WeGo Public Transit has named Debbie Frank deputy CEO for growth and development and Amanda Vandegrift has been named deputy CEO for finance and administration.
Frank
Frank comes from the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) in Atlanta, Ga., where she served as director of transit-oriented development. Since 2016, she has managed the completion of four transit-oriented developments for MARTA, creating 1,200 apartment units and 150,000 square feet of office/retail space, which generated $300 million in private sector investments.
Prior to joining MARTA, she served as managing partner of Urban Blueprint, a real estate development and consulting firm in Nashville, Tenn., with a primary focus on mixed-use development in emerging markets. She served as the owner’s representative project manager for the Music City Center.
Frank also served as the executive director of the North Nashville Community Development Corporation to promote the revitalization of the North Nashville community in partnership with Fisk University, Meharry Medical College, Tennessee State University and the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce. As a city planner, she developed land use policies and neighborhood redevelopment plans for Nashville-Davidson County.
Frank holds a master of community planning degree from the University of Cincinnati and a bachelor of science degree in urban planning from Alabama A&M University.
Vandegrift
Before joining WeGo, Vandegrift was a partner at InfraStrategies LLC, an international strategic advisory firm. Since 2018, she has led the creation of a Southeast transit financial practice, expanding the footprint to include a multimillion-dollar portfolio with major transit advisory contracts in Charlotte, N.C., San Antonio, Texas, Nashville, Tenn., Atlanta and Savannah, Ga., and Tampa, Fla. In this role, Vandegrift most recently developed the financial plan for Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell’s “Choose How You Move” Transportation Improvement Program.
Prior to InfraStrategies LLC, Vandegrift served as a principal financial consultant for two international engineering and design firms, where she advised several national transit providers, including the Chicago Transit Authority, MARTA. New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Amtrak, Sound Transit and the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
Vandegrift also served as the personal assistant to the CEO at MARTA and in the bridges and structures department at Norfolk Southern. Vandegrift holds a master of science in civil gngineering and a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering, both from the Georgia Institute of Technology.
“The breadth of transit, development and planning experience with Debbie and Amanda is remarkable,” said WeGo CEO Steve Bland. “They are nationally respected public transportation professionals and are well-suited to not only advance the transit needs of Nashville, but also help the city grow in a way that best serves residents.”
