Birmingham's highest profile and most widely respected city council officer is leaving the city after being lured to London by the Olympics.
Regeneration chief Clive Dutton is leaving the council this summer after four years to move to the London Borough of Newham, where he will work as the area builds up to the Olympic Games.
Mr Dutton has been named as Executive Director for Regeneration, Planning and Property at the borough, where he will be responsible for a project that is expected to transform east London in one of the biggest regeneration projects of recent times
During his time in Birmingham he was behind developments like the £600m New Street Gateway project, the new £193m library, and Big City Plan.
He said: “There are very few jobs in the world that would have enticed me away from Birmingham, a city I genuinely love, but the draw of helping to shape the country’s Olympic legacy was one I simply could not turn down.
“I want to help ensure Newham maximises opportunities created by the 2012 Games, Crossrail, London City Airport and Stratford International Station, and am looking forward to the challenge of making the sort of lasting difference to that area that the council’s work in Birmingham is currently making.
“While I will be sad to leave Birmingham, I believe the momentum of the regeneration programme we have established in recent years will continue into the future, and I will take a keen interest in seeing them brought to fruition.”
Mr Dutton, 56, has spent more than 30 years working in planning and urban regeneration in the public, private and voluntary sectors.
He worked as a special advisor on regeneration issues for central government on the Urban White Paper and economic aspects of the Good Friday Agreement in Northern Ireland.
Last month he was presented with the ‘Outstanding Contribution to Regeneration in the West Midlands’ award at the 2009 Property Week awards.
Newham Council’s chief executive Joe Duckworth said: “Nowhere else in the UK is undergoing transformation on the scale of Newham – and it is not just about hosting the 2012 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games.
“Our borough has huge potential for investment, growth and greater prosperity with an abundance of land for development, excellent transport links and a young, energetic and increasingly skilled workforce.
“For Newham the only way is up and we are delighted to have someone of Clive’s calibre joining us.”
