Norm Schleehahn

Director, Economic Development at City of Hamilton

Speaker

For more than 35 years, Norm Schleehahn has supported Hamilton’s economic development, including the last six years as the City’s Director of Economic Development.

Under Norm’s leadership, the City has secured major investments from companies including Stryker, L3 Harris, Atlantic Packaging, IKEA, and Amazon, strengthening Hamilton’s non-residential tax base and creating thousands of jobs for the community. He also played a pivotal role in delivering some of the City’s most complex and high-profile economic files, including the successful negotiation of the 49-year airport lease with TradePort and advancing the future of TD Coliseum through the Hamilton Urban Precinct Entertainment Group (HUPEG).

Norm has helped shape Hamilton’s long-term economic direction as a co-author of the 2016–2020 and 2021–2025 Economic Development Action Plans. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he served as staff lead for the Mayor’s Task Force on Economic Recovery, and more recently, in early 2025, led the City’s tariff response efforts.

Beyond Hamilton, Norm is widely respected in the economic development community. He is a past President of the Economic Developers Council of Ontario, has served on the board of the Economic Developers Association of Canada, and remains an active member of the International Economic Development Council, contributing to best-practice evaluation across North America.