By Joseph Goral
Staff Writer
jgoral@mihomepaper.com
OXFORD — The Oxford Village Council approved a motion of hire for Kimberly Smith as the Oxford DDA’s executive director in a 5-0 on Nov. 12.
The DDA’s board of directors voted 7-1 last month to appoint Smith to the position, but the hiring needed to be approved by village council. DDA Board Director Rod Charles cast the lone nay vote.
After 30 minutes of discussion, the council approved a motion made by Council Member Lori Bourgeau that adjusted several details of Smith’s employment that the DDA board had proposed.
Smith will start at $62,000 per year instead of the DDA board of directors’ recommended $72,000 annually.
Bourgeau said $72,000 is “pretty close to a max” salary for the position and one to strive to reach. It was also approved that Smith will have opportunities to raise her salary by completing training in subject areas from the Michigan Downtown Association’s professional downtown management program.
The program was created to provide training in knowledge areas for downtown professionals and to elevate their “stature and value,” according to the information about the program. It is a “rigorous and challenging” program to ensure participants earn skills and experience to become a “well-rounded expert in downtown management.”
Village Manager Joe Madore said there are currently 15 subjects to receive training in, with a 16th on its way. The council decided to increase Smith’s salary by $2,000 for every three training subjects completed.
“This will be no problem for Kimberly at all,” Council President Kelsey Cooke said. “She has an exceptional resume.”
Some subjects “may be offered once in a three-year cycle,” according to the program, but the council did not put a limit on how many increases Smith can earn in one year.
The village council also approved retroactively adjusting Smith’s salary to compensate her for working as the DDA’s interim executive director for the past several weeks.
To learn more about the DDA board of director’s decision, read “Oxford DDA appoints Kimberly Smith as Executive Director” in the Oxford Leader’s Oct. 30, edition or on oxfordleader.com.