Raleigh looking for a new convention center director after staff shake-up

The former director of the Raleigh Convention Center has been demoted after previously being placed on paid administrative leave.

Doug Grissom, who has worked for the city since 1988, is no longer the head of the Raleigh Convention Center. He had served in that role since 2016.

Joe Durham, a former Wake County deputy manager, is now the interim director of the center while the City of Raleigh begins a national search for a new convention center leader.

“There was a changing of leadership and, of course, those are issues that I am not able to talk about,” Durham said. He referred questions about the change to the city’s communications department.

Raleigh spokesman John Boyette said the city does not publicly discuss matters that involve individual employees. Attempts to reach Grissom by phone and email were unsuccessful.

Now, Grissom will report to Durham in a newly created position called Concert Venues Manager. He transferred to his new position on June 1, 2018.

But Assistant City Manager Jim Greene stepped into the convention center director position on an interim basis on March 2.

Grissom’s new position comes with a $13,000 pay cut to manage two concert venues: the Red Hat Amphitheater and the Walnut Creek Amphitheater. His new salary is $116,867.07.

Grissom was selected out of about 60 candidates from across the nation to replace former director Roger Krupa in 2016. Krupa, who retired in 2015, oversaw city venues including the convention center for 35 years.

In the interim, Durham said he will focus on working with the staff to update their policies and procedures and on beginning a safety assessment that will recommend security improvements to the convention center and other facilities.

Durham officially began on June 4 with an hourly rate of $90.

The 500,000-square-foot convention center was built in 2008.

Anna Johnson; 919-829-4807; @anna_m_johnson

This story was originally published July 19, 2018 at 5:46 PM.