Katie Wood, who has served as executive director for the Downtown Naperville Alliance for nearly 20 years, is preparing to bid the title farewell.
“It’s hard to say goodbye. It really is,” Wood said.
Serving downtown for 17 years
“It started when we first moved to town to Naperville in 1999. It was a next-door neighbor of mine who worked for the [Naperville Area Chamber of Commerce] at that point, and she said she knew my background, which had been in retail marketing and various marketing agency work, and she said, ‘You know, you might be a really good fit downtown.’ And so I started by helping out my predecessor, a wonderful gal named Patty Roberts, and in time, I took her job over when she moved out of state.”
Wood began her role in 2007. After a brief hiatus in 2021, she returned to the position in 2023.
New growth in businesses, events
In her 17 years of leadership, Wood recalled how the downtown area has grown.
“We’ve certainly introduced wine walks. We’ve had fashion shows. We brought back summer sculptures to the delight of so many. We’ve introduced new summer events like River Sounds. We tried Park After Dark. Certainly parades, the holiday parades. All fun things that we just try to create to keep the energy downtown, to keep people visiting and supporting our businesses,” Wood said.
Working with businesses big and small has been a highlight of Wood’s time with the DNA.
“It’s a combination of these big brands like Apple, like Sephora, like Abercrombie and Fitch, and others. But it’s also our wonderful local shops that are here, and that’s really the majority of our businesses are small businesses, from Dean’s, Naperville Running Company, Allegory, Naper Nuts and Sweets, Anderson’s Bookshop. And so downtown Naperville is unique in that we have this blend of both. So it’s just been a joy over all these years to meet these new businesses, to get excited when they open, to support the businesses, to help them out,” Wood said.
Wood to continue to support DNA
Wood will be succeeded by Dawn Portner, who will step into the role on Monday, Sept. 14. Portner currently serves as the city clerk for the city of Naperville.
Though her title will be passed on, Wood’s chapter in downtown Naperville won’t be closing just yet.
“I’m going to stay with Dawn for a while to help transition and show her the ropes, more or less, and then I hope to continue on helping with special projects,” Wood said.
“The DNA is in my DNA, I’ve always said. I love our downtown through and through. I love the people, the people behind the doors, the people that I’ve had the privilege to work with, both at the business level and also at the city,” Wood said. “It has been a privilege, and it’s been an honor to work and to represent our downtown. I hope people continue to support it today, tomorrow, always.”
If you have a story idea, we want to hear from you!
