Fort Worth October Meeting: What in the World is Going on in Grand Prairie

What in the World is Going on in Grand Prairie | Economic Development Director Marty Wieder

Marty Wieder has been Director of Economic Development with the City of Grand Prairie since May 2016. Prior to joining the City, he served as Director, Economic Development with the City of Colleyville for almost 7 years. Marty also previously worked with GSBS Architects as Director of Marketing, Planning & Project Development (where he earned his American Institute of Certified Planners credentials), as well as either Director, President or in economic development-related positions with the City of North Richland Hills (NRH), the Northeast Tarrant and Arlington Chambers of Commerce and at the North Central Texas Council of Governments (NCTCOG). 

Marty grew up in Arlington, Texas—where he observed the work of (and early in his career got the opportunity to work with) longtime Mayor and then-Congressman Tom Vandergriff. Marty attended the University of Texas at Arlington, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in communication (1983) and later a master’s degree in urban affairs (1988). He began teaching as an adjunct professor in the Master of Public Administration program at UTA’s College of Architecture, Planning and Public Affairs in 2021.

Marty is a member of the International Economic Development Council, American Planning Association and its Economic Development Division, Urban Land Institute and International Council of Shopping Centers and its Community Advancement Advisory Committee. He is a Director on the North Texas Commission Board and is a Class 4 (2012-13) graduate of the Commission’s Leadership North Texas program. He also serves as the first Board Chairman of the North Central Texas Economic Development District (NCTEDD).

The Fort Worth Business selected Marty to its first “Top 40 under 40” List in 1994. The Texas Career and Technology Council & Vocational-Technical Education Foundation of Texas recognized him and other NRH officials in 1999 as "Best in Texas" for supporting the Birdville Independent School District. The Northeast Tarrant Chamber granted him Chairman’s Awards in 1994 and 2001 for fostering economic development programs (which the Texas Chamber of Commerce Executives recognized in 2001 as “Best in the State”) and its Gertrude Tarpley Director of the Year Award in 2003. The University of Texas at Arlington selected him to be among the Recognized Alumni of the School of Urban & Public Affairs in 2013 and the Colleyville Area Chamber of Commerce granted him their Leadership Award in 2015.

Marty and his wife Bonnie have four children and five grandchildren. 

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