Mike Simpson: ACC chief energetic and driven

Dedication, enthusiasm and passion are three things that make an excellent leader and three things those who know Mike Simpson say he has in abundance.

The Simpsons moved to Collin County more than 14 years ago and have been serving county residents ever since. In 2000, Simpson was elected as a Frisco city councilman and after serving one term on the council ran for mayor in 2002. He was elected and served as mayor for two terms.

“My wife and I have always been involved in the community in every city we have lived in,” Simpson said. “In 1999, Frisco was considering expanding an existing airport, and I didn’t agree with the plans. I began attending council meetings and thought, ‘Hey, I think I could do that.’ So I ran the following May and was elected.”

Frisco City Manager George Purefoy worked closely with Simpson during his time as mayor.

“Mike was on the Frisco City Council and served as mayor from 2002 to 2008,” Purefoy said. “He is the most energetic person I’ve ever known. In addition, he never meets a stranger. Within minutes of meeting someone, he establishes a rapport which endures from then on. I’ve never met a harder worker than Mike. He is a natural-born salesman. He also is genuine and never false in truly caring for the individual.”

During his time as mayor, Simpson said the largest challenge he faced was coping with the rapid growth the city of Frisco experienced.

“We went from a city of 33,000 citizens to more than 102,000 when I left,” Simpson said. “I had to learn and plan for growth, work with the citizens to find what they wanted the city to become, and work to make that happen.”

Despite the fear and instability that followed the tragedy of 9/11, the city of Frisco, under Simpson’s leadership, looked to the future and passed a $197.5 million bond package the following year. The city passed another large bond package in 2006, allowing the city to build a new city hall, library, a police station, fire stations, senior center, athletic center and the Frisco Heritage Center.

During his term, more than $239 million in roads were built or were in the process.

“I guess the thing I learned as mayor is that you have to have a great team,” Simpson said. “They have to be working together for the same goals.”

Simpson said he has been surrounded by good teams throughout his career, and his group at the Arts of Collin County is no different.

According to its website, the Arts of Collin County is being jointly developed by the owner cities of Allen, Frisco and Plano, along with member cities Fairview and Melissa. Public commitment to the project includes $57 million in bonds approved by residents of the owner cities and up to an additional $3 million in Collin County grant funds. More than $10 million of pledged support from private businesses, foundations and individuals makes up the private partnership and will continue to grow as the organization works to fully fund Phase 1.

During his time as mayor he worked closely with the ACC, which made for a smooth transition into the organization.

“When I found this job was open, I had a lot of passion to get this done and felt that it would greatly help the region,” Simpson said. “I was one of several applicants, and based upon what the commission was looking for – someone who could do fundraising and work as the CEO of the project – they offered me a job and I took it. We have grown tremendously.”

Mary Vail Grube is the administration director with the ACC and has worked with Simpson while he was mayor and now as executive director.

“He has always been full of enthusiasm for this project and is one of its biggest cheerleaders, as mayor and now as executive director,” Grube said. “When he became executive director, he brought a whole new excitement and positive energy to the project that really reinvigorated the capital campaign and has expanded public awareness and support.”

Grube said the Simpsons both put a tremendous amount of energy into the project.

“His enthusiasm for this project, as well as the many community and charitable causes that he and his wife, Sandy, actively support and participate in, is inspiring – and I feel it really encourages others to join in and support the Arts of Collin County and our communities in general,” Grube said.

Simpson was appointed executive director of the Arts of Collin County in December 2008. He is serving in the CEO capacity with responsibilities to raise the final funding needed to start the $69 million project.

Simpson oversees all of the fundraising efforts and strategies and is responsible for community relations, staffing, facility and operation of the ACC. Purefoy, who worked closely with Simpson during his time as mayor, said Simpson was the perfect man for the job.

“I’ve told several people that if Mike had been leading the ACC from the start, we would be planning the ribbon-cutting by now, rather than still attempting to have a groundbreaking,” Purefoy said.

