At City Parks Alliance’s May Board of Directors meeting, the board elected four new members. The board also elected a new co-chair and other officers, while recognizing the service of several board members who are term-limited.
Four New Members Elected to Board of Directors
Stephen Bentley (Raleigh, NC) is the Director of the City of Raleigh (NC) Parks, Recreation and Cultural Resources Department, an award-winning Parks Department in one of the fastest growing cities in the U.S. With a career spanning more than 20 years, he has worked for public park agencies at the federal, state, and city levels of government. As Director, he is responsible for overseeing the vision, mission, and values of its system. Over the last decade, Stephen has worked with elected officials and community and business leaders on significant investments in public space improvements across the city. Most recently, he led the city’s efforts in the approval of a $275M voter-approved referendum for parks and recreation improvement.
Stephen Bentley has a Bachelor of Science in Recreation and Leisure Services Management from East Stroudsburg University in Pennsylvania and a Master of Science in Parks, Recreation and Tourism Administration from Michigan State University. He holds certificates from NRPA’s Directors School, North Carolina State University Natural Resources Leadership Institute, and the University of North Carolina Municipal Administrators Program.
Carol Coletta (Memphis, TN) is a Public Innovation Fellow at the Bloomberg Center for Public Innovation at Johns Hopkins University, and former CEO of Memphis River Parks Partnership. Most recently, she led the relaunch of Memphis River Parks Partnership, a nonprofit developing, managing, and programming six miles of riverfront and five park districts. She was initially on loan from The Kresge Foundation, where she was a Senior Fellow in the foundation’s American Cities Practice. There, she led a $50+ million collaboration of national and local foundations, local nonprofits, and governments to Reimagine the Civic Commons in five cities. Prior to joining The Kresge Foundation, Carol was Vice President of Community and National Initiatives for the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. She also served as Executive Director of the Mayors’ Institute on City Design and CEO of CEOs for Cities.
Carol Coletta holds a Bachelor of Arts in Public Issues Management from the University of Memphis.
Sherazad Mehta (New York, NY) is the Associate Principal of Infrastructure at Arup, a global consultancy firm. With 30 years of experience, he has worked on a variety of land/site development and large infrastructure projects. While serving as project manager and lead design engineer on several high-profile multidisciplinary projects worldwide, Sherazad offers his clients a comprehensive understanding of delivering sustainable and resilient infrastructure. His diverse experience and passion is to apply his civil engineering and sustainable design experience to create parks and open spaces that can be enjoyed by people from all walks of life.
Sherazad Mehta holds a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from Polytechnic University and a PE in the State of New York and the State of Connecticut.
David Smith (Frisco, TX) is the Senior Vice President of Sales at Landscape Structures (LSI), a design firm and manufacturer of signature commercial playgrounds. For more than 33 years, David has been leading successful projects, teams, and channels in several parks and recreation-focused companies. Driven by a passion for all things play-related, his primary skills and experience have been in areas related to the design, production, and international sales and distribution of innovative commercial playground equipment.
David Smith holds a Bachelor’s in Communications and an Executive MBA from the University of New Mexico’s Anderson School of Management.
New Co-Chair, Officers Elected
The Board of Directors also elected Al Bangoura, Superintendent of Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board, as the new board Co-Chair, replacing Mitchell Silver, who has completed his three-year term in the role. Al Bangoura will serve alongside Happy Haynes, who is currently Co-Chair.
Additionally, Bobbi Nance was elected Co-Chair of the Development and Membership Committee, Brad Dick was elected the new Chair of the Audit Committee, and David Saltonstall was elected an At-Large member of the Advocacy Committee.
Board Gives Thanks to Long-Serving Members
The City Parks Alliance also bid a fond farewell to two long-serving members who are term-limited off the board.
Mitchell Silver served on the board for nine years. He has supported City Parks Alliance in many leadership roles, including board co-chair. His background as Raleigh’s Planning Director and New York City Parks Commissioner and perspectives from his private sector work at McAdams, an urban planning and design firm, helped shape the strategic focus of the Alliance. He was an inspiring facilitator and speaker at numerous Greater & Greener conferences and events.
Craig Obey served on the board for nine years. During this time, he played a pivotal role as a key member of the Advocacy Committee, guiding the committee’s approach to policy engagement and federal advocacy efforts. Craig also served as Finance Committee Chair and Treasurer and was a member of the Executive Committee.
