||| FROM MINNIE KNYCH |||
San Juan County Manager, Mike Thomas, retired in February. The three member SJ County Council immediately appointed Mark Thompkins as the interim manager during the search for qualified candidates is made. Mark is qualified and up to the task of the duties of the manager, but he has clearly stated that he does not want the job permanently. He has also agreed that he will fill in until the right candidate is found.
The County Manager is a key position in providing an accountable and responsive government through effective, efficient and economical administration in accordance with the County Charter, the Washington State Constitution and other applicable federal, state, and local laws as well as County policy. Protocol is that council members are to establish policy and expectations with the manager who will communicate and oversee the staff to implement that policy. In order to do that, the manager must work closely and be compatible with the elected council members.
Two incumbents on our three-member county council have stated they will not run for re-election. Cindy Wolf announced publicly that she will not run and Christine Minney has reportedly told several people that she does not intend to run. And yet, a three-member council with two “Lame Ducks” plans to hire a county manager.
County Manager is the most important decision the county council makes. It is vital to make sure the new manager will be a good fit for San Juan County and can work well with ALL council members. In order to hire the right person for the job, the three council members must be in sync about their expectations for the manager. That is why the final decision for hiring should be made after the election when the two new council members can join the remaining incumbent to interview finalists and make a consensus decision about a county manager who will be best for San Juan County.
Cindy and Christine, should do the right thing and defer the decision on County Manager to the newly elected council members who will take office in January 2025.
That’s my two cents worth. What’s yours?
I completely agree with you!
I have absolutely no doubt, I have full confidence that the three current council members can find the right person to fulfill the following– “The County Manager is a key position in providing an accountable and responsive government through effective, efficient and economical administration in accordance with the County Charter, the Washington State Constitution and other applicable federal, state, and local laws as well as County policy. Protocol is that council members are to establish policy and expectations with the manager who will communicate and oversee the staff to implement that policy. In order to do that, the manager must work closely and be compatible with the elected council members.
The existing Council could make its recommendation and leave the ultimate choice to the newly seated Council in January 2025 — if Mark Tompkins were willing to serve in an acting capacity that long.
“In order to do that, the manager must work closely and be compatible with the elected council members.”
That statement indicates to me that it is more important the new County Manager be compatible with the “incoming” Council than those that are on their way out.
Yes, it reeks of partisan politics, it being no different than Mitch McConnell’s SCOTUS argument at the end of Obama’s (but not Trump’s) term.
We’re in agreement then, both are partisan politics.
Perhaps a county manager selected by the existing council would prove to be a fine fit with the new council. But what if she (or he) isn’t? Then the county has to go through the entire process again? At considerable expense in attention at the very least. IF the interim manager is performing adequately and is okay with staying on until the new council can vote, it seems prudent for the county manager to be hired by the council she will be working with.
Equating the hiring of a county manager and the appointment of a federal supreme court justice is a false comparison. A supreme court justice position is for LIFE and is irrevocable by subsequent administrations. Quite a different situation than a county council hiring a professional administrator to carry out their instructions.
I agree, false equivelents. Though both are examples of partisan politics……just at different levels.
A question, notwithstanding the angst and cost, how easy would it be to fire a county manager because the new council doesn’t agree with the “fit”.
A lame duck doesn’t happen until after the election. Otherwise, I expect our election officials to remain ‘in office’ and do their jobs until the new bunch takes over. We don’t elect people to just stop doing their job because they aren’t running for re-election. They were elected by the community to complete their term.
It’s not difficult to see what’s going on in regards to this issue. Like Wa. D.C., like here… it’s no different, it’s politics. The San Juan County Council is the highest political office in SJC. And though we talk about how nonpartisan it is, it’s at moments like this when we can see that politics is clearly at play. You have the same players over the years always making eloquent passionate pleas to the public for whatever their take is on the issue of the moment– whether they’re not supporting an increase in taxes (any taxes), or they are in support of the next Tim Eyman initiative, or they’re not in support of renewing the Land Bank contract, or they are in support of more vacation rentals, more growth, and more tourism, or they’re not in support of the Growth Management Act, or the Comprehensive Plan.
I had to laugh out loud when thinking to myself earlier today, “What would they be saying if the tables were turned? You know, what if it was the old administration (their people) who were in office, with the County being in need of a new county manager, and Cindy Wolf, Jane Fuller, and Christine Minney were running against Rick Hughes, Jamie Stephens, and Bill Watson with 7 months left before the election, and all of a sudden someone appears and says, “Lame ducks should not choose County Manager?” We all know what you’d say. “Hypocricy” is the word that comes to mind.
Let the council do the job we hired them for.
lame duck
noun
1. An elected officeholder or group continuing in office during the period between failure to win an election and the inauguration of a successor.
2. An officeholder who has chosen not to run for reelection or is ineligible for reelection.
3. An ineffective person; a weakling.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
Given our most recent experience contracting with a new fire chief, might give us pause to consider a more collaborative approach such as that suggested by Dr. Riordan.
Mike Thomas worked well with the old administration… the group that, by the way, hired him in the first place, (scary).
It was not difficult to see, (in fact it was a bit scary to see), that in spite of the numerous studies, public comments, petitions, and the results of the county’s own public surveys clearly showing what the people of SJC wanted their communities to look like in 20 – 50 years from now to see where that “growth and tourism with no limits” collaboration was leading SJC.
I appreciate the current council’s continued openness in the process, (something we didn’t have in the past), and feel confidant that they’ll do a better job of hiring a new county manager than did the last.
LET THE COUNSEL DO THEIR JOB.
Let’s not forget that it’s the Council’s job to set policy direction and the administrator’s job to carry it out. For the first, we need to vet the platforms of the upcoming candidates thoroughly and carefully. For the second, the current Council has provided the opportunity for us to meet with the short-listed County Manager candidates, learn about their backgrounds and views and voice our concerns to them and to inform the Council’s selection. Let the process proceed.
When Mike Thomas was hired, the six person Council (which was moving towards a three person council after the election) included/invited all the candidates running for the three person council, Lisa Byers and Lovel Pratt, to be at all the meetings and interviews with County Manager Candidates during the hiring process. After the election and swearing in of the new council members, then the final decision was made.
That being said, while I’d like to be part of the process, along with Justin Paulson and Jon Welch, I agree that current council has the authority to pick a county manager and is with in their responsibility to either make a choice now or defer to January.
Either way, if elected, I will support the decision that Council makes and work with an appointed County manager or complete the process that our council started.
They are our elected County Council members and I support the path they decide.