David Williamson, superintendent of the Division of Industrial Compliance at the Ohio Department of Commerce, will take over next week as executive director of the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission (OFCC) and its subsidiary agency, the Ohio School Facilities Commission. 

The OFCC voted 3-0 Wednesday to appoint Williamson to the job, effective Nov. 8, at a salary of $115,000 per year, following an executive session to discuss personnel matters. Budget Director Tim Keen, who chairs the commission and led the search process, said he was impressed by Williamson’s knowledge of state government and organizational leadership. 

Williamson has had two stints as superintendent of the division, during the Kasich administration and from 1999 to 2007 in the Taft administration. He previously served as executive director of the Board of Cosmetology and retired as a colonel from the U.S. Air Force after 28 years of service. 

The work of Williamson’s division at the Department of Commerce is related to that of the facilities commission, as it oversees building codes and construction industry licensing. 

Keen and his fellow cabinet officers on the commission — Administrative Services Director Robert Blair and Rehabilitation and Correction Director Gary Mohr — offered gratitude to David Chovan, a senior staff member who has served as interim executive director following the October 2014 retirement of former Executive Director Richard Hickman. They also thanked the rest of the staff for their efforts during the transition.