According to a June 7 news release from Partnership Lake Houston, Mitchell is leaving to join Katz, Sapper & Miller, an accounting firm that provides consulting, tax and audit services. He will serve as president of its location advisory subsidiary, per the release.
Mitchell's last day with Partnership Lake Houston will officially be June 18, but he will remain at the organization until his replacement is hired this summer. The organization has already started the process of finding a new president of economic development.
In a statement in the release, Partnership Lake Houston CEO Jenna Armstrong said Mitchell has been a "driving force" in the organization that helped businesses grow, created more jobs and was instrumental in helping the region recover from Hurricane Harvey in August 2017 and the COVID-19 pandemic.
“He has dedicated the last four years to helping our businesses and economy grow, and for that our entire community owes him a debt of gratitude," she said.
Mitchell was hired as president of the then-named Lake Houston Area Economic Development Partnership in April 2017, replacing Charlie Dromgoole. The organization merged with the Lake Houston Area Chamber of Commerce in October to become Partnership Lake Houston, and Mitchell earned the title of chief economic development officer.
In a June 8 email, Mitchell said he moved to the Lake Houston area from Michigan in 2008 and worked for two accounting firms—senior manager at Ernst & Young and senior director at RSM—and a financial services start-up company as senior vice president of government affairs before working for the economic development partnership.
Mitchell thanked Armstrong, the economic development partnership's advisory board, the chamber's board of directors and other community partners such as the city of Humble for trusting him to lead local development efforts for more than four years.
“It’s been an honor and a privilege serving in this community the past four years," he said. "The friendships, partnerships and collaborations are a true testament to the Lake Houston area and its resiliency and pro-business environment.”
