Suzanne Hopgood is stepping down as chair of the Capital Region Development Authority Board of Directors, following a decade helping to lead one of the most impactful economic development agencies in the state.
Hopgood, a high-tier business consultant, was named chair of the newly created CRDA in 2012. The quasi-public agency has since incentivized the construction of more than 2,500 apartments, created the Front Street Entertainment District and scored many other economic development wins. It has also managed and worked to maximize the impact of the Connecticut Convention Center, XL Center and Pratt & Whitney Stadium.
“It’s been a real honor for me in this period of time,” Hopgood said Thursday afternoon, as she chaired her last CRDA board meeting. “So, I want to say thank you. This has been an incredible time to see some incredible accomplishments in the city.”
Hopgood, who is in her early 70s, joked to other board members Thursday that she recently took a walk around the city to look at the agency’s accomplishments and a police officer performed a wellness check “because I seemed to be wandering aimlessly around.”
Hopgood has an easygoing manner at board meetings and enjoys a comfortable relationship with staff, mayors and other board members. She also has a no-nonsense reputation as a business leader that invested a large part of her career correcting the course of distressed companies.
Michael Freimuth, executive director of the agency, joked Hopgood put the fear of God into him when they first met. The pair quickly formed a strong partnership, Freimuth as the steady, capable hand at the helm of the agency and Hopgood providing direction, support and political cover.
“I’ve grown more accustomed to her since, but she did scare the hell out of me for a minute,” Freimuth joked Thursday. “But I do want to thank her for her partnership and her leadership and, frankly, her flying air cover when it was important to take on some of the harder tasks, be they political or just within the board structure.”
Freimuth said the agency has so far invested about $156 million in housing development over a decade, leveraging another $500 in private investment. The agency also spent multiple millions renovating the XL Center and moving the University of Connecticut branch campus to the Front Street district. It invested $70 million or more in projects outside of Hartford, Freimuth said.
Hopgood submitted her resignation letter – effective June 30 – to Gov. Ned Lamont in March. In it, she cites a “major change” in her personal life and the belief that, after 10 years, it is time for a leadership change.
Lamont issued an official statement honoring Hopgood’s service, which was read into the record Thursday. He has not yet named a new chair for the CRDA board.
