Yonkers Economic Development Corporation

Mayor Mike Spano – Chairman

A lifelong Yonkers resident, husband, father of three, and former State Assembly Member, Mayor Mike Spano has dedicated his life to standing up for Yonkers families.

Elected in 1992 as the youngest member of the State Assembly, Spano proudly represented Yonkers for two decades, fighting for students, protecting taxpayers and supporting economic growth. He led the Task Force on Sex Crimes Against Children and Women (SAVE New York), fought for the passage of Megan’s Law, and secured legislation to protect children across the state. He also wrote the language enabling Yonkers to receive a direct portion of revenue from video lottery terminals at Empire City Casino. It was an enormous victory for Yonkers and its public schools, providing $20 million in direct aid annually for education in the city.

Spano helped create the New York State School Tax Relief (STAR) program and Enhanced STAR, and worked with Governor Cuomo to pass New York’s property tax cap, bringing government in line with what taxpayers can afford. He also fought to pass some of the toughest state laws in the nation to protect children against dangerous sex offenders and violent criminals.

Since taking office as Yonkers’ chief executive in 2012, Mayor Mike Spano has led the passage of balanced, bi-partisan budgets, without cuts to services, while leading the charge in rebuilding Yonkers Public Schools. Mayor Spano also launched one of the most ambitious and comprehensive energy plans of any city in the state – Yonkers Green City – saving taxpayers millions of dollars in energy costs, while protecting the environment.

With a strong focus on job creation and economic development, Mayor Spano is leading Yonkers’ nearly $5 billion revitalization efforts with innovative new projects that are transforming Yonkers’ growing waterfront, attracting new businesses, tech companies and the arts, and creating hundreds of new jobs across the city. Today, Yonkers is the fastest growing city in the state outside New York City, sales revenues are up, home sales are up and property values are on the rise. Yonkers has recently been ranked the safest city of its size in America and in the Top 100 Best Cities in which to live.

Mayor Mike Spano is committed to securing a strong financial future for Yonkers and building upon its greatest strengths – its location, its history, its pride and its people.

Deputy Mayor Susan Gerry – Secretary

Susan Gerry was appointed by Mayor Spano in 2024 as Deputy Mayor. She is responsible for managing City departments and agencies, major policy initiatives, economic development, the joint administrative functions of the City and Yonkers Public Schools, fiscal planning and policy, and capital programming.

She rejoined the City of Yonkers after serving as Senior Vice President for Westchester County Healthcare Corporation where she concentrated on strategic alliances and partnerships, and also functioned as its Chief Development Officer.

She previously served as the City of Yonkers’ first female Deputy Mayor from 2012 to 2017 and also served as Vice Chair and Secretary of the IDA from 2012-2017, served on the YEDC and the CDA Boards.

During that time, she spearheaded the City of Yonkers-Yonkers Board of Education Consolidation Program, led the City’s Rebuild Yonkers Schools advocacy effort, and led the implementation of the Ban the Barges campaign. Gerry also served as Secretary to the Yonkers Industrial Development Agency, as a member of the Yonkers Economic Development Corporation, and on the Executive Committee of the Westchester Municipal Officials Association.

Gerry currently serves as a trustee for SUNY/Westchester Community College, and is Chair of the college’s Governance Committee. From 2019-2024, Gerry also served as a member of the Mid-Hudson Regional Economic Development Council and its Executive Committee.

She received her Bachelor of Business Administration from George Washington University and her Juris Doctor from the University of San Diego School of Law.

Cecile D. Singer – President & CEO

Cecile D. Singer joined the Yonkers IDA Board in 2012 after serving for 27 years as a member of the New York State Assembly. During her time in the Assembly, Cecile was the Executive Director on the Social Services and Judiciary Committees and was a ranking member of the Children and Families Committee. Cecile played a large role on the subcommittee of Family Law, and on the committees of Judiciary, Education, Alcoholism, and Drug Abuse.

Among Cecile’s most impressive accomplishments include her revisions to the New York State Domestic Relations Law and the Not-for-Profit Corporation Laws. She also helped to appoint the Assembly Task Forces on Crime Victims Rights as well as the Hospital Crisis in New York State and Economic Growth. During her term she passed a landmark legislation which provided more disclosure and control for senior citizens by changing New York State’s Power of Attorney Forms. She was a big advocate for women by changing New York State’s archaic Divorce Laws. She later became the Legislative Representative to the Presidential Commission on Privacy.

Following her legislative service, Cecile became the First Director of the Hudson Valley Bank and served as Chairman of the Audit and the Compensation and Benefits Committees. Cecile has taken an active role in the Westchester County community and has founded the Women’s Enterprise Development Center. She has served on the Executive Committee of the Westchester Community College Foundation, Yonkers CPCY, the Westchester County WAB and was a former Chairman of the Westchester County Commission on Public Campaign Financing. In addition to serving on the Yonkers IDA board, she currently serves as President of the Yonkers Economic Development Corporation and President of Riverside Corporation of St. John’s Riverside Hospital.

Victor Gjonaj – Member

Melissa Nacerino – Member

Melissa Nacerino was appointed to the Yonkers IDA Board  in 2015 complementing a successful career in government relations and marketing communications. Melissa earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science with a dual minor in Women’s Studies and Spanish from Cortland College. She started her career in government relations, serving as Director of Communications & Legislation in the New York State Assembly and later Deputy Commissioner on the Westchester County Board of Elections. Following her growing interest in marketing and communications, Melissa went on to earn a Master of Science in Integrated Marketing Communications from Manhattanville College. Melissa quickly advanced in her new career and led the U.S. Channel Marketing team at Avaya, where she built a channel from the ground up at network monitoring and diagnostics firm, Nectar Services. She went on to join the Palo Alto Networks, and served as their Senior Director of Worldwide Channel marketing for 6 years. Melissa has spent over a decade managing highly successful teams and creating impactful partner marketing programs with experience’s spanning pipeline generation, communications, partner programs, and enablement. Now, Melissa is the Vice President of Global Channels & Alliances Marketing for Netskope, a leading cloud security company, and is responsible for building and executing Netskope’s partner marketing strategy.