NORWICH – Commerce Chenango Chairperson Julia Miller is staying tight lipped on the details behind the leave of the organization’s former president and CEO, calling it a personnel matter to be dealt with.

“We understand that many people have questions. As this is a personnel matter, there’s not much I can say,” Miller stated. “We want to respect the privacy rights of our employees so that our resources can be directed toward fulfilling the mission of this organization.”

Former Commerce Chenango President and CEO Kerri Green unexpectedly departed the organization last week. Commerce Chenango announced the search for a new president and CEO on Monday, expressing in a statement its hope for the transition “to be as smooth as possible for all involved.”

In the meantime, the organization’s plugging ahead without an interim president and says it has no intentions of finding a temporary fill-in.

Green’s departure called into question the sustainability of several major projects undertaken by Commerce Chenango and its subsidiaries, the Development Chenango Corporation and the Chenango County Industrial Development Agency. This includes an initiative to establish a boutique hotel at 14-16 S. Broad St. in Norwich, and the handling of a $10 million dollar Downtown Revitalization Initiative (DRI) grant awarded by the Southern Tier Regional Economic Development Council.

Miller said those projects aren’t at risk.

“Our work continues on many exciting initiatives, including the hotel project and the DRI,” said Miller. “We are in close contact with the other agencies and organizations involved with these initiatives and have confidence they will continue to move forward as we begin our search for a new president & CEO. In the meantime, I can assure you that the office staff and Board of Directors are committed to the success of our beautiful county and the City of Norwich DRI project. We are really looking forward to seeing the investments made through the DRI come to fruition.”

Commerce Chenango is actively recruiting a new president to take the helm, posting an ad to its website with an application deadline of Sept. 23. Miller said the organization’s advertising for the position locally and broadly, but didn’t say if there are any prospects.

“Thanks to expertise on our board, we have been able to start our search very quickly,” she said. “We are excited to see what prospects we uncover. There are a lot of great things happening in our county right now which should make this an attractive position for a talented person.”