The Detroit Regional Partnership (DRP) is proud to announce that Shannon Selby, Vice President of Real Estate, was recognized with the Linda Garczynski Brownfields Person of the Year Award at the Phoenix Awards during the 2025 National Brownfields Training Conference in Chicago, IL. This prestigious honor recognizes an outstanding brownfield leader who has recently championed brownfield cleanup and redevelopment to promote and enhance significant community revitalization.
At the helm of our signature Verified Industrial Properties (VIP) program, Shannon leads a transformative initiative aimed at revitalizing underused industrial land throughout the 11-county Detroit region. Under her leadership, the VIP program has grown to an over $17 million program and supported preparation of more than 97 job-ready sites, approximately one-third of which are brownfields, for redevelopment. These efforts include site assessment reports, onsite investigation reports and site activation plans for developers and property owners.
Shannon Selby accepting the Person of the Year Award
Shannon’s strategic leadership resulted in the inclusion of over 2,000 acres of brownfield sites in the VIP program. High-impact projects include the redevelopment of the iconic former Buick City Site in Flint (now the Flint Commerce Center), 200 Mills Street in Ecorse and the former McLouth Steel Site. Her work has accelerated timelines for development, reduced due diligence costs and brought national attention to the opportunities these sites offer.
Today, 33 brownfield sites within the VIP program are under development, supported by more than $1.7M in investment from the program. Shannon has played a critical role in positioning brownfields for redevelopment and helping end users take advantage of these sites’ many benefits – from established utility connections to their strategic placement in areas close to transportation infrastructure, housing and talent. Her partnerships with national developers like Ashley Capital, Northpoint Development, and Racer Trust have positioned the Detroit region as a leader in industrial redevelopment and sustainable growth.
The DRP team is incredibly proud of the work Shannon and her team have done to elevate brownfield redevelopment in our region. This award reflects not only her vision and dedication, but the tangible progress we’re seeing in communities across Southeast Michigan.
For more about the Verified Industrial Properties program and DRP’s work in brownfield redevelopment, visit https://verifiedindustrialproperties.com/search-properties/
