KALAMAZOO (WKZO) — Kalamazoo County Commissioners find themselves back to square one once again in search of a permanent Administrator after the resignation of Terrence Neuzil this week.
It took them a year and a half to find Neuzil after firing their first search firm and hiring a second.
Now he will receive $65,000 and 6 months of benefits, about twice as much as he earned working for the past three months.
County Board Chair John Taylor concedes the situation does not shine a positive light on the county, but he says he is more interested in doing the right thing in a transparent manner.
Commissioner Kevin Wordleman says it hasn’t been a very productive use of their time, especially since the average shelf-life of an Administrator is four years.
Wordleman has voted against both national searches, preferring regional ones instead conducted by county staff and not professional headhunters.
He says they have too much on their plate already for the distraction of a third search.
He thinks they should ride with the interim staff for now and evaluate where they are at the end of the year. A discussion on where they go from here is on their next agenda.
