an expedited permit approval process to support outdoor dining efforts for reopening the City’s restaurant community.
Ashley Ward-Willis
Legal Intern, Fairfax City
Ashley will be working with us this spring to help strengthen EDA corporate management. She is responsible for researching, drafting, and adopting policies for our EDA.