Scott Martinez, Hutto Economic Development Corp. executive director, announced Nov. 27 that he would be leaving his post at the end of December.

Martinez was selected to serve as president of the North Louisiana Economic Partnership and will take over the position Jan. 2. The NLEP covers a large portion of northern Louisiana, including the cities of Shreveport and Monroe.

"This is a wonderful community with wonderful people," Martinez said. "I can't say enough superlatives about how positive my experience in Hutto has been."

During his five-year tenure with the Hutto EDC, Martinez helped bring the East Williamson County Higher Education Center to Hutto.

"Scott's leadership has resulted in many awards and accolades for the Hutto EDC as well as its organizational accreditation," Hutto EDC board President Mario Perez said in a statement. "He was a key person in bringing Temple College and Texas State Technical College to Hutto."

Martinez said his involvement with the higher education center was one of the highlights of his time in Hutto, along with creating an environment for collaboration among various entities in the city.

"That project will be the most impactful of any project I've been involved with in my career," he said. "The thing I'm most proud of in my last five years is the change in attitudes. People work together well now. They've really built a culture of inclusiveness and collaboration here that you don't find in a lot of other communities."

According to a news release, Hutto EDC officials will develop a transition plan during the next few weeks.

"It's my goal to make sure Hutto is in a position to have a smooth transition and to have a process to get a quality replacement on board," Martinez said, adding that leaving is bittersweet. "It's hard to leave a job where everything is positive."