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Youngstown seeks to fill park director’s position
Those wanting to be considered for Youngstown’s park and recreation director must meet minimum requirements:
- At least a bachelor’s degree in park and recreation, recreation administration, event management, natural resources, education/physical education, public administration or aquatic and facility management.
At least five years of “progressive responsibilities in park and recreation in an urban area, management including facilities operations maintenance, personnel management, budgeting, grant writing, aquatics management, fundraising, event management and golf-course operations.”
An equivalent combination of education, experience and training needed for directing the park and recreation department.
Source: Youngstown Civil Service Commission
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Mayor Charles Sammarone
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Jason Whitehead, Chief of Staff for Youngstown Mayor Jay Williams
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DeMaine Kitchen
YOUNGSTOWN
More than four years after Youngstown’s last park and recreation director retired, city officials are preparing to fill the vacancy as early as October.
Mayor Charles Sammarone supports the hiring, something his predecessor, Jay Williams, said couldn’t be filled because of the city’s financial problems.
“It’s a needed position,” Sammarone said.
The city’s Civil Service Commission is accepting applications for the job through Sept. 2 at its office on the seventh floor of city hall, 26 S. Phelps St.
There won’t be a written test for the position. Instead, the commission will grade applicants based on education and experience.
It will be up to the city’s park and recreation commission to hire the next director from the list of eligible candidates provided by civil service.
How quickly a director would be selected is based on the number of applicants and how quickly the evaluation process would take, said Anthony Spano, a park and recreation commission member.
An appointment could be made as early as October, Spano said.
“We need someone who does this job full time,” he said. “I feel it is long overdue.”
The job would pay between $55,000 and $61,000 annually.
Shortly after Joseph McRae’s abrupt retirement in May 2007, Jason Whitehead, then-chief of staff and secretary to the mayor, became the interim park and recreation director.
Jay Williams, who spent about 61/2 years as mayor until his Aug. 1 resignation, and members of his administration repeatedly said the city didn’t have the money to hire a permanent director. Whitehead said in February that “it doesn’t really make sense” to hire a full-time director.
Whitehead earned $74,187 as chief of staff and secretary to the mayor, and didn’t receive additional money for also running the park and recreation department.
McRae was making $70,794 annually as park and recreation director.
City council members have wanted to hire a director since McRae left, but deferred to the administration’s request to wait.
“I’ve seen the administration [in the past] tell council there’s not money for this position and then find money for something else,” Sammarone said.
Williams resigned Aug. 1 to take a job in the President Barack Obama administration and was replaced by Sammarone, who was council president. Sammarone replaced Whitehead on Aug. 8 with DeMaine Kitchen, who resigned as the 2nd Ward councilman to take the new job.
Not only would the new director make less money than McRae, Kitchen is making less than Whitehead — at least for the first 18 months on the job.
Kitchen’s current annual salary is $65,187, increases to $68,187 a year after six months on the job, to $71,187 annually after one year, and then to $74,187 annually, Whitehead’s former salary, after 18 months.