Cincinnati Parks Director Kara Kish resigned Wednesday via letter, effective Thursday.
The resignation was announced Wednesday during a special park board meeting, in which the resignation was unanimously accepted. The board immediately moved to appoint Kish's interim replacement, John Neyer.
Neyer is CEO of Neyer Management, a property management company. Neyer served 12 years on the Cincinnati Parks Foundation, two of those as foundation president.
Kish is leaving with a settlement, but details of it have not yet been made available to the public nor has Kish's personnel file. Both have been requested by The Enquirer.
Neyer is the fourth Cincinnati Parks director in four years. Longtime park director Willie Carden Jr. resigned in 2017. He was followed by Wade Walcutt, who resigned in October 2019 after holding the job for two years. Walcutt was replaced with Kish, who also served two years.
Walcutt left the city with a $39,528.88 settlement, plus unused vacation and sick time, The Enquirer previously reported.
A national search will be made to replace Kish, said Park Board President Jim Goetz.
Goetz said the position of director is "a very, very complex position."
"I think the board is learning more about just how complex that that position is," Goetz said. "We have consistently tried to do what we can to effectively lead this organization. And Kara's resignation has put before us an opportunity to step back a little bit and put an interim in place from the outside to give us some time to really look from a national standpoint in making sure that the next person that's in the director's role is the right person."
Neyer will paid $162,000 a year, the same as Kish
“The role of director of Cincinnati Parks is a complex one and critically important to our organization and especially all those who use and love our parks," Goetz said. "On behalf of the board, we recognize the vital role our organization plays for the entire Cincinnati community. We are united in our commitment to finding the very best person to lead us going forward.”
Neyer told The Enquirer, "My goal is to provide a smooth transition and an opportunity for the operational leadership of parks to not be so distracted by the search."
He said he has long been passionate about parks and wants to help senior park leaders get their work done.
"It's easy to sit in the cheap seats," Neyer said. "This is where the heavy lifting gets done, and I'm excited to work with a great group of folks to do that heavy lifting while the next person to fill this chair is located."
Neyer Management is not affiliated with Al. Neyer, where Park Board member Molly North is CEO. John Neyer did work in marketing at Al. Neyer, but that was nearly 20 years ago.
A news release described Neyer, 48, of Union Township, as a "sixth-generation Cincinnatian with a lifelong passion for our parks and greenspaces." He has been involved in the parks in different ways for nearly 20 years, including 12 years with the Cincinnati Parks Foundation where he served a term as its board president. Neyer currently serves as a member of the park board’s Investment Committee.
Neyer said he started his company 19 years ago with seven employees and a "relatively small portfolio of real estate." He grew the company to oversee 30 million square feet of real estate and employee 70 people across eight offices in three states. While interim parks director, Neyer said he would step away from his company on a day-to-day basis.
The parks department has a $15 million annual budget and 200 employees.
Goetz said Kish reached out to North about the resignation in November and noted the board held an executive session on the matter at its Nov. 18 meeting. The resignation, Goetz said, came at Kish's suggestion.
Kish did not return a message seeking comment.
It was North who reached out to Neyer to offer him the interim job.
North described Neyer as "a truly outstanding leader." She added, "I am grateful John took this totally out of this world call."
Park Board member Brad Lindner also spoke with Neyer, according to Goetz.
The hire was in the works before Wednesday's decision. The executive session lasted less than a half-hour. Neyer was part of it. He already has passed a background check.
North declined to comment after the meeting.
The park director reports the independent park board but also works with the city manager as a department director. Neither Goetz nor Neyer discussed the choice with Mayor John Cranley, City Manager Paula Boggs Muething or Mayor-elect Aftab Pureval.
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