The Spokane Regional Transportation Council plans to begin searching for an executive director soon, and it's unclear whether SRTC's longtime leader Glenn Miles will remain with the organization beyond April.

Gary Schimmels, chairman of SRTC's board of directors, says Miles has served as the organization's top executive for a number of years, but late last year, the board decided to create two separate positions to lead the organization: executive director and transportation manager. He says the responsibilities of the top executive have grown considerably through the years to the extent that the board wanted to spread them over two positions.

At a Jan. 7 special meeting, Miles was extended a four-month contract as transportation manager plus three months of severance pay, with the stipulation that the severance could be waived if a new contract is signed.

Minutes from a Dec. 9 SRTC board meeting, at which the board first recommended that contract, say, "It was announced that the purpose of the motion is to get the SRTC board through the first quarter of 2011 with regard to legislative matters, completing the transportation manager's performance evaluation, and reviewing an agreed-upon structure for the organization."

Schimmels says the board has invited Miles to apply for the executive-director position.

"There is a fork in the road here, and there are going to be some changes made," Schimmels says. "It might be seen as a threat to him, but I don't view it like that."

Miles declines to comment on whether he will apply for the executive-director position. According to a profile for Miles on LinkedIn.com, he has been with SRTC since September of 1988.

Schimmels says, "He's been around this for a long time. There isn't anything that moves that he doesn't know about."

The SRTC board plans to begin advertising the position soon and has formed a five-person executive search committee. At this stage, Schimmels says, it's unlikely that an executive will be selected by the end of April, however.

SRTC is the federally designated Metropolitan Planning Organization for Spokane County. As such, it works with local-government planning and transportation departments to ensure cohesive transportation systems throughout the county.

The organization's board of directors includes Schimmels, who is deputy mayor of Spokane Valley, Spokane Mayor Mary Verner, and Spokane County commissioners Todd Mielke and Mark Richard, as well as others in both the public and private sectors.