Our county's heir apparent

Last night the Board of Commissioners interviewed the only internal candidate to apply for the County Administrator position (to be vacated in May by Bob Guenzel.) After conducting the single interview, it appears that Verna McDaniel will become our new County Administrator.


Rolland Sizemore Jr., chairman of the Board, according to annarbor.com, said "She knows the players - that's the main thing, because we've got a lot of work ahead of us and there's going to be some turnover in the board. We don't need to have somebody come in that doesn't know who the players are."

Does anyone else question Comm. Sizemore’s line of thinking? His comments certainly wave a red caution flag in my mind. His comments reek of cronyism…I want someone to play ball, no shake-ups or new ideas needed here!

Furthermore, it flies in the face of the most important aspect of the position. The position requires a leader, someone to guide county officials in their decision making. Leaders do not “play ball.” Leaders coach the team.

This is not about whether Ms. McDaniel is the best candidate for the position. As a matter of fact, this is something that we will never know, as she was the only internal applicant and the position was not posted externally.

Ms. McDaniel currently serves as the Deputy Administrator, appointed to the position by 2007 by Mr. Guenzel. It is expected that she would be the top candidate for the position. However, it is not to be expected that she should not have to compete against external candidates.

By closing the process to external applicants, the BoC is closing the doors to new ideas and fresh outlooks. In times of great challenge, this is opposite the tack that should have been taken. It is clear that Comm. Sizemore and the Board are not interested in even questioning status quo. Their complacency does not impress me.

This fall, I will be voting against “status quo.” How about you?