It’s been an unstable couple of years at the top of the Cumberland Community Improvement District (CID), the first such entity in Georgia whose business owners tax themselves for infrastructure and other improvements to spur economic development.
In early 2018, executive director Malika Rivers resigned after nearly 22 years with the organization. Her successor, former Cumberland CID board chairman Tad Leithead, stepped down earlier this year, after only a few months on the job, when he was arrested for DUI in Forsyth County.
Last month the CID board named an East Cobb resident, Kim Menefee, a longtime executive with WellStar Health System, as its lone finalist, and today her hiring was made official.
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The board of directors of the Cumberland Community Improvement District (CID) announced today that it voted unanimously to approve Kim Menefee as the organization’s new executive director.
Menefee brings impressive career credentials to the CID, having served Cobb-based WellStar Health System in senior marketing, communications and public/government affairs positions for more than 20 years. She led the team that created the WellStar brand in addition to developing the government relations role building strong relationships at the local, state and federal levels.
Most recently, Menefee served as WellStar’s senior vice president of strategic community development. In that position, she was responsible for developing the strategic direction and alignment of community engagement and sponsorship with philanthropy efforts, all of which were designed to secure and expand support for WellStar.
“We are elated that Kim has accepted our offer to lead the Cumberland CID,” said Board Chairman John Shern. “We had tremendous interest in this role by very highly qualified and talented individuals. We were impressed with Kim’s extensive professional experience and connections to the Cobb and greater Atlanta business communities.
“We’re looking forward to a new chapter in the CID’s success story and know that Kim is the right person to take us to the next level,” Shern added.
A longtime and current board member of the Cobb Chamber of Commerce, Menefee served as chair in 2015. She served as co-chair of Cobb’s Competitive Edge (now Select Cobb) that launched in 2013. She has held leadership positions on numerous not-for-profit boards in addition to serving on the Georgia Chamber of Commerce Board of Governors, the Metro Atlanta Chamber Board of Advisors, and Kennesaw State University Community Advisory Board, the latter of which she served as a spring commencement speaker in 2016.
“Businesses are choosing the Cumberland area more than ever before,” Menefee stated. “Through the Cumberland CID’s leadership and investment over the last 31 years, the area has become a booming economic engine for Cobb County now representing more than five percent of Georgia’s total economy.
“I’m looking forward to working with the board, investors and stakeholders to build upon the successes and further cement Cumberland at the forefront of innovation and development. Together, we will continue to create a more dynamic urban center and vibrant regional gateway.”
Menefee holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism from the University of Georgia’s Henry W. Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication.
The 6.5-square-mile Cumberland CID includes part of the Powers Ferry Road corridor, below Terrell Mill Road, as well as the area around what’s now SunTrust Park, the Galleria, Cobb Energy Centre, Cumberland Mall and portions of Vinings.
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