Simpson said the project could benefit a large group of citizens who are not properly represented in the area.

“When you look at the area, there are not very many arts and culture centers here,” Simpson said. “We have everything a family could want but an art center. We have great restaurants, shopping malls; we have every sport covered. We continue to build sports venues; but yet the 50,000 fine arts students [who] want to perform and show off their talents or see professional entertainers... they have to go to Dallas. They have nowhere out here to go. It’s the right thing to do. It’s in the heart of one of the fastest-growing counties.”

Despite Frisco’s hesitancy to sell bonds during the economic downturn, Simpson said he will continue to move forward.

“This is something that we need, something that we will enjoy and use,” Simpson said. “This is going to happen. We will find a way to make it happen; we will find a way for the cities to all agree with the plan or find other ways to get the funding and get it done. You don’t invest that kind of money in the project and not do it.”

Mike has faith that the economy will begin to look up and the cities will be prepared to move forward.

Alice Hobbs of the Plano Symphony Orchestra, one of Simpson’s many supporters, said he is a caring, committed, visionary and enthusiastic leader.

“Mr. Simpson is truly committed to both the city of Frisco and this region,” Hobbs said. “Early on, he recognized the importance and value of the Arts of Collin County project – he knows that this park will round our region when it comes to quality of life for all our citizens. No one is more passionate about the Arts of Collin County and the economic value it will bring to our communities for decades to come. We’re fortunate to have his leadership.”

On opening night, Simpson said he would love opportunity to introduce the hundreds of people who have spent so many long hours to complete the ACC project. But for now, his job is to raise money and get the right team together to prepare for fundraising and opening the center.

After spending a few minutes with him, it’s hard to believe that this go-getter is a 69-year-old grandfather.

Simpson and Sandy are high school sweethearts who have been “going together for 53 years,” Sandy said.

“We met at a church canteen where kids went to dance and socialize,” Sandy said. “He took me home that night, and then we started dating. We went on our first official date on Dec. 17, and the next day he wrecked his car... I always said he had his head in the clouds. We dated all through the Christmas holidays and started ‘going steady’ on New Year’s Eve.”

The two dated throughout high school and college and were married during Simpson’s senior year of college. In his early career, Simpson worked for a printing equipment company that required several relocations. Overall, they have moved to seven different cities and lived in 10 different homes.

The two have three children and five grandchildren. Their oldest daughter, Becky, and her husband, Mike Wiltz, live in Plano with their children Zac, Trevor and Cami. Their son Mike and his wife, Andi, live in Loveland, Ohio, with their children Sam and Mary. Their youngest daughter, Keri, lives in Marietta, Ga. Mike said he had to include their cat Sophie as a member of their family at Sandy’s request.

“[Mike] is my best friend and partner for life and I love him dearly,” Sandy said. “We have been married for 48 years. It has been quite a fun and exciting ride.”

The Simpsons accomplished a tremendous amount in Frisco and have each been named citizen of the year. But Simpson said there is still one more thing he’d like to see complete.

“For all of the great things in the 14 years we have lived here, we have had a lot of really great things happen to us,” he said. “We volunteer in the community, but the Arts of Collin County will be my swan song. If I can get the cities to sell the bonds and move ahead on this, I will be able to sit back and say, ‘Wow.’”

Simpson said this would be his greatest accomplishment.

“I want to be able to look in the mirror and say I may not have been a millionaire or the CEO of a Fortune 500 company; but be able to say I made the quality of life for the people of the area better and through what I did for Frisco people will look back on for years,” he said.

Sandy said she has great admiration for her husband.

“Mike is the most dedicated and honest person I know,” she said. “When he believes in something, he gives it 120 percent. That is how he feels about the Arts of Collin County and what it will mean to all the citizens of Collin County and why he is working so hard to make it a reality.”

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