PORT TOWNSEND — Jefferson County Administrator Mark McCauley will retire on the last day of June. He has served in the role since 2022.

“I’ll be 69 this summer, I have five grandchildren that don’t live here, I want to travel and take my wife to visit a number of different locations around the planet,” McCauley said. “I’ve got hobbies that I’ve not really had the time to enjoy that I want to enjoy again. I want to have more time to do physical things, to care for my health. I’ve got a wide variety of objectives in retirement. ”

County commissioner Greg Brotherton said he has applied for the position and has recused himself from the hiring process. If he is selected for the position, a commissioner would be appointed to replace him until a special election could be held to finish his term in November, he said.

Sarah Melancon, director of the county’s human resources department, said executive search firm Prothman has been tasked with engaging community leaders to get an idea of the experience and character traits they might like to see in the next county administrator.

She said they are reaching out to elected officials from both Jefferson County and the City of Port Townsend, leaders from the Jefferson public utility district (PUD), local tribes, the Port of Port Townsend, school superintendents, Olympic Community Action Programs (OlyCAP) and Bayside Housing & Services.

The first review of applications will be March 23, Melancon said.

Screened applicants will introduce themselves to the public in a community meeting in April, she said. The next day, interviews will be conducted by elected officials, department heads and other staff, she added.

The job is listed for a salary range of $146,472 to $174,895, depending on qualifications, plus benefits.

Those interested can view the application packet at https://prothman.com/open-recruitments/?jobId=3267.

The board of county commissioners is responsible for hiring the position, which reports to the board.

Commissioner Heidi Eisenhour outlined qualities she would look for in an incoming county administrator.

“Someone who’s emotionally intelligent, who might read the water easily in any interpersonal situation,” Eisenhour said. “Someone who’s really good at time management, because it’s a swirl here. Time management and organization are core skills. Then I think real care for the community and experience in public processes. It’s a different world than non-profit or for-profit business. Basically a miracle worker. ”

Jobs in the works

“We’ve tackled some big things; we’re in the midst of tackling some big things,” McCauley said.

McCauley listed building the wastewater treatment plant in Port Hadlock, updating the county’s comprehensive plan and purchasing the land for Caswell Brown Village on Mill Road among the projects completed and underway.

OlyCAP has secured a grant to fund building a congregant building and some tiny homes at Caswell Brown, McCauley said. The county has secured a grant to connect to Port Townsend’s sewer system to Caswell Brown, he added.

McCauley credited county Public Works Director Monte Reinders and his staff for their work on the wastewater system and Josh Peters, director of Community Development, for his work on the comprehensive plan.

The Port Hadlock sewer will support Habitat for Humanity of East Jefferson County’s Mason Street neighborhood, expected to add 136 affordable homes to the area, McCauley said.

Along with other ongoing challenges, McCauley said the completion of the Port Hadlock sewer system, the formation of a public facilities district for a mid-county aquatic center and the ongoing issues with the roads fund are among the main challenges facing an incoming county administrator.

Melancon said McCauley led the process of forming a human resources department at the county.

“I give him a lot of credit for the real positive morale at Jefferson County,” Brotherton said. “Mr. McCauley gets a lot of credit for the new collective bargaining approach that Jefferson County has taken.”

Eisenhour praised McCauley’s financial leadership and the work he did in implementing new internal systems at the county.

McCauley studied business and accounting at Washington State University. McCauley received a master’s of Business Administration from Syracruse University. He maintained CPA accreditation until recently, he said.

“Mark brought to the county administrator role that budget mindedness, that financial acumen and support for all the rest of the departments in shepherding the budget process,” Eisenhour said. “One big accomplishment was, over the course of my time working here, we now have a new financial database called MUNIS, and we’ve been working on implementing (Enterprise Permitting and Licensing software). It allows for transparency to the public, self-service portals for permitting, stuff like that.”

McCauley created the finance manager position, held by Judy Sheperd, Eisenhour said. He also contributed heavily to a community wildfire planning process, Eisenhour added.

McCauley came to the county as director of central services, where he helped then-county administrator Philip Morley develop the county budget.

“When I first came here, I told the previous county administrator that I thought I could give him five good years,” McCauley said. “I came here in 2017, so that would have been 2022. Being asked to step into the interim county administrator role and then later being made the real live county administrator, I thought, OK, I’ll serve another couple years, then I’ll decide when to retire at some point.”

Previously, McCauley worked as the county administrator in Clark County, until the county charter voted to move to a county manager model and his contract was not renewed.

“When I got here, I quite honestly was impressed that a small county in a rural environment had such quality elected officials and senior managers,” McCauley said. “I look back at my time at Clark County and this county compares favorably from a management and a leadership point of view and the quality of our workforce. I thought that was remarkable given the population of the county. After I got here, I was really happy with my choice to come here. ”

Clark County is the fourth largest county in the state, McCauley said.

When Morley retired, McCauley was asked to step into the role as an interim administrator. After initial searches yielded no results, the commissioners realized the right candidate was already in front of them with McCauley and offered him the position, Eisenhour said.

Before he worked at Clark County, McCauley had a 20-year career in the U.S. Army, working mostly in financial management.

By the time he retires, he will have worked for counties for 24 years, McCauley said.

Counties do important things, he said.

“When I worked for Clark County, I had some big idea of what counties did,” McCauley said. “During my 16 1/2 years there, I had my eyes opened. Local government’s really where the rubber meets the road. Decisions that local governments make can have an impact on people. That realization has only been deepened by my time here.”

After doing whatever he wants for a period of time, McCauley said he’s likely to engage in some volunteer work.

McCauley said he plans to explore some of the many biking, hiking and walking options available locally; he expressed interest in hiking Mount Walker.

In retirement, McCauley hopes to spend more time building detailed World War II model airplanes, an activity he finds relaxing; he has about 10 kits in a storage unit.

Also in his storage unit are home brewing supplies.

“I’ve had some notable successes,” McCauley said. “I made a pilsner once that had a little citrus to it. It was outstanding. Then I’ve had some failures.”

In the near future, McCauley and his wife Elizabeth plan to travel to the Grand Canyon, five national parks in Utah, a Norwegian Fjord cruise and a 15-day grand European cruise.

His Port Townsend home has a view of the bay where he says he has 100 sunrise photos in his phone. He sends the pictures to family.

“I call my house my toe-tag house,” McCauley joked.

McCauley said he plans to die in the house.

“I think that he’s going to be missed personally,” Brotherton said. “It’s clear when you talk to Mark that he cares about the work and he cares about the people. He’s definitely the classic example of a servant leader.”

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Reporter Elijah Sussman can be reached by email at elijah.sussman@sequimgazette.com.