LEDC Board & Staff

BIO for John W. Clary

John grew up as the son of a city manager, so he has been immersed in public service since childhood.  However, in high school, the free enterprise system peaked his interest and, upon graduation from Westlake High School in Austin, Texas, he attended Southwest Texas State University (now Texas State University) and earned BBA in Business Management.

Soon after graduating from college he found the Main Street Program which was a perfect melding of business and government, to effect downtown revitalization.  Mr. Clary started his professional career in 1984 as Main Street Program Director in Brownwood, Texas. After three years in Brownwood, Clary went back to school at Southwest Texas State and earned a Masters in Public Administration.  In 1990, he relocated to Harlingen, Texas where he served as Executive Director of the Harlingen Downtown Improvement District for seven years and won several awards from the Texas Downtown Association including the prestigious award for Best Downtown Management District in the state in 1994.  He also founded the Jackson Street Jubilee festival.

In 1997 he began his economic development career and has worked in economic development positions in Lockhart, Graham, and Temple, TX before joining the Lindale Economic Development Corporation in 2007.  In each position he has played a major role in developing new industrial parks, business retention and business development.

He is a graduate of the Texas Basic Economic Development Course and the Economic Development Institute (EDI) at the University of Oklahoma. He is a member of the Texas Economic Development Council (TEDC), International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC), and the North Texas Commercial Association of Realtors (NTCAR).

His daughter is 21 and lives in Austin. His son is 19 and is in the Army, stationed at Fort Hood. John is a member of the Rotary Club of Lindale and First United Methodist Church of Lindale.  He is an avid sailor, owns a MacGregor 26 sailboat, and is a member of the Tyler Yacht Club.  He also plays golf (but poorly).