PORT TOWNSEND — Jefferson County is turning to a search firm to recruit candidates for two unfilled top-level positions as directors are sought for the community development and central services departments.
County Administrator Philip Morley said staff members are examining proposals from three executive search companies.
“We will address this as soon as possible,” Morley said.
“There isn’t a specific deadline because we are juggling this with everything else.”
The annual salary range for the DCD director is from $70,831 to $95,191, while the central services post pays between $76,272 and $102,324.
The DCD position opened in September with the retirement of Carl Smith, 65. General Services Director Frank Gifford, 64, retired Oct. 30.
Seeking help
The search team recruitment follows a period in which the county attempted to fill the positions itself but “did not attract a strong pool of candidates,” Morley said.
At that time, the county commissioners named former County Administrator David Goldsmith as interim DCD director until a permanent replacement could be found.
No temporary replacement is to be selected for Gifford’s position, Morley said.
“We have a capable staff that ultimately reports to me,” Morley said.
“During and after the recession, we operated for some time without a central services director.”
Morley said the DCD director position will be harder to fill since several managers throughout the state are older than 60 and plan to retire soon.
“There is a shortage of acceptable candidates, but they are out there,” Morley said.
“We just need help finding them.”
Another difficulty originates from layoffs during the recession made necessary when permit activity decreased.
“After the recession, many people were let go,” Morley said.
“Now, there is a dearth of middle managers available to take over these positions.”
Goldsmith is being paid $9,600 monthly for a minimum of 16 days per month.
His contract expires in December, “but no one expects him to be here that long,” Morley said.
For more information about the available positions, go to http://tinyurl.com/PDN-directors.
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Jefferson County Editor Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or cbermant@peninsuladailynews.com.
