FAYETTEVILLE -- Marilyn Heifner, executive director of the Advertising and Promotion Commission for the past 22 years, is ready to retire.
Heifner tendered her resignation, and the commission accepted it during a meeting Monday.
At A Glance
Job Summary
An advertisement for Marilyn Heifner’s replacement, states:
“Under the general direction of the Advertising and Promotion Commission, the executive director is responsible for the effective administration of A&P operations, including the Town Center (a convention complex), the Clinton House Museum and the Convention and Visitors Bureau. Activities include development, planning, operations, budgeting, personnel management and developing/maintaining the A&P Commission’s external relationships.”
Source: Fayetteville Advertising and Promotion Commission
"I'm 67. My mother's 93," Heifner said following the meeting. "Now I can spend time with her and my family."
"We've got the organization in place," she added. "We have great employees, a great commission and everything's running like clockwork. ... I feel really good about it."
Under Heifner's watch, the commission has collected nearly $36 million in hotel, motel and restaurant taxes. The money has been used to build the Fayetteville Town Center and outfit the Clinton House Museum. It helped develop the Botanical Garden of the Ozarks, build the Gary Hampton Softball Complex and beautify the downtown square. The money has been used to market dozens of events, including Bikes, Blues & BBQ, a Fourth of July fireworks display, the Joe Martin Stage Race and Last Night Fayetteville.
Voters approved an up to $11.9 million bond issue in November that will refund outstanding Town Center debt, help pay for expansion and renovation of the Walton Arts Center and help pay for the first phase of a regional park. Bonds will be repaid over the next 25 years using the city's 2 percent tax on hotel stays and food purchases in restaurants.
"It has been a great pleasure to promote Fayetteville, a city that I love," Heifner said in her resignation letter. "I leave behind a legacy that I am immensely proud of."
Commissioners voted Monday to form a search committee to find a replacement. The position, which requires a bachelor's degree, five to seven years of relevant experience and a minimum of two years experience in an executive director's role, will be advertised nationally through a variety of sources, including the Destination Marketing Association International and the Arkansas Association of Convention & Visitors Bureaus.
Ching Mong, commission chairman for the past two years, said he hopes to have Heifner's successor in place by Jan. 31, her requested last day on the job.
"They will have mighty big shoes to fill," Mong said. "Marilyn comes with such experience, and she knows everybody around the area."
"We're really going to miss having her as an asset to help us in our decisions," he added.
The salary for the position is listed as negotiable on the job advertisement. Heifner's annual salary is $88,200.
Heifner served on the city's Board of Directors from 1982 to 1989. She was director of sales at the Fayetteville Hilton (now called The Chancellor hotel). And she used to teach English at Fayetteville High School.
NW News on 09/16/2014