mATT maloney
President of the Board of Directors

Matt has a degree in Brewing Sciences and Business Administration. He has worked in the brewing industry for six years and has been a board member of BDURDC since 2022.

Lisa French
Vice President / Bockfest & Events Committee Chairperson / Museum Development Committee Chairperson

Lisa French has been the Director of Finance and Project Manager for firms in the construction and insurance arena for the past 12 years. Prior to that, she was Director of North American Operations for a UK based firm for 11 years. In addition to her professional roles, Lisa has also volunteered for several organizations such as the Boy Scouts of America, the Cincinnati Volkswagen Club, the Oak Hills Local School District and now the Brewery District Community Urban Redevelopment Corporation. She has also been a tour guide for the Brewery District for 6 years.

Aaron Deininger
Executive Director

Aaron has an MA in Public History, working in the field for more than 15 years. Prior to joining the Brewery District CURC in 2020, he was the Manager of Museum Operations for the Cincinnati Museum Center and the Manager of the Cincinnati History Museum. He has worked on multiple museum exhibit development teams, has spent time in the field on both archeological and paleontological excavation sites, and has extensive experience in historical research and collections management, but most importantly, he won’t turn down a cold beer, if you’re buying!

elliott culter
Marketing Committee Chairperson

Bill BalBach
Treasurer / Finance Committee Chairperson

Bill worked in sales administration for the former Hudepohl Brewing Company from 1979-1988, and that is where he met wife Jayne, who was working in the Purchasing department. Her great grandfather George Kellermann had been a brewer at Hudepohl, and several other family members had held various roles there as well. In 1981, Bill flew to Washington DC and personally secured the federal trademark registration for the revived Christian Moerlein beer brand. His great-grandfather, Wilhelm Balbach, came to Cincinnati in 1889 from the Bavarian Palatinate, and was successively a cellarman, maltster, and brewer at the John Hauck Brewing Company, retiring in 1921 as its former brewmaster. Bill has had a life-long interest in the Cincinnati area brewing culture and history.  He retired in 2018 after 30 years as the Treasurer/CFO at Archbishop Moeller High School and has four children and eight grandchildren.

Kevin Helser
Membership Committee Chairperson

Kevin has a Food & Beverage Process Engineering degree from Purdue University.  He has 32 years of experience as an Innovation Manager leading new, complex transformational projects across multiple businesses at Procter & Gamble.  He’s lived in Cincinnati since 1993 except for a 2-year assignment in Singapore.  Kevin also has a Brewing Sales and Marketing Certificate from Cincinnati State which has enabled a rich understanding of Cincinnati’s amazing & unique brewing heritage.  In his spare time, he brews his own beer and enjoys sharing it with others.  Kevin was also the Citizen of the Year in the City of Wyoming (2024).  Kevin recently moved downtown and is thrilled to be a new board member (April 2025).

Ed Ratterman
Brewing Heritage Trail & Tours Committee Chairperson

City Administrator of North College Hill (1984-89), Economic Development Director of Forest Park (1989-1996), Senior Development Officer at City of Cincinnati (1996-2011). Community Service Volunteer since 2012 with Brewing Heritage Trail, Covington Partners, Southbank Partners, Betts-Longworth Neighborhood Group.

Matt Kotlarczyk
Board Secretary

Matt is a sculptor, working in classic and unconventional, 3-dimensional media-bronze, wood, ceramic, found object, historic buildings. He has works in many public and private collections, including the Cincinnati Art Museum, Cincinnati Parks, The City Of Cincinnati, Procter and Gamble. His artistic abilities extend to his habitable sculptures made of renovated, historic buildings in Over The Rhine and surrounding neighborhoods. Matt is a native of Findlay, Ohio, graduating with a BFA from the College of Design, Architecture, Art and Planning at the University of Cincinnati. Matt, wife, Tamara Harkavy, creator of ArtWorks, and Charlie, the dog, live in his most recently completed project in Over The Rhine, while son, Ben Sloan-expert percussionist, producer and visual artist, and daughter-in-law-Bizzy Young-expert documentary filmmaker and cinematographer circle the universe.

