SUTTONS BAY — Hiring Leelanau County’s next top administrator may have to wait as county commissioners hope to finally establish a finance department with the help of their interim administrator.
The board agreed as much Friday after a lengthy discussion about two finalists for the administrator and chief financial officer spot — Michigan State Police Multi-jurisdictional Task Force Commander Kip Belcher and former Highland Park, Ill., mayor Michael Belsky.
But after debating the pros and cons of the two they had chosen out of four candidates they interviewed Tuesday, they couldn’t reach an agreement on either one.
They also struggled over whether to hire the administrator/chief financial officer as planned – or to drop the financial officer part of the job description.
They did so, in part, because neither candidate seemed a perfect fit for the entire commission.
Board members largely agreed Belcher had great leadership skills but lacked the financial know-how. Commissioner Douglas Rexroat said he would be an excellent hire for an administrative-only position, but not for a job that includes the role of a chief financial officer.
Rexroat and Commissioners James O’Rourke agreed Belsky had expertise in municipal finance, but didn’t seem like a good fit for the county. Commissioners Gwenne Allgaier and Kama Ross, meanwhile, praised Belsky as someone who could bring fresh ideas to the job.
Finding someone who’s good at both leading people and working with numbers can be a rare combination, Rexroat said, adding that he had heard comments that the county was looking for a “unicorn.”
Commissioners voted 6-0, with Jamie Kramer absent, to ask board Chairman Ty Wessell to negotiate a contract extension with Richard Lewis, the county’s interim administrator and former mayor of Traverse City. An extension would give Lewis time to build a finance department, which commissioners agreed needs to be done before they can decide on the county’s next top administrator.
“I think everyone sitting at that table believes that, if we have the finance department established with the finance director and deputy director or assistant director, that we have much more flexibility to find a candidate as an administrator,” Wessell said after the meeting.
Board members picked Lewis in March to step in after administrator Deborah Allen left. April 12 was her last day. She left the job after commissioners, who hired her in December 2022, combined the roles of administrator and chief financial officer.
The board also tasked Michigan Leadership Institute and its consultant, Chet Janik, to lead the executive search. Janik served as Leelanau County administrator for several years before retiring in 2022.
Rexroat on Friday said Lewis was doing well in his interim role, had county employees’ respect and could help finalize the county’s finance department.
County Clerk Michelle Crocker, along with her Chief Deputy Clerk Jennifer Zywicki, suggested giving Lewis the OK to establish the department, with Crocker praising Lewis for righting a county government she characterized as having been somewhat out of control.
Zywicki, who served as county finance director in 2022, told the board the department is currently “running on two cylinders of a four-cylinder car.” The department needs a director and second-in-command to manage the work and various projects, plus one or two account clerks to handle day-to-day tasks.
The issue dates back to a controversial decision in May 2021 to create a finance department that took some of the duties from Crocker’s office. Janik recalled that vote was a late agenda addition that passed on a 4-3 vote.
Wessell said that vote passed with no plan for how to implement the department, and he believes that could explain why the county has struggled to make the department work since then.
Janik said after the meeting that, once commissioners finalize a contract extension with Lewis, they can discuss with him how to proceed on establishing the finance office. Once that plan is in place, commissioners must decide how to re-advertise for the administrator position.
Lewis, reached later, said he’s happy to serve until the process to pick the next administrator is through. Then he reiterated a point oft made during Friday’s meeting: that county leaders need be sure they’re comfortable with whoever they choose.
“I’m happy to be able to be of service to them,” he said. “They’ve got a great staff up there that I really enjoy working with and I’m really enjoying the opportunity to be in Leelanau County and helping them.”
Under his original contract, the county pays Lewis $700 a day, three days a week. Wessell said commissioners will vote at their Tuesday meeting on his contract extension.
Board members agreed they should be the ones to finish the administrator hiring process. Wessel told them early in Friday’s meeting that Lewis would consider staying on until the next board finds a long-term hire after November’s election.
But Commissioner Gwenne Allgaier said she wanted to restart the hiring process in August so the board could wrap it by the end of their terms. Commissioner Kama Ross agreed, citing her experience as a new board member 18 months ago.
“And if my first big decision was to hire an administrator, I think that would be pretty overwhelming for me, to be honest, so I would not wish that on someone else on this board,” she said.
After the meeting, Wessell said he believed the board has made serious progress toward selecting a new administrator, despite their decision to step back from the process for now.
Board members reaffirmed they’re moving in the direction they want to go and that Lewis is doing a good job, but needs more time.
Pausing the hiring process won’t affect the cost of the executive search itself, Wessell said afterward.
Janik and Michigan Leadership Institute agreed to lead it for $4,500, plus expenses not to exceed $1,000.
