The Leelanau County Board of Commissioners interviewed five candidates to fill the role of interim county administrator between current Administrator Deb Allen’s departure on April 12 and the approval of a permanent replacement, which the county’s consultant Chet Janik hopes to complete by the week of May 27.
Richard Lewis, former city manager, commissioner, and mayor of Traverse City, used his impressive resume and southern charms to earn the majority of the board’s support. The county board agreed to enter into contract negotiations with Lewis for the position by a 5-2 vote, with commissioners Kama Ross and Jim O’Rourke voting no.
The commissioners spoke with the candidates for about half an hour each before their regular session Tuesday night. Janik conducted a straw poll of the commissioners after the interviews were over, asking them to write down the names of the candidates that they felt were suited for the job, with no limit on candidates.
