Oak Harbor’s Main Street program, which business owners hope will resuscitate the city’s historic business district, has appointed a volunteer board of directors, one of the steps required to participate in the state-sponsored program.

Margaret Livermore, of Garry Oak Gallery, is president; Rhonda Severns, a building owner and community volunteer, is vice president; Kathy Collantes, a building owner and a broker with Go Realty, is treasurer; and Ron Apgar, owner of Paint Your World ceramics, is secretary.

The other board members are Laura Cailloux, of Skagit Valley College; Kevin Johnson, of Coldwell Banker Tara Properties; Kathy Jones, owner of Jones Accounting; Gregg Lanza, owner of Wildwood Farm; Melissa McCumber, of Whidbey Island Bank/Heritage Bank; Mandi Rothman, of Habitat for Humanity of Island County; Chris Skinner, an attorney and building owner; Jim Slowik, of Peoples Bank; and Gary Wallin, of Wallin Funeral Home & Cremation.

The group has yet to select a full-time executive director.

It plans to advertise for the position and to appoint one by the end of the year, Livermore said. Choosing a full-time executive director and a board are steps required to remain qualified as a Main Street Community.

Under the program’s rules, the board of directors must represent a range of downtown stakeholders.

The group must also form four “strong and active” committees, one each for design, economic restructuring, organization and promotion, the rules say.

The group must file quarterly online reports tracking revitalization statistics, key performance measures and progress, and it must attend retreats, meetings and conferences.

Oak Harbor’s acceptance into the program Jan. 1 made it more attractive to Oak Harbor businesses to donate funds toward downtown improvement efforts.

Businesses and the city itself became eligible to donate up to $250,000 each toward the program.

Their incentive is that they can credit 75 percent of their donation against their business and occupation (B&O) or public-utility tax the following year.

Oak Harbor businesses in February pledged $38,800 to help improve the city’s historical downtown, an amount that Livermore, called “fantastic.”

The city pledged $40,000 in December.