The City of Rahway, Special Improvement District is seeking an Executive Director. Application deadline is Friday, August 21, 2026, at 5 pm but qualified candidates can be interviewed prior. The Executive Director will be responsible to the Board of Directors and report to the City of Rahway's Business Administrator. This is a Full-Time position working 35 hours per week and can be flexible with occasional evening and weekend hours. A pension and benefit package is offered along with vacation, sick and holiday pay.

Background on Rahway SID:

The Rahway SID manages the downtown Special Improvement District (SID), which encompasses the entire City of Rahway and over 600 businesses. The SID has a $475,000 dollar budget and supports a wide range of activities designed to establish downtown Rahway as a competitive location for business owners, an engaging center for workers and visitors, and a wonderful place to live. Our activities include hosting quality events and activities for residents and visitors; marketing our downtown businesses and organization; retaining and recruiting local businesses; and assuring that our downtown district is clean and always welcoming.

Professional Qualifications

The ideal candidate possesses:

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent professional experience in public administration, finance, marketing, public relations, communications, economic development, or nonprofit management.
• Minimum 5 years of experience in a leadership role. Equivalent experience must include broad fiscal and management responsibility for an over $500,000 organizational budget.
• Exposure to and a passion for community development, public safety, urban design, city planning, and economic development programs is a plus.
• Strong working knowledge of finance, budget management, contract negotiation, and fiduciary responsibilities.
• Strong supervisory skills, working with five or more employees and several contractors, with an emphasis on effective team building.
• Ability to listen and work with an active Board, the SID membership (businesses, property owners), and community and government leaders and advocates.
• Experience working in economically and racially diverse communities.
• Experience identifying and recruiting new businesses and assisting with business expansion efforts.
• A technology savvy, high energy, multi-tasker, with experience with and the Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, Access).
• Must be a New Jersey resident.

The following professional qualifications are not required but are preferred.

• Master's degree in any of the above-mentioned fields.
• Experience leading a nonprofit organization.
• Background working for a NJ Special Improvement District, business improvement district, or Main Street organization.
• Work experience in New Jersey, Union County, and/or Rahway, NJ.
• Bilingual fluency in Spanish a plus.
• A valid local driver's license.

Range of Duties

Primary responsibilities include the following. Other duties may be assigned.

Partnership Development

• Collaborate with other organizations such as UCEDC, Central New Jersey SCORE, New Jersey Business Action Center, and other partners.
• Develop Partnership Agreements that are approved by the board that clearly lay out roles, responsibilities, and policies to guide partnerships developed.

Economic Development

• Direct the economic development efforts of the organization including business retention, expansion, and attraction.
• Proactively reach out to potential merchants and property owners that may be seeking to open a business or purchase a building downtown.
• Work in partnership with City of Rahway departments on supporting business development and real estate development.
• Support the strengthening of the entrepreneurial ecosystem, supporting growth of businesses at every stage of the life cycle.

Placemaking/Urban Design/Tactical Urbanism

• Assure that downtown Rahway 's public realm is clean, safe, and attractive by offering compelling streets, sidewalks, and public spaces that appeal to a variety of users.
• Create and promote events that activate the downtown streets through performances, music, art making, and other activities.

Marketing, Public Relations and Events

• Lead and oversee all marketing efforts that support Rahway SID branding, advertising, public relations, activities and event development, with an emphasis on promoting a positive customer and visitor experience for Rahway residents and visitors.
• With Rahway SID staff, develop and maintain a comprehensive marketing plan that is actionable and measurable and contribute monthly statistics of key performance indicators for board review.
• Secure support from a combination of staff and contractors, or entirely with contractors to carry out the work of marketing Rahway SID and the City of Rahway.

Public Relations and Advocacy

• Advocate and lobby on behalf of Rahway SID interests.
• Function as a liaison to SID members, local government, and community organizations on issues as directed by the Business Administrator and SID Board.
• Present quarterly at City Council and other community partner meetings as needed.
• Function as Rahway SID spokesperson to the membership, stakeholders, media, and the general public.

Human Resources

• Currently there are three full-time staff members, and two maintenance staff members that are supervised by the SID and jointly with the Parking Authority.
• Monitor performance of staff through annual or more frequent review process.
• Help staff understand their role within the organization and give clear and measurable goals and deliverables that staff are responsible for executing on.
• Hold a weekly all hands staff meeting as needed to promote positive communications across the organization.

Responsibility to the Board of Directors

• Report directly to the City of Rahway Business Administrator.
• Recommend policies to the board and assist board in the formation of policies for effective Rahway SID operations.
• Serve as a nonvoting member of the Executive Team of the Board of Directors; attend all meetings and function as primary liaison between staff and board.
• Organize and attend all scheduled meetings of the board, standing teams, and ad hoc teams.
• Prepare meeting notices and agendas with the Board Chair and maintain the official record of board and team activities.
• Oversee day-to-day operations, management, and fiscal solvency of Rahway SID.
• Implement policies adopted by the board.
• With the board, establish and execute a new five-year strategic plan, setting clear priorities and deliverables.
• Provide the board with monthly key performance indicators which will assist the board in making informed decisions.

Fiscal Responsibilities

• Direct all financial activities of the organization.
• Ensure that all financial records and practices are available to board members, SID members, and the public as required.
• Prepare annual budget for board approval and authorize expenditures.

Application Process

Qualified applicants should submit the following materials as one (1) PDF document:

• Cover Letter with phone number, email address and compensation requirements.
• Personal Resume or CV
• Three (3) Work References including name, email address, and phone number
• Two (2) brief (1 - 4 pages) samples of your writing (a grant application, an article, short report, press release, etc.).

Pre-employment drug screen, background checks and driver's license abstracts are performed. If further details of the position are needed, please contact the Assistant to the Business Administrator, Anthony Armando at [email protected]. No telephone inquiries please.

Interested candidates should submit a cover letter with compensation requirements and the subject line "SID-Executive Director" and include salary requirements, resume, three work references; via email or regular mail by Friday, August 21, 2026 at 5 PM to:

[email protected]

or

Michelle Dalesandris, Human Resource Director

City of Rahway

67 Lewis St, 2nd Fl.

Rahway, NJ 07065