HIRAGA WILL LEAD CITY’S ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

●●● Mayor Michael Hancock has tapped Eric Hiraga, Denver International Airport’s chief of staff, to head the Office of Economic Development. Hiraga replaces Paul Washington, who left in March to work as Rocky Mountain region director for the Chicago-based commercial real estate firm JLL.

“(Hiraga) has done an outstanding job at the airport securing new international flights and enhancing Colorado’s largest economic engine,” Hancock said in a statement.

Economic development efforts in Denver have focused on job creation, business assistance, affordable housing, neighborhood redevelopment and worker training. Among the tasks Hancock is assigning Hiraga, who starts Sept. 5 as executive director, is expanding international trade and attracting more foreign investment.