WESTBROOK – Westbrook is about to start seeking a replacement for Keith Luke, former director of community and economic development, but before the position is advertised, city officials are giving the position a few tweaks.
“It’s not (going to be) dramatically different,” said City Administrator Jerre Bryant.
Luke stepped down from his position last month after 31?2 years with the city, saying he wanted to move on to other opportunities. Prior to his departure, Luke had a hand in many new projects, from the acquisition and building up of the Dana Warp Mill on Bridge Street to the beginnings of negotiations to demolish and clean up the former Maine Rubber Plant property on Main Street.
Luke also wrote grants and worked with the city’s planning department on its comprehensive plan. Luke also assisted with creating many proposals geared toward improving the city’s downtown area, which has struggled ever since the urban renewal movement of the 1970s.
Though Mayor Colleen Hilton has trimmed the city’s budget in the past by eliminating or combining positions, she said following Luke’s resignation that the director’s position would not be eliminated, calling it a “priority.”
The newly retooled position, Bryant said, is being described as “director of Business and Community Relations,” and will have a salary range of $50,000 to $78,000. Bryant said the city is looking to emphasize the future director’s involvement in interacting with businesses, community groups and governmental agencies outside of Westbrook on the local, state and federal level.
“The whole thing is, this person (will be) building relationships,” Bryant said.
Bryant said the ideal candidate would have a background in marketing and communications. In addition to the grant-writing and economic planning duties, Bryant said, the director would be expected to help the city better present itself to the public, in particular through its website.
“We horribly underutilize the website as a marketing tool,” Bryant said.
Bryant said he expects the city will begin advertising for the position within the next week or two.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.