Ex-City Manager Novak Appointed As Sirti Chief

Former City Manager Terry Novak will become acting director of Spokane’s high-tech development facility, SIRTI, on Monday.

Directors of the Spokane Intercollegiate Research and Technology Institute appointed Novak to the job Friday.

He will help manage projects as the board begins finding a successor for SIRTI Executive Director Hugh Sullivan.

A week ago, Sullivan announced he was quitting his $92,000-per-year job after working at SIRTI for nearly three years.

The facility was constructed with state money on 10 acres east of downtown. It’s planned as a collaborative research center that uses technology to help area businesses build better products or do their jobs more efficiently.

Sullivan spent most of his tenure guiding the construction of the $10-million SIRTI building.

Novak, who has been an administrator with Eastern Washington University, will help guide SIRTI through its first real year of interaction with other agencies and the business community.

Sullivan said he intends to leave his job June 30. By that time, the board hopes to hire a replacement, said Chairman David Clack.

But if Sullivan leaves early to take another job or if hiring a new director takes longer, having Novak around will keep SIRTI running smoothly, he said.

Novak’s salary will continue being paid by EWU, Clack noted.