Item 5.02. | Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers. |
On May 29, 2024, Philip R. Mays, age 56, was appointed Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of CTO Realty Growth, Inc. (the “Company”), effective as of June 17, 2024. Upon the effectiveness of Mr. Mays’s appointment, Mr. Mays will act as the Company’s principal financial officer, and Lisa M. Vorakoun will resume her role as Senior Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer of the Company.
Mr. Mays was most recently the Chief Finance Officer of Shadowbox Studios, from September 2021 to February 2024. Prior to that, from June 2011 to September 2021, Mr. Mays served as Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President of Cedar Realty Trust, Inc. (“Cedar”), a NYSE-listed retail real estate investment trust (“REIT”). His departure from Cedar coincided with Cedar’s announcement that it would explore strategic alternatives, and preceded by six months the announcement of Cedar’s sale. Before joining Cedar, Mr. Mays served as Chief Accounting Officer and Vice President of Finance of Federal Realty Investment Trust, a NYSE-listed retail REIT, from May 2005 to June 2011. Earlier in his career, Mr. Mays held various accounting and finance positions, including seven years as an accountant at Ernst & Young LLP. At Ernst & Young LLP, he supervised audits and assisted clients in real estate, construction and hospitality, including public REITs. Mr. Mays received his Bachelor of Science in Accounting and Finance from Jacksonville University. He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.
There are no arrangements or understandings between Mr. Mays and any other persons pursuant to which he was appointed as Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of the Company. There are no family relationships between Mr. Mays and any of the Company’s directors or executive officers, and Mr. Mays is not a party to any transaction, or any proposed transaction, required to be disclosed pursuant to Item 404(a) of Regulation S-K.
Employment Agreement with Philip R. Mays
On May 29, 2024, the Company and Mr. Mays entered into an employment agreement (the “Employment Agreement”), pursuant to which Mr. Mays will serve as Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of the Company, and will report directly to the Chief Executive Officer of the Company.
Under the Employment Agreement, Mr. Mays will receive an initial annual base salary of $375,000, which is subject to review and increase at the discretion of the compensation committee of the Company’s Board of Directors (the “Compensation Committee”).
In addition, for each fiscal year ending during his employment, Mr. Mays will be eligible to participate in, and earn annual incentive compensation pursuant to, the Company’s Amended 2017 Executive Annual Cash Incentive Plan (the “Annual Incentive Plan”). Mr. Mays’s Individual Target Opportunity (as defined in the Annual Incentive Plan) under the Annual Incentive Plan for 2024 will be 75% of Mr. Mays’s then current base salary (which, for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2024, will be pro-rated based on the number of days worked by Mr. Mays for the Company during such year), with “threshold”, “target” and “maximum” multipliers (as defined in the Annual Incentive Plan) for 2024 of 50%, 100% and 200% of the Individual Target Opportunity (as defined in the Annual Incentive Plan), all as set forth under the Annual Incentive Plan. The annual incentive compensation payable to Mr. Mays will be determined by the Company’s Board of Directors (the “Board”), based on the attainment of corporate and individual performance goals as determined by the Board and consistent with the terms and conditions of the Annual Incentive Plan, and may be paid in cash or in a combination of cash and equity incentive awards.
For each fiscal year beginning with the fiscal year ending December 31, 2025, Mr. Mays will be eligible to receive an award of long-term equity incentive compensation, to be granted in accordance with the Company’s executive compensation program in effect from time to time. Such awards typically will be granted near the commencement of each fiscal year under the Company’s equity incentive plan in effect from time to time pursuant to separate written agreements between Mr. Mays and the Company. Mr. Mays’s target annual equity award for 2025 will be 133% of his initial annual base salary.
Mr. Mays is entitled to reimbursement of certain reasonable, pre-approved relocation costs up to $15,000 in the aggregate. Mr. Mays is eligible to participate in any retirement plan, insurance or other employee benefit plan that is maintained at that time by the Company for its senior executive employees, including programs of life, disability,