DDA board cuts director's per-transaction spending limit to $1,500

The Downtown Adrian Main Street DDA board voted on March 26 to lower the director's per-transaction spending authority from $5,000 to $1,500, requiring prior board approval for expenditures above the new limit.

Chair (S1) said the change follows guidance from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation and would align the DDA with what the chair described as "best practices" across Main Street programs. "It's recommended that the downtown Adrian Main Street DDA board reduce the director spending authority from 5,000 to 1,500 per transaction," the chair said during the meeting.

Board members discussed safeguards to prevent circumvention, and the chair noted a related-purchase rule in the recommendation to stop splitting a single purchase into multiple smaller transactions to avoid review. After a motion and a voice vote, the board approved the recommendation.

Why it matters: lowering the spending threshold increases board-level oversight of purchases and reduces the risk that unreviewed expenditures will be made on behalf of the DDA. The change leaves routine, small-dollar purchases with the director while reserving larger decisions for the full board.

What happens next: expenditures above $1,500 will require prior board approval. The board did not specify an implementation date beyond the action taken at the meeting.

Votes and formal action: The motion to adopt the reduced spending limit was made, seconded and carried by voice vote during the meeting (motion recorded in the meeting agenda and carried).