Jeff Raser
Senior Board Member

Jeff Raser, AIA, is a registered architect who holds NCARB Certification. He has 30 years of experience leading design teams for project types including: community and strategic planning; master planning of mixed use walkable neighborhoods; historic preservation and adaptive reuse; mixed-use and multi-family housing; supportive and specialized housing; and zoning & form-based codes. Jeff’s focus is on Urban Design – specifically the design of pedestrian oriented, mixed-use places. He consults with communities, real estate developers, municipalities, non-profit organizations and businesses, and frequently lectures on various urban design topics throughout the Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana area. Jeff’s professional affiliations include: the Urban Land Institute, the American Institute of Architects, Congress for the New Urbanism, the Cincinnati Brewery District, as well as a number of other non-profit and professional organizations. Jeff was the co-Chair of CNU-32, a national conference of placemakers held in Cincinnati in 2024.

Kallie Halas

Kallie Halas is a Cincinnati native who grew up in the northern suburbs and now works in digital marketing for a technology company, specializing in account-based marketing and large-scale customer audiences. She is a graduate of the University of Cincinnati. Outside of work, Kallie loves playing tennis, spending time with her dog, Titan and being with family and friends. 

Becca Ransohoff

Becca is the Assistant Quality Assurance Manager at the Sam Adams production facility in OTR, where she ensures that only the highest quality beer and beyond beer products reach consumers. She began her brewing career in 2016 at MadTree Brewing, where she helped develop the brewery’s quality, sensory, and product development programs before joining Sam Adams in 2022. Becca also teaches the Sensory Evaluation course for the Cincinnati State Brewing Science Program. A lifelong Cincinnatian, she has a deep appreciation for the city’s rich brewing heritage and the abundance of great beer it offers. In her free time, Becca enjoys exploring Northside with her partner, traveling, and relaxing with her dogs while solving the latest New York Times Crossword.

Rich Vanatsky

Rich serves as Director of United Performance Metals International division. UPM is a specialty metals company that serves Aerospace and other industries. He started his career at GE Aerospace holding roles in Global Sourcing and Product Support. Rich also spent eight years at consulting firm, Accenture, in their Aerospace and Strategy practices. He has over 30 years of Aerospace & Defense supply chain and business development experience. He holds an MBA from The Wharton School and a BA from the University of Cincinnati. Rich and his wife, Sandy are residents of Cincinnati’s OTR and Brewery District. 

Albert Vontz IV

Albert is the President of Heirloom Holdings, a Cincinnati-based family office. He was previously the Co-Chairman and a fourth-generation family member of the Heidelberg Distributing Company, a leading beer, wine and spirits company in Ohio and Kentucky. He obtained his JD/MBA from the University of California – Davis in 2017 and currently resides in the Prospect Hill neighborhood of Cincinnati. He can most often be found enjoying craft beers, playing tennis, going to concerts, or admiring historic architecture.

Mark Westbrook

Mark is a Creative Director with over 15 years of agency experience working with Fortune 50 brands to startups. He has done work with iconic Cincinnati institutions like the Contemporary Arts Center, Taft Museum, Cintrifuse, Holocaust and Humanity Center, and the Cincinnati Public Library. After over a decade working at local design firm, LPK, he is currently the Sr. Creative Director for a financial-based family of companies where he leads the creative vision and design across a diverse set of brands. He is a graduate of Ohio University and lives in OTR with his wife, Katie, and son.

Kanah Johnson
Assistant Director

Growing up in Louisville, Kentucky, Kanah moved to attend the University of Cincinnati in 2019. In 2024, he graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Public History and a certificate in Museum Studies. While still in school, he interned at the Brewing Heritage Trail. After which, he continued to volunteer for BHT as a tour guide and at events such as Bockfest. Kanah also has experience in research and collection management through his internships at 5/3rd’s Museum and years of volunteering at the Cincinnati Museum Center. Kanah’s two big passions are history and food, enjoying nothing more than a good meal with friends and family where the conversation is witty and fun.

TBD

We’re actively seeking candidates to fill this open board position.