The Martha’s Vineyard Commission will choose a new director from a pool of 33 candidates.

A nationwide search that concluded last week received a “good response” from applicants, Doug Sederholm, chairman of the search committee, told the Gazette by phone this week.

“We have a good pool of applicants,” he said.

Current director Mark London, who has headed the regional planning agency for 12 years, plans to retire at the end of August.

His replacement is expected to begin in early August, allowing overlap for training purposes.

Over the next month, a recruiter with the Edward J. Collins Jr. Center for Public Management will screen candidates and the search committee will prepare a short list. Preliminary interviews are scheduled for March 14, 15 and 16, at which point the search committee will recommend finalists to the full commission.

The commission will conduct public interviews in late March or early April.

The search committee will begin a preliminary review of applications in executive session on Thursday. Mr. Sederholm said he had not seen the resumes received, and could not comment on candidates’ experience or geographic location.

The director position oversees a $1.42 million budget and a wide range of planning activities at the MVC.

A job description distributed to the candidates emphasized leadership and grant-writing skills as well as the ability to “market” the MVC’s capabilities to the communities it serves.

Salary for the position is listed as negotiable, based upon the candidate’s background and experience.

Mr. London, who has 40 years of experience in the field, earns $130,000 annually.