Introducing trio in county management

 

What kind of work were you doing before you accepted this position, and what circumstances brought you to it?
I had worked in this department as a juvenile probation officer for 20 years prior to becoming the director. While the work can be difficult at times, I’ve always loved my job and have been grateful that I’ve had to work for great directors who shared my philosophy. When the previous director left in November, I made the decision to apply for the job. While I was nervous about the idea of not providing direct service, I also wanted to ensure that our department continued to run as smoothly and effectively as we have in the past.

 

What have been your biggest challenges so far?
Due to our reduced staffing level, I’ve continued to maintain a probation caseload, which has taken time away from learning my new job. While I had hoped to continue providing some direct service, I had underestimated how difficult it would be to do both jobs. I know that this is a struggle for several other department heads who have taken on additional jobs or absorbed entire departments due to funding.

What do you hope to achieve in your department?
These are difficult times for the county as a whole, including our office. We’re currently operating with half of the staff that we had 15 years ago and our ability to provide things like community service and treatment services for the youth we serve has been drastically cut.
It can be deflating and frustrating for staff who are working hard to create positive outcomes for youth. My hope is that I will be able to provide the same level of support to staff that previous directors have given to me while facing the current adversities within the county.

 

I have been in public service for about 18 years. Prior to this, I worked in Colorado … and I was working for the state court system there. There, I oversaw the finances and did strategic planning; and then prior to that, I’m originally from Florida … I worked for the court system there as well as a budget manager for the state and I did very similar things as I did in Colorado: Strategic planning. And then prior to that I was a finance director for a county — so it all comes full circle. 

What brought you to Hood River?
I have a son who lives in Portland, so I just wanted to be closer to family … I came out in mid-December because I wanted to be here for Christmas, and it turned out that the day after I arrived here in Hood River was my interview. And I had visited here the year before to see my son, so I knew the Portland area, we had spent some time on Mount Hood, but I had never been to the Gorge, and so I remember driving in on I-84 and it was just spectacular — so beautiful. And I was just like, “Wow, I thought Colorado was beautiful, but this is just breathtaking.”

What have been your biggest challenges so far?
As you can imagine, there’s going to be a lot of challenges, taking on a role like this. I would say the biggest challenge has been just trying to figure out how we do things here. Every place is different, and — for example, this is the only place I’ve ever worked where the county owns a tree farm, so that’s been a huge learning curve for me.

What do you hope to achieve in your department?
We do a lot of things in this office: We receive taxes, we receive revenue, we pay bills, make the payroll, invest the surplus cash — we have a lot of things that we need to accomplish and there’s just five of us, including myself, so my focus is on how we can run more efficiently because the staffing level has not changed in many many years and the workload has only increased … So, what we’re doing is we’re incorporating more technology. We’re letting technology do some of this work for us … All of these things not only reduces paper, but it reduces the workload on staff and ultimately saves money.

Is there anything else you would like to add?
I would like to take the opportunity to give a big shout out to my staff. They’re very competent and passionate about their work. That has been my experience with all the staff here in Hood River County. It’s just been a great experience and a great place to work.

 

What kind of work you were doing before you accepted this position?
I have worked for the Hood River County Community Development Department for nearly 22 years ... Prior to serving as the interim Community Development director, I was the principal planner, which primarily involved assisting the public with planning and building questions, reviewing various land use applications and issuing permits.  

What circumstances brought you to this position, and why did you decide to take it on?
When John Roberts resigned as the Community Development director last August, I was asked if I was interested in job. I kindly said no, but was glad to temporarily fill in until a permanent director could be found. However, for several reasons, my time as interim director got extended. The primary reasons had to do with last May’s election and the uncertainty over the two ballot measures sponsored by the county to cover existing funding shortfalls … The day after the election when it was confirmed that both ballot measures failed, I approached Jeff (Hecksel, county administrator) and said that I was interested in becoming the director permanently if he thought it would be best for the department … I am committed to the county and motivated to see it get through this challenging period and, hopefully, back to a more sustainable working situation.

What have been your biggest challenges so far?
Quite frankly, the greatest challenges so far stem from the county’s current budget difficulties … Given our current workload and staffing needs, we are unable to perform much meaningful planning work. Essentially, we are just processing land use applications and reacting to what comes through the front door; and even with that, we are unable to process many of them in a timely manner.

What do you hope to achieve in your department?
My first goal is to maintain our existing staff and provide some level of stability. Employee morale has certainly taken a hit over the last year or so. We have folks who don’t know whether they will have a job in a year or not … Without sufficient staff to complete the work, we have no choice but to continue to eliminate or reduce the services we provide.
My second goal, which is very dependent on the first, is to improve customer service … I want our department to be a place where people know they will be treated fairly and with kindness and respect, even if the answer they get isn’t always immediate and isn’t necessarily what they were hoping to hear. 
My final goal is to leave the department in a better place than when I took over. It starts by building relationships both inside the department and out; by being fair and consistent to the public we serve; by improving efficiencies and making the permitting process more user friendly; and by making long overdue revisions to county’s comprehensive plan and zoning codes. If we can do these things well, then I will consider my time as director a success.