Staff Bios and Assignments
In an effort to help our membership better understand what Maingate does, below are the Maingate staff biographies and responsibilities. Michael May and Callie Cripps are full-time staff with the assistance of our part time personnel.
Michael May, Executive Director
Michael May has been Executive Director of the Maingate non-profit economic development corporation for the past eighteen months. A native Clevelander, Michael has over 28 years of experience in urban planning, inner-city redevelopment and development project management. Prior to leading Maingate, he was President of Urban Economics, Inc., a private consulting firm specializing in real estate development, brownfields reclamation, master planning and government and civic inner-city project financing.
Michael has also held executive posts with numerous area business and community revitalization organizations – among them MidTown Cleveland, Inc., Doan Center., Inc., Neighbors Organized for Action in Housing, and University Circle, Inc. He is a graduate of Cleveland State University’s Levin College of Urban Affairs, and received his Master of City & Regional Planning Degree from Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design.
Michael has received various professional and civic awards over the years for his successful work in advancing the Cleveland community’s & Northeast Ohio region’s redevelopment and growth, including a CSU – College of Urban Affairs Distinguished Alumni Award and a Preservation Advocacy Award from the Cleveland Restoration Society.
Callie Cripps, Associate Development Planner
As a native New Yorker, Callie attended Monroe Community College and received her certification in Visual Communications in 2003. Prior to her internship, and later full time employment with Maingate, she was a studio photographer and held various management positions in retail. Callie recently graduated from Cleveland State University and received her bachelor’s degree in Urban Planning & Management from the Maxine Goodman Levin College of Urban Affairs. She is a member of the American Planning Association, Cleveland Chapter and the 20-30 Club for Young Professionals.
Callie started working at Maingate in the Spring of 2008 as an intern through the Center for Neighborhood Development at Cleveland State. Since that time, she has advanced from her internship position and is currently Maingate's Associate Development Planner. She has assisted in the coordination and implementation of various membership and development programs throughout her time at Maingate. She planned and organized the 2008 Annual Meeting as well as many other events and projects. She also provides daily assisitance to numerous businesses within the 5 square mile district in need of consultation, advice and support.
In her current capacity as Associate Planner she has worked with executive staff in the development of the Maingate Wholesale Food District. Her role, more specifically, has been mainly to create and develop with professional assisting from our architects the Maingate MarketPlace.