Sam Finazzo
Editor

Barron County supervisors reaffirmed their support for a county administrator in a 22-7 vote Monday, July 20.

The vote came following a free- ranging discussion about how county government should be structured after the departure of county administrator Duane Hebert, whose last day on the job was Tuesday.

The vote means that the county will begin the search to hire a new administrator-a process expected to take months. During the interim the county's finance director, Jeff French, will serve as administrator. That decision came on a voice vote without opposition.

Last month Hebert decided to end his 6-year relationship with Barron County in favor of a similar position with Winona County, Minn. At times that relationship-in the words of one supervisor Monday-has been "choppy" and the debate over whether to continue with an administrator reflected that.

In a prepared statement about Hebert's tenure, Supervisor Larry Leff of Chetek said, "There have been many good decisions and some bad ones, but it only takes a few bad ones to make citizens forget any good that has been done." Leff suggested that the board take the time to thoroughly look at all the options.

"It seems to me that we are trying to run and catch a train that could be headed for disaster," Leff said.

Supervisor Ron Novotny of Rice Lake acknowledged that "there have been good and bad times" over the last few years, but added that the county is better off for having made the change to an administrator form of government. He urged the board to continue in that direction.

Among the options discussed were to return to the more traditional form of government when various committees and a strong County Board chair directed the various county departments.

But there seemed to be little or no support for that option.

Supervisor Paul Streif of Clear Lake said the board had given away too much of its power with the hiring of an administrator. He and several others said they prefer returning to an administrative coordinator.

The primary difference between a coordinator and an administrator is that the board decides how much authority a coordinator would have while an administrator's powers are defined by state law.

Supervisor Ken Jost of Chetek said that with a coordinator the county could decide whether to give that individual as much or more power than an administrator.

He said none of the supervisors want to return to having day- to-day county operations run by the board. But he also said he is concerned that an administrator would give the appearance that the County Board is being led around by an administrator.

He, too, urged the board to take more time to make a decision. With French in charge of day-to-day operations during the interim, he said there's no reason not to take 30 to 60 days to make a decision.

But Supervisor Jim Stavran of Rice Lake said delaying a decision would send a mixed message to county employees. "There's no doubt in my mind that we're better off for having had an administrator," he said.

He referred to statistics that show that counties increasingly are hiring administrators rather than coordinators. He reminded the board that the county had gone to an administrator "because we needed to change."

He argued that the county would get a better caliber of applicants if the administrator versus coordinator issue was settled.

Supervisor Pete Olson of Barron said Hebert had the department heads working in the right direction and added that with 500 employees and a $40 million budget it would be best if the county would continue with an administrator.

Supervisor Lee Romsos of Cameron said he struggled with the decision to retain an administrator or change back to a coordinator until he looked at the results of a survey of department heads.

He said he was amazed by the support for the administrator from department heads and others who worked daily with Hebert. Fourteen of 16 responders said they strongly agree with maintaining a county administrator position.

The same number agreed that under the direction of the administrator the county has increased operational efficiency and savings.

Fifteen responders disagreed with the suggestion that the County Board ought to have direct daily oversight of each department.

Romsos said that the administrator had put the county in a good position to continue to move forward and for that reason he supported retaining an administrator.

Supervisor Rick Wourenma of Almena said he objected to the use of the unsigned surveys in making the decision, calling the survey foolish and characterizing it as a straw poll.

He also argued for a delay in the decision.

Olson noted that the board already has known for a year that Hebert was looking elsewhere for an administrator's position and that it has been 45 days since Hebert gave notice of his decision to leave. He said further delay is unwarranted,

Novotny moved for the board to adopt a resolution supporting the hiring of an administrator.

The seven dissenting votes were cast by Wourenma, Streif, Jost, Leff, Don Horstman, Terry Henck and Chuck Christensen, who had all spoken in favor of a delay and/or the hiring of coordinator.