SHELBY, Ohio – The city of Shelby is currently in limbo with the position of finance director, and a decision has yet to be made regarding whether the position will be filled before the November election.
Upon the retirement of Shelby’s previous Finance Director Bob Lafferty in early May, the position has been taken over by Acting Finance Director Jeff Fenner. Mayor Steve Schag stated at Monday night’s meeting of city council that he had originally stated his intention not to permanently fill the position until after the November elections.
“Mr. Fenner and I felt that this would be one way for the city to save money during this year of financial recovery, and that all candidates would remain unaffected – positively or negatively – by a possible governmental process of appointment and confirmation,” said Schag on Monday night. “Let it be clearly stated that no promises of any kind were made to any of the candidates running for the finance director’s office.”
Candidates Steve Lifer and Cohen Lewis were the top two vote-getters for the finance director position after the May primary election, beating out third candidate Briton Lash. Lifer and Lewis will move on to the November ballot.
While the initial plan was for Schag to wait to appoint a new finance director, he said Monday evening that new information has emerged that has prompted him to change his mind in regards to the timing of filling the vacancy. Schag explained in an interview on Friday that he might not have the ability to wait until after the November election.
“[Fenner] and I were under the understanding that we probably could, but in conversations with administrative officials the picture began to emerge that maybe we did not have that flexibility, looking at the charter more closely,” said Schag.
Initially Schag had emailed both Lewis and Lifer informing them of a change of course and outlined the beginnings of the process of filling the office of the Director of Finance and Public Record, requesting from Lifer and Lewis a resume, a completed application form and a proposed date and time for an interview. Schag said shortly after this request he received some push back to this change of direction and decided to rethink the whole issue.
“I would like to revisit the issue of administrative options,” he said.
Schag has requested a written response from Shelby’s Law Director Gordon Eyster in reference to filling a vacancy during an election year with two candidates slated to be on the November ballot. Under such unusual circumstances, Schag has inquired as to whether he has the option to fill the vacancy in November.
The question also remains as to whether the position of finance director would be open for application citywide.
“I also inquired as to any requirements of advertising this process citywide – in other words, should this be open to all qualified Shelby citizens, rather than just Mr. Lewis and Mr. Lifer,” said Schag. “[Eyster] thought maybe we should, as we do when a council seat is open. Then we have the bigger decision to make, filling someone from citywide or one of the two candidates.”
Fenner will also consult with Shelby’s auditors to gather how they would react to an extended vacancy in the finance director’s office. In the meantime, Schag on Monday asked for specific input from the members of city council.
“There have been indications of a desire to fill the vacancy in the near term, but I want to hear from each one of you individually,” he said. “Do you still feel we should fill this vacancy sooner rather than later?”
While no members of council commented publicly on the matter, Schag noted each member of council shared their position with him during an executive session on Monday evening and that he would be moving accordingly.
Should Schag name a replacement, that person would fill the remainder of Lafferty’s term ending on January 1, 2016 before the winner of the November election begins their term. Any appointment made by Schag would then need to be confirmed by Shelby City Council.
As of Friday, Schag had received no response from Eyster or any of Shelby’s auditors on their opinions moving forward, but expects some action to be taken in the coming weeks.
“This has turned out to be a rather difficult and complex issue, and in my mind I have agonized over several different scenarios,” he said on Monday. “I am asking for council’s help and patience as together we determine the best course of action for the citizens of Shelby.”
