
MACKENZIE ZONDLAK
Program Manager
734.647.0643
Observatory Lodge Rm 1120
1402 Washington Heights
Ann Arbor, MI 48109
ABOUT MACKENZIE
Mackenzie Zondlak began working in the University of Michigan’s Center for Sport and Policy in 2014. Now Manager, she leads the Center's consulting and research efforts, which focus on the use of sport to revitalize urban areas. Zondlak has assisted or worked directly on projects in numerous cities across North America to frame redevelopment strategies involving sports and culture, including Calgary, Detroit, Indianapolis, Las Vegas, New York, Ottawa, and Tampa. Her most recent book is Sport Finance and Management: Real Estate, Entertainment, and the Remaking of the Business (2018). Ms. Zondlak has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sport Management from the University of Michigan.
Zondlak has produced economic impact, job creation, and development tracking reports and updates for Olympia Development throughout the construction of Little Caesars Arena in downtown Detroit and assisted other Center staff on work involving the Detroit Pistons' move downtown. She became the Center’s lead staff on projects with the Calgary Flames/Calgary Municipal Land Corporation and Ottawa Senators in the efforts to build new arenas and neighborhoods in both cities. Some of her earliest work was for the Indianapolis Children’s Museum, producing economic impact reports for the institution. In 2016 and 2017, Ms. Zondlak produced work for the University of Nevada Las Vegas and the Oakland Raiders related to the economic impact of a new NFL/NCAA stadium. Ms. Zondlak also assisted other Center staff on projects with the New York Mets (Willets Point real estate development), New York Racing Authority, and the Tampa Bay Lightning.