Kim Stoker
Executive Director
906.482.7205 ext. 316
After graduating from Michigan Technological University with a degree in Forestry, Kim began his career at the Western Upper Peninsula Planning and Development Region as an Environmental Planner, where he has remained for the past 33 years. Kim moved up from Environmental Planner to Associate Planner and in 2007 took on the role of Executive Director.
Some of Stoker’s highlights in recent years at WUPPDR include the development of the four high-tech incubators in Houghton and Hancock, including the Powerhouse, the Lakeshore Center, the Jutila Center and the Advanced Technology Development Complex. He was also instrumental in the creation of the Superior Suppliers Network, which was formed in 2009 as an alliance of Baraga County fabricators, machinists and engineers who had seen a steep decline in work over the past few years, yielding one of the highest county-wide unemployment rates in the nation. The Network concept has resulted in creation of over 25 new job opportunities within the SSN. He is currently working on UP Link, a high definition video conferencing system designed to enable businesses in the Upper Peninsula to communicate with each other and to form a connection to Lansing in order to “Do Business Smarter.”