SALISBURY — Do over.
Downtown Salisbury Inc. has scrapped two finalists for the executive director’s position and will start the search over from scratch.
In the meantime, DSI has hired former board president Paula Bohland to lead the organization on a month-to-month basis. Bohland, who lives in Salisbury and owns and operates Community Integration Training, will work about 20 hours a week and earn $3,500 a month, said Mark Lewis, board president.
Lewis said the DSI board could not come to a consensus to hire either finalist for the top job. He would not name the candidates.
Lewis also said DSI “blew it” by failing to host the annual New Year’s Eve celebration at the Bell Tower and apologized to the community. He said he and the board did not realize the historic significance of the event and thanked the city for stepping in at the last minute to host the festivities.
Downtown Salisbury Inc., which has been operating with one part-time employee, has stumbled since former executive director Randy Hemann left in April to become the city manager in Oxford.
“We are in the middle of a time where there is going to be change,” said Lewis, who is a volunteer for DSI and work full-time as a banker. “Change is painful.”
Read more in Saturday’s Post.