This month’s special guest is Burdette (Pete) Fullerton, Assistant Director for Commercial Properties & Development with the Kansas City Aviation Department. He has held this position since 2015. The Commercial Properties & Development Department within the Kansas City Aviation Department works to increase revenues for the department through existing building/terminal leases and real estate development. Pete has been a Community Economic Development professional over 30 years. Before his current position, Pete served as President/CEO of the Economic Development Corporation of Kansas City and Executive Director of the Platte County Economic Development Council in Kansas City, Missouri. In his career, Pete has participated in the completion of projects that have directly invested over $3.5 billion which currently employ over 17,000 in Kansas City.

Pete, in 2017, earned his Doctorate at the University of Southern Mississippi in Human Capital Development with the publication of his dissertation, The Effects of Tax Increment Financing on Assessed Land Values. Pete attended Texas A&M University and received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and a Master of Public Administration from the University of Missouri. Pete holds certifications as an Economic Development Finance Professional (EDFP), Certified Economic Developer (CEcD), Professional Community Economic Developer (PCED) and Certified Return on Investment Professional (CRP).

Pete has received the Chairman’s Award of Distinction two times and was recognized as an Honorary Life Member (HLM) by the Southern Economic Development Council. Additionally, Pete is Past Chairman for the Southern Economic Development Council and the Missouri Economic Development Council. He has also served as an Adjunct Professor in the Graduate School of Public Affairs at Park University.