5 key takeaways from the Myrtle Beach Downtown Alliance CEO hiring, read the emails here

The Sun News obtained emails that showed the unconventional hiring process used by the Myrtle Beach Downtown Alliance Board of Directors in finding a new CEO.

The local organization receives taxpayer funds to transform downtown Myrtle Beach.

The trove of emails shows the well-connected influences that manipulated and controlled the hiring using business practices that would be considered outside the norm.

Launched in 2021 as a public/private venture, the Myrtle Beach Downtown Alliance partially gets funding through a new special tax district anticipated to raise $14 million over the next decade.

Here are five takeaways from the string of 125 emails provided to the newspaper on May 19.

1. The chairman and the CEO overlapped in process, recommending each other for top jobs

Jason Greene worked with One Grand Strand, the alliance’s parent nonprofit, as officials sought a new chairman for the downtown alliance’s governing board, emails show.

But information included in a March 20 email from Dan Sine, who was eventually selected to take that position, to city and civic leaders adds some details to the timeline.

Sine was president of the Habitat for Humanity of Horry County’ board that in 2020 hired Greene to run that organization.

“In December, Jason informed me that Clay (Brittain Jr.), representing the EC of OGS (executive committee of One Grand Strand), was seeking a new Chairperson for the MBDA EC and recommended me for the role. In January, Jason arranged a meeting between him, Clay and me to discuss the position,” wrote Sine, in an email to fellow board members.

Sine and Brittain Jr. then met privately three more times to talk about then downtown alliance CEO Amy Barrett’s imminent resignation.

“We discussed the departure of the current MBDA CEO and the potential candidates without revealing their identifies. Although I had some suspicions, it was not until March 15 that Jason disclosed his candidacy for the CEO position, contacting back the (Habitat for Humanity of Horry County) President and me,” Sine said in his email.

Both Greene’s hiring and Sine’s ascent to the lead position on the downtown alliance’s board of directors were announced in April 6 press releases.

Greene’s $180,000 a year job, which could jump to $200,000 through a performance bonus, became official on May 2 through a 14-1 board vote.

Sine did not respond Monday to a request for comment.

2. CEO was given a cache of documents, including detailed financial information, while a job candidate

On Feb. 24, Greene asked Brittain Jr. for several pieces of information “as I reach out to my mentors and talk with my family about the role.”

He requested:

• The memorandum of understanding between One Grand Strand, the downtown alliance and city
• A downtown alliance job description
• Current staff job descriptions and resumes
• A list of employees expected to be hired
• Prior and current year budgets
• Year-end audited financial statements for 2021 and 2022
• The January month-end financial statement
• Current benefits offered to all downtown alliance employees
• Any current, pending and/or suspected legal action against the alliance

“Will do,” Brittain replied by email less than an hour later.

3. At least one board member asked about legal issues but was told not to worry

Alliance board member William Miller on March 31 came forward with several inquiries ahead of a scheduled April 4 special meeting where terms of Greene’s employment were discussed.

Miller asked how Greene’s salary was determined and how it compared to Barrett’s and heads of “non-profit placemaking organizations.”

“If my understanding is correct the salary being offered is a large percentage of the MBDA operating budget. A third of what the MID (municipal improvement special tax district) is supposed to fund,” Miller wrote to Sine. “Do we have any governmental regulations/funding or grants that may be in jeopardy or have policies that dictate the CEO Salary in relation to the total operating budget?”

He also wondered whether the board was “at risk of being sued” if the salaries of Greene and Barrett didn’t align and whether an insurance rider was required for board members.

Sine said Greene’s salary came out of a 2021 suggestion from HRS Inc., a Pittsburgh-based consultancy firm. Barrett made $160,000 with a $20,000 bonus potential when she was chosen as the alliance’s CEO following the withdrawal of a lead candidate.

However, considering two years have passed since this 2021 search, this salary is within the range discussed with HRS and accounts for a 5 percent increase,” Sine replied to Miller. The difference between $160,000 and $180,000 is actually 12.5 percent.

Sine’s salary comprises about 14% of the alliance’s $1.4 million 2023-24 budget.

“The total compensation packages for Amy Barrett and Jason Greene are within the appropriate and expected range, and the risk of the MBDA being sued for the $20,000 disparity is minimal,” Sine said in his email.

4. A Sun News opinion piece delayed the meeting to ratify Greene’s contract

Following an article in the Sun News exploring potential conflict of interest violations surrounding Greene’s hiring, McClatchy opinion writer Isaac Bailey weighed in April 16 with a piece headlined “Myrtle Beach nonprofit’s CEO hiring was a comically unethical process.”

McClatchy is the Sun News’ parent company.

Sine acknowledged to his executive board that same day that the column led him to delaying a planned April 24 meeting to ratify Greene’s contract.

He linked to Bailey’s piece in the email while expressing confidence that Greene remained the ideal fit for the alliance’s future.

“Jason is excited about his new role, and I am confident he will hit the ground running,” Sine wrote.

5. A planning firm that’s worked with the alliance since its inception seemed to criticize the board’s response to the newspaper

In that same April 16 email, Sine said he planned to speak with James Lima, principal of a New York-based planning and development agency, about the executive board’s responses to The Sun News concerning Greene’s employment.

“In a meeting last Friday, he told Jason, Clay, and me that he would have handled the Board’s response to The Sun News differently. I want to hear his insights,” Sine wrote in that April 16 email.

Sine said he had no plans to “respond publicly,” and Lima could not immediately be reached for comment on May 22.

Greene will outline his 100-day vision for the alliance at a May 25 meeting that begins at 9 a.m. at the Myrtle Beach Chamber of Commerce and is open to the public.

Editor’s note: This story was updated May 24 at 3:50 p.m. to include Jason Greene’s first name.

This story was originally published May 23, 2023 at 6:00 AM.