The ByWard Market District Authority has named Mayan Gilly as its interim executive director.
In a statement to OBJ on Monday, the BMDA said Gilly currently serves as the organization’s manager of people and executive operations and has stepped into the interim leadership role while the board continues its process to make a permanent appointment.
“As we navigate this transition, (Gilly’s) immediate focus, alongside the rest of the team, is on ensuring continuity and keeping our day-to-day priorities and ongoing work moving forward.
She is also currently overseeing the recruitment process for the BMDA’s director of operations, another key role that will help strengthen the organization’s operational capacity and support its work across the district,” the BMDA said in the statement.
Before joining the BMDA in May, Gilly worked as regional recruitment manager for Sabis Educational Services in Kurdistan, Iraq and as talent acquisition team lead with the Canadian Red Cross.
Last week, the BMDA confirmed to OBJ that it had terminated executive director Victoria Williston after seven months in the role.
“The Board of Directors of the ByWard Market District Authority (BMDA) has decided to move in a new direction, which will require different leadership,” the BMDA said. “This is an internal and private matter, so the Board will not comment further.”
In a LinkedIn post, Williston said her time with the organization “has come to an end,” adding that she is “proud of that work, and prouder of the people who did it alongside me.”
“The dial moved. You can see it walking through the district any given day. More people, more life, more reason to stay a while. That shift belongs to a lot of hands, and I’m glad mine were among them,” wrote Williston, who joined the organization in January 2024 as communications and marketing manager.
Williston stepped into the top role in January, replacing Zachary Dayler, who left the role the previous September after five years.
The changes in leadership come amidst calls for reform to the BMDA, including reforming the BMDA’s board as well as its meetings, agendas, decisions and budgets so that they are open to the public and fully transparent.
Also, earlier this summer, business owners expressed concern over the City of Ottawa’s plan to “reimagine” the ByWard Market. In March, council approved a plan to “reimagine” the ByWard Market Building at 55 ByWard Market Square, as well as the parking garage at 70 Clarence St. and the York Street Plaza, in an effort to revitalize the area. Last month, 16 of the 17 businesses currently in the ByWard Market Building, calling themselves the ByWard Market Building Tenants Alliance, wrote a letter asking the mayor and council to repeal the plan.
With files from Mia Jensen.
