The man hired to lead the burgeoning public-private Louisville Economic Development Alliance will be paid a base salary of $350,000 and receive nearly $60,000 more in incentives, according to a copy of his contract obtained this week by the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting.
The alliance’s board of directors unanimously selected Trevor Pawl to lead the group, dubbed LEDA, during a board meeting in February. Details of his contract have not before been made public.
Pawl previously served as the chief mobility officer for the state of Michigan. Pawl directed questions to a city spokesperson.
While his salary is listed in a city employee salary database, spokespeople for Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg said Pawl is not a city employee. Instead, Pawl’s salary is paid by LEDA, a group Greenberg launched last year and currently helps lead as board president. The Metro Council helped jumpstart the group with a $1.5 million taxpayer fund allocation last July.
Still, Pawl’s role will be deeply linked with the work and systems of the city.
Several other LEDA employees are city employees — including LEDA’s executive vice presidents Josh McKee and Keshia Swan, each paid $120,000 annually, according to the database. McKee and Swan “report to and work under the direction” of Pawl, said Kevin Trager, a spokesperson for Greenberg.
Louisville Metro Government also handles an array of administrative tasks, technology support and financial services for LEDA: The city provides email services and some computers, responds to press inquiries and open records requests, and issues invoices and bid requests, according to an agreement between local government and LEDA.
Trager said city government also handles onboarding, payroll and human resource functions for LEDA.
And when Greenberg announced Pawl’s hire, he did so in a city-issued press release. When the city’s television service interviewed Pawl about his new role, he wore a lapel pin emblazoned with the city’s seal. His office is in a city-owned building on South 5th Street.
A bulk of LEDA’s future funding is expected to come from board member dues. The 60-member board includes some of the region’s most influential executives, developers, attorneys and bankers. Each pays between $5,000 and $100,000 for a seat on the board, according to documents obtained last year by KyCIR.
LEDA’s mission is to reshape how Louisville attracts and retains business. The group met scrutiny even before board members filed paperwork with the Kentucky Secretary of State last July activating it as a nonprofit organization.
As Metro Council members weighed whether or not to back the group, a former city employee filed an ethics complaint alleging LEDA would steer taxpayer dollars to powerful private developers. Local lawmakers then criticized the group after KyCIR reported LEDA’s board selected a bank with close ties to several board members to manage its finances.
Before taking the top job at LEDA, Pawl spent three years as chief mobility officer for the state of Michigan. He left that job in 2023 after a health scare, which renewed his focus on family and prompted him, his wife and children to embark on a trip around the world visiting 16 countries, according to his public LinkedIn page. He also worked for the Michigan Economic Development Corporation for seven years, earlier in his career.
Pawl told the Detroit Free Press last month that he chose a career in economic development because he “needed a career path that mattered, one that helped save jobs, and reimagine communities.”
“So I went after it,” he said. “My career mission has been to help communities become resilient and prosperous.”
In addition to the base salary, Pawl will get a $600 monthly vehicle allowance, a $2,000 temporary housing allowance for up to six months and a $25,000 relocation bonus, according to the contract.
Greenberg, in a text message from his spokesperson, said he is confident Pawl “is worth every penny he is getting.”
His salary is based on “market-based data compared to public/private partnerships of similar size, while accounting for his experience and qualifications,” said Conroy Delouche, a spokesperson for the city’s economic development cabinet.
When city officials pitched their plan for LEDA, they cited the Cincinnati Center City Development Corporation as the “perfect example of the capabilities and impact that a successful economic development public-private partnership could have on a metropolitan region.”
In 2023, that group paid its president and chief executive officer, Stephen Leeper, more than $550,000, according to tax documents.
That same year, in Columbus, Ohio, a nonprofit led by 70 business and institutional leaders paid its president and chief executive officer, Kenneth McDonald, more than $830,000.
Locally, the Greater Louisville Foundation, a nonprofit focused on growing Louisville’s business sector, paid its president and chief executive officer, Sarah Davasher-Wisdom, more than $375,000 in 2023, tax records show.
The top paid city employee in Louisville is Paul Humphrey, the Louisville Metro Police chief, with a salary of $245,425, according to the city database. Daniel Maloney, the Louisville Zoo director, is paid $208,494.
Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg is paid $154,432. His chief of staff, David Kaplan, is paid $183,750, according to city records. Three deputy mayors — David James, Nicole George and Dana Mayton — each make $177,675.
Andy Beshear is paid $179,442, according to a public database of state employees.
The median household income in Kentucky is about $62,500, according to the U.S. Census.
Correction: This report has been updated with the correct spelling of Keshia Swan's name.
