Carol Marinovich served ten years as Mayor and CEO of Unified Government of Wyandotte County/Kansas City, Kansas. The former educator has gained national recognition for her expertise in economic development and her proven skills in thinking big, forging partnerships, and moving visions to reality.
Elected the first female mayor of Kansas City, Kansas, Carol Marinovich led the efforts to turn around the fortunes of that city. As a first step, she helped to consolidate the governments of Kansas City, Kansas, and Wyandotte County, pledging great efficiencies and lower costs. Voters approved the merger in 1997, and she kept her word, expanding services while, at the same time, decreasing the county’s tax rate by 18 percent.
Among the vast list of her accomplishments is the creation of the Village West retail and entertainment development, which includes Cabela’s, Nebraska Furniture Mart, and a combination of local and national retailers. That development increased the area’s property tax base from $15,000 per year to more than $7 million annually, creating 4,000 new jobs. She also is credited as the driving force behind the Kansas Speedway, now a stop on both the NASCAR and IRL circuits. Village West and the Kansas Speedway bring eight to ten million visitors to Wyandotte County each year from the Midwest region and beyond. Mayor Marinovich also made revitalization of the urban core a top priority, which resulted in new housing, an increase in the number of neighborhood groups from five to more than 130, and a decrease in violent crimes.
For these and other exemplary efforts, Mayor Marinovich has received numerous local, state, and national honors and awards. She has received both the Community Leadership Award from the Points of Light Foundation & Volunteer Service National Network, and the Mayor of the Year award from the Kansas Mayors’ Association. In 2002, Governing Magazine named her one of the nation’s top 11 public officials. In 2005, she was named Kansas Citian of the Year by the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce and also received the Entrepreneurial Legacy Award from Kansas City Small Business Monthly, the L.P. Cookingham award from the Kansas City Chapter of the American Society of Public Administrators, and the Regional Leadership Award from the Mid-America Regional Council.
Mayor Marinovich was elected to the City Council for Kansas City, Kansas, in 1989. Six years later, she defeated the incumbent and a host of other contenders to become mayor. Currently, she serves on the board of directors for KCPT, Swope Health Services, and the Metropolitan Kansas City Crime Commission.
Carol Marinovich joined Fleishman-Hillard as Senior Vice President and Partner, after deciding not to run for another mayoral term. She holds a bachelor’s degree from St. Mary’s College and a master’s degree from the University of Kansas.
