The Clallam County Board of County Commissioners rescinded its conditional offer to hire David Fraser as its next administrator after discovering information that showed he isn’t the “right fit” for the county, commissioners said.

After the executive session Thursday morning, Commissioners Mark Ozias and Randy Johnson agreed to start the search for a new administrator, appointing Human Resources Director Rich Sill as the interim county administrator when Jim Jones retires Oct. 15.

Commissioner Bill Peach, who Ozias said was ill, did not attend the closed-door meeting.

Ozias would not say specifically why Fraser — a government-sector consultant who has been the city manager of three small cities in Kansas, Michigan and Nevada — would not be a good fit for the county.

“I want to maintain confidentiality and I would just say that in learning a little more about Mr. Fraser, the conclusion that the commissioners came to was that with regard to working with our employees and managing our employees, that he wasn’t going to be the right fit for that role,” Ozias said.

The commissioners made the conditional job offer to Fraser on Sept. 7.

Fraser said Thursday afternoon he was “disappointed” and “puzzled” with the commissioners’ decision.

“They wouldn’t tell me what (the reason) was either,” he said. “I can’t in my wildest imaginations think of what it would have been.”

Fraser said he liked the area and felt he would be a good fit for the county.

Both Ozias and Johnson made comments about whether Fraser would be a good fit with the county’s employees. Ozias has said the background investigation would include talking to others Fraser has worked with.

“I wish they would have talked to all of my employees,” Fraser said. “I’ve always enjoyed a very positive relationship with employees.”

Fraser said he will likely remain working as a consultant.

Clallam County commissioners met in executive session Tuesday where they learned “background” information and the progress of a background check, which was ongoing, Ozias said.

At the time, Ozias said he anticipated the background check to take another week or two, but later that day the county sent a notice that it would hold another executive session at 7:30 a.m. Thursday.

“We got an update on Tuesday and felt like we wanted to understand more,” he said. “Some additional work was done in discussing that process. Our comfort level with the job offer was just not at the same place it was a couple weeks ago.”

Second search

Johnson said the county is executing a clause in its contract with head-hunting firm Strategic Government Resources to start the search again for free with a new pool of candidates.

Those new candidates should be identified within two and half months, Johnson said.

The search firm, which specializes in recruiting executive-level government employees, is under a $27,000 contract with the county to find a new administrator.

“It’s really important that the fit of the individual involved is probably the most important thing relative to working with county employees,” Johnson said. “To me, that is an overriding factor.”

Ozias said none of the candidates Strategic Government Resources put forth were the right fit for the county.

The position will pay between $130,201 and $158,652, the latter of which is Jones’ salary.

The range includes benefits totaling 35 percent of the salary that is decided by the commissioners.

When Fraser applied for the position he was asked what the county would find during a comprehensive background investigation that could be of concern to the county.

“You will find that I have a very clean background,” Fraser wrote in the questionnaire. Fraser told the Peninsula Daily News earlier this month he is “kind of a Boy Scout in terms of what they are going to be worrying about.”

He wrote in the questionnaire that press coverage of a contentious public evaluation of his performance as city manager in Boulder City, Nev., focused on the negative of the meeting.

“The mayor went on a bit of an unfair rant; which, of course, made the local newspaper,” he wrote. “The newspaper only chose to print the most negative portions of the meeting.”

In the interim

When Jones retires, Sill will take over as the interim administrator. Ozias said Sill’s office is in the best situation to handle the extra work.

Jones said he was “shocked” when he learned Thursday morning the commissioners had decided to start over on the search for his replacement. He was not told until after the executive session.

“It was a complete shock to me,” Jones said. “They kept it a good enough secret.”

Ozias said the county may want to hire Jones as a consultant after he retires to help as the county searches for a replacement.

Jones said that for months he has considered becoming a consultant, but said state law prohibits him from consulting with the county for 30 days after retirement.

“The way I understand it is I can consult with anybody else except my current employer,” he said. “I can’t promise to come back and I can’t negotiate a contract.”

He said any discussions about whether he will consult with the county will have to happen after he returns from his planned vacation in Hawaii.

Jones had eyed Oct. 26 as a retirement date, but said he will now retire Oct. 15 after he presents the recommended budget to the county.

Change in process?

After the first search did not turn up any candidates commissioners were satisfied with, Ozias said commissioners will likely discuss how to approach the second round of the search.

“I plan to review the process we have used prior to re-engaging it and if we learn there is something we can do better or differently, of course we will,” he said.

Ozias and Peach narrowed the field of 32 applicants down to 11 in an executive session July 13, and to five at an Aug. 10 executive session, with the aid of Strategic Government Resources.

The state Attorney General’s Office has said in a nonbinding guide for public officials that elected officials should not narrow down or rank applicants for public employment in executive session, calling it “final action” that is not permitted behind closed doors.

“I am going to sit down with our Prosecuting Attorney’s Office and review how we went through the process this time and if they provide direction that we should be doing something a little differently than we have, then we will follow that advice,” Ozias said.

“The commissioners have been doing our best job possible to follow their advice and I understand there has been concern about discussion in executive session.”

Jesse Major is a reporter with the Olympic Peninsula News Group, which is composed of Sound Publishing newspapers Peninsula Daily News, Sequim Gazette and Forks Forum. He can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56250, or at jmajor@peninsuladailynews.com.