March 6, 2025: The Mansfield Downtown Partnership Board of Directors has named Steven Ferrigno as its new Executive Director. The approval at its recent monthly meeting follows a comprehensive search and interview process.

Mr. Ferrigno fills the role that Cynthia van Zelm held for twenty-two years before accepting a position with the State of Connecticut last April.

Mr. Ferrigno is a well-known business leader in Mansfield, as owner and managing broker of Ferrigno-Storrs, Realtors LLC. He has been an active force within the community serving on the Board of Directors of the Mansfield Downtown Partnership for five years, as well as Chair and a member of the Mansfield Economic Development Commission for eleven years.

“The Mansfield Downtown Partnership Board is thrilled to have Steve as its next leader,” says Kyle Muncy, President of the Mansfield Downtown Partnership Board of Directors. “The great work of the partnership is well-known, and the candidate pool was a testament to the exciting opportunity ahead. We know Steve, we’ve seen his dedication to our community and the Partnership’s work. He knows this market, and what our best assets are in promoting Downtown Storrs, the Town of Mansfield, and our region. We have new ambitious goals, and we are confident that Steve has the commitment and know-how to help us reach them.”

Mr. Ferrigno holds his Master’s in Business Administration from the University of Connecticut and his Bachelor’s from Boston College. Prior to operating his company in Mansfield, which he has operated for twenty years, Mr. Ferrigno worked at Wachovia Securities and Northwestern Mutual Financial Network, earning several securities certifications.

The Mansfield Downtown Partnership is a non-profit organization formed by the Town of Mansfield and the University of Connecticut to oversee the redevelopment of Downtown Storrs, a vibrant, walkable neighborhood featuring a wide variety of restaurants, services, shops, and entertainment. Since the Partnership’s formation, it has been instrumental in attracting new private investments, new businesses, and state and federal funding to Mansfield. In its first twenty years, the Partnership helped to secure over $25 million in federal, state, and private grants on behalf of the Town in addition to over $220 million in private funding from the principal investors of the “Storrs Center” mixed-use development project in Downtown Storrs. Today, over seventy businesses and organizations and over 1,100 residents call Downtown Storrs home.

The Partnership also provides economic development services for the Town of Mansfield. This unique relationship has transformed the heart of Mansfield into a services-rich area for college students and visitors as well as local residents. With the growth of both Mansfield and the University of Connecticut, the Mansfield Downtown Partnership will continue to coordinate strategic development benefitting both stakeholders and the citizen members who support it.

“Having served on Mansfield’s Economic Development Commission and the Mansfield Downtown Partnership Board since 2020, I have a sincere appreciation for our town and its relationship with UConn,” says Mr. Ferrigno. “One of the first goals I focused on in my time on the EDC was trying to find projects where Mansfield and UConn could work synergistically, where both could benefit and ‘win.’ I sincerely believe there are many of these possibilities out there, they just need to be identified and nurtured. We are poised to be one of the premier communities in Eastern Connecticut through this partnership, and I’m excited to lead MDP to achieve that.”

In addition to his work directly with the Partnership, Mr. Ferrigno has served on the long-standing School Building Committee for the new Mansfield Elementary School, is the Chair of the Board of Directors of Mansfield Discovery Depot, and is on the Edwin O. Smith Foundation Board.

Mr. Ferrigno is a life-long resident of Mansfield where he lives with his wife and two children. They enjoy traveling, skiing, fishing, and of course, UConn Basketball.