He helped make Columbus an Olympic city. Rick Gordon dies at 68
Rick Gordon, the former Columbus Parks and Recreation Department director who helped the Fountain City become an Olympic city, has died.
Gordon, who became a successful real estate agent after leaving city government, died Friday at Columbus Hospice, colleague Shep Mullin of Century 21 Premier Real Estate told the Ledger-Enquirer. He was 68.
In an Oct. 27 Facebook post, Premier CEO Alex Rozwadowski said Gordon was “in critical shape” at an Atlanta hospital. Rozwadowski told the L-E Gordon was hospitalized because of a brain bleed.
“It’s crazy,” Rozwadowski said. “One day you’re talking to him, and the next day he’s gone. He was a pretty amazing human being.”
Gordon was Columbus Parks and Rec director from 1988-97. He was executive director of the Greater Columbus Sports and Events Council for a year before accepting an offer from Mike Bowden to become vice president of operations for Bowden Brokers of Phenix City.
Retired U.S. Army Lt. Gen. and former Fort Benning commander Carmen Cavezza worked with Gordon as executive director of the committee that hosted the 1996 Olympic softball competition in Columbus and subsequently as city manager (1997-2005).
Gordon’s leadership not only helped Columbus shine on the world stage during the Olympics, Cavezza said, but also convert the public-private partnerships into the facilities and organization to host other sporting events that boosted the area’s economy and stature.
“Rick was instrumental in lining those up and getting those put in gear in Columbus,” he said. “He seemed to have a real knack for convincing people to do what he wanted them to do. … I’ve always thought very, very highly of Rick. He made a very positive impact on the community.”
Gordon had the vision to imagine and produce better parks and recreation facilities for the city, including a multipurpose trail system, mostly funded by the Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax voters first approved in 1993, Richard Bishop, who was assistant Parks and Rec director with Gordon, said.
“He did that with a lot of community consensus building,” Bishop told the L-E. “… He saw what Columbus could be with a lot of great community assets. He went about that process in a legitimate way. He developed a master plan.”
And the employees responsible for implementing that plan enjoyed working with him.
“He brought the department to a professional level through hiring great people,” Bishop said. “He put a great team together. … He was a great manager of people. He was just a special guy.”
Rozwadowski saw Gordon’s constructive attitude ever since their companies merged nine years ago.
“He was a great business partner and even better friend,” Rozwadowski said. “… He had a lot of charisma. He was naturally happy and gave out a special energy that instantly attracted people. He also was a pretty savvy businessman.”
In a 1998 article reporting Gordon’s departure from the sports council, then-Mayor Bobby Peters, now a Superior Court judge, told the L-E, “It’s a tremendous loss to the city. We wish him well. He’s been a spark plug. He’s a young, energetic leader that would be an asset to any company or organization.”
Visitation will start at 1 p.m. Nov. 6 in Striffler-Hamby Mortuary, 4071 Macon Road, followed by the funeral service there at 3 p.m., Rozwadowski said.
