Board Members

STEVE RIECK
Executive Director
Nassau County Economic Development Board

Steve Rieck was appointed executive director of the Nassau County Economic Development Board by its Board of Directors on October 23, 2007. He brings more than 35 years experience managing diverse organizations in government, private business and the civic sectors. He has an extensive background in domestic and international business development, strategic planning, marketing, and budget and finance.

Mr. Rieck began his professional career with the State of Georgia in 1974, after graduating Magna Cum Laude with a degree in Political Science from Georgia State University. He served as a budget analyst in the Governor's Office of Planning and Budget during the administration of Governor Jimmy Carter. In 1978, he was named by Governor George Busbee as Director of Planning and Evaluation for the State Crime Commission. In 1979, he earned a Master's Degree with honors in Public Administration from Georgia State, and in 1980, he was appointed Deputy Commissioner of the Georgia Department of Community Affairs. In 1982, Governor Joe Frank Harris appointed Mr. Rieck to be his Executive Assistant for Intergovernmental Relations, where he served until 1984. In 1984, he was appointed Deputy Commissioner of the Georgia Department of Industry and Trade, where he became a key member of the state's economic development team until 1990, when he left state government to start a consulting firm, Southwind Enterprises, Ltd.

In 1991, Mr. Rieck was elected president and chief executive officer of the Clayton County Chamber of Commerce in suburban Atlanta. For the next ten years, he implemented an aggressive economic development program for the county which expanded the county's labor force by over 25 percent, and attracted more than $200 million in new capital investment in manufacturing, commercial/retail and hotel construction. He co-founded Metro South, a six-county consortium of chambers of commerce and economic development authorities dedicated to promoting quality economic development in the southern portion of metro Atlanta. He also co-founded Metro South Golf Charities, Inc., which produced the annual LPGA Chick-fil-A Charity Championship Hosted by Nancy Lopez at Eagle's Landing Country Club in Stockbridge, Georgia.

In 2001, Mr. Rieck returned to Southwind Enterprises, Ltd., where he provided community and economic development consulting services in the fields of strategic planning, marketing and executive search to the company's clients across the Southeast.

In 2003, Mr. Rieck became executive director of the Regional Leadership Forum, metro Atlanta's civic league, convening regional citizens, civic leaders, and policymakers around issues of regional significance for the purposes of education, consensus building, and developing social capital in the Atlanta region.

Mr. Rieck was born and raised near Boston, Massachusetts, but lived in Georgia for more than 36 years before moving to Nassau County in 2007. He is married to the former Nancy Loucks of Miami, Florida and has two children. He is a Vietnam Veteran, having served there as a combat advisor with the U.S. Army in 1970-71. He was awarded the Bronze Star Medal and the Combat Infantryman's Badge, among other decorations. He is a member of the Amelia Plantation Chapel, and serves on the Advisory Board of the Oyster Bay Harbour Yacht Club in O'Neil. Mr. Rieck enjoys boating, bicycling, and international travel. He and his wife live in Oyster Bay Harbour.

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