OLIVE TOWNSHIP, Mich. — Nearly nine months after the firing of the county administrator, we now know who the Ottawa County Board of Commissioners is considering to fill the role.
Nineteen people applied for the position, with the executive transition committee choosing four finalists to invite for interviews.
The candidates are:
- James R. Freed, the current city manager for Port Huron, where he's served since June 2014. He previously worked for the city of Stanton, village of Lakeview and city of Walled Lake.
- Eric Ceci, the current public health administrator for Iroquois County, about 90 miles south of Chicago.
- Erica Sullins, a worker at Goodwill.
- Ashlie Krell, a manager at a non-secure detention home for youth in Isabella County.
- Jeffrey R. DeGroot, a vice president for Crossroads Prison Ministries in Grand Rapids.
- Brendan Milligan, a salesman who's worked for an insurance company, window manufacturer and automotive dealer.
- Ashley Aranda, a corrections deputy in Kent County.
- John C. O'Brien, a former Hudsonville city council member.
- Andrew Booher, a Michigan State University alum with a degree in agribusiness management.
- Paul Sachs, the current director of Ottawa County's Department of Strategic Impact. He's been working for the county since 2002.
- Matthew Nawrot, a sales account specialist who handles inventory planning and customer relations.
- Christopher L. Estes, who worked as an executive at several banks and credit unions.
- Philip Nelson Bareham, the current operations coordinator at a men's shelter in Lansing.
- James A. Lower, the current village manager for Sparta. He previously worked for the village of Edmore and served on the Ionia County Board of Commissioners. Lower also spent time working for the Michigan Legislature.
- Patrick S. Jordan, the current administrator for Ionia County. He also worked for the city of Escanaba, Wexford County, Muskegon Township, plus governments in Alaska and Texas. Jordan is a former corrections deputy for Ottawa County.
- Benjamin M. Genser, a former chief of staff for the Michigan Department of Education superintendent, administrator for Ionia County, and financial officer for the cities of Allegan and Lowell.
- Philip Kosman, a banking and investment adviser with 14 years of experience.
- Robert Spaman, a high school graduate with a number of management positions in various fields.
James R. Freed, Christopher L. Estes, James A. Lower and Patrick S. Jordan were picked by the five-person board to move ahead to the interview round.
The eventual hire will replace John Gibbs, who was fired on Feb. 29 after 13 months on the job. Since then two men have filled the role on an interim level, with one quitting the role twice.
The executive transition committee is made up of county commissioners Gretchen Cosby, Roger Belknap, Sylvia Rhodea, Joe Moss and Allison Miedema. Crosby and Belknap are outgoing commissioners after losing to primary election challengers in August. Both attempted write-in campaigns in the November general election.
The interviews with the finalists will be held at a to-be-determined time. They will be open to the public, per board chairman Joe Moss.
The county's decision to hire a company to find its next administrator has faced pushback from some commissioners.
The county hired Grand Rapids-based W Talent Solutions for the search after Board Chairperson Moss recommended the move to the Executive Transition Committee in September.
“Beyond asking for feedback recommendations, referrals, and have spoken with multiple different recruiting firms and different principles, there is one that really stands out,” Moss said.
Commissioner Doug Zylstra, who was not asked to be on the committee, had concerns. Zylstra shared on social media the agency had no prior government sector experience before taking on the job.
The initial contract showed that W Talent Solutions required “30% of guaranteed first-year base salary.” The previous permanent county administrator, John Gibbs, was paid around $220,000 before being let go.
“In 2021, as a result of a competitive RFP (Request for Proposal) process, we hired GovHR, a recruiting firm with deep experience in the government sector, to help us carry out our search for a new administrator. The cost to taxpayers was $22,500,” Zylstra wrote.
Since that post, the cost to hire the firm has dropped. The Board of Commissioners approved the $32,000 contract at Tuesday's meeting.
The current commissioners can only offer a one-year contract as they are in a lame-duck session.
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