New hires join finance department

It’s been a rocky start for Leelanau County’s finance department, but the county Board of Commissioners is working to set up the department as a separate, self-sufficient entity. This includes hiring staff as well as upgrading systems and software, which the previous finance director said date back to the 1990s.

Interim County Administrator Richard Lewis already promoted the former interim director, Cathy Hartesvelt, to the permanent finance director in July. And at the county’s monthly executive board meeting Tuesday, they announced two additional hires.

“By Oct. 1, I should have a fully staffed team, and we’ll build you a department,” Hartesvelt told the county board earlier this week.