Delta County commissioners approve draft administrator contract, appoint negotiating team amid public opposition

Delta County Board of Commissioners voted June 10 to approve an amended draft employment contract for the county administrator and to appoint a two-person negotiating team to complete negotiations with the candidate.

The board approved a page-by-page set of contract changes proposed by personnel and finance committees, including a $7,500 lump-sum severance payment, a provision requiring repayment of that severance if the employee is rehired into a supervisory role within three years, a proposed starting salary of $93,000 with up to $3,000 merit increases at six and 12 months, and limits keeping the final salary within a previously established $90,000–$100,000 range. Commissioners also agreed to changes to vacation and insurance benefits, and to evaluation and goal-setting timelines for the new administrator. The board named Chair John Mellner and Commissioner Christine Williams as the county’s negotiating team.

Why it matters: the contract sets pay, benefits and precedent for future senior-hire severance language and rehiring conditions. Several members of the public criticized the board’s handling of the administrator search and urged the board not to rehire a former administrator, calling for a new search.

The board’s approvals were the product of detailed line-by-line review. Commissioners discussed editing “whereas” clauses to avoid promising to “assure” an employee’s morale and clarified language intended to protect the county against malfeasance or dishonesty. The personnel committee’s recommended changes were shown in red text and finance committee changes in purple in the packet; the board approved the assembled, amended document in a sequence of motions that accepted pages 1 through 10 as amended.

Key contract terms and committee clarifications - Severance: The contract as amended specifies a lump-sum severance payment of $7,500 to the employee in the event of termination without just cause. The board added a repayment (clawback) provision: the employee must reimburse Delta County the full $7,500 if rehired into a supervisory role within three years of the separation that produced the severance. Commissioners debated whether the clawback should apply countywide or be limited to rehiring into the same or supervisory position; they settled on restricting it to rehiring into a supervisory role within three years. - Salary and merit increases: The personnel committee initially recommended a $95,000 starting salary; finance proposed $93,000 with merit-based increases. The board agreed to a $93,000 starting salary with the possibility of up to $3,000 after six months and up to $3,000 after 12 months, based on merit evaluations and board recommendation, with a hard cap that the final salary not exceed the previously discussed $100,000 range. Commissioners emphasized that the merit increases are discretionary and tied to board evaluations. - Benefits and leave: The draft reduces the period of employer-paid insurance continuation tied to the severance package (personnel had proposed three months of insurance; the amended draft specifies one month). Vacation accruals were lowered to align more closely with department-head schedules; the personnel committee said this reduces precedent-setting elevated vacation levels that had accumulated in prior contracts. - Evaluations and goals: The contract language was clarified to require the board and employee to define goals and performance objectives in writing within 30 days of signing the contract, and to conduct a formal performance evaluation at 180 days (six months) and again at 12 months. The six- and 12-month merit evaluations are the points when discretionary pay increases may be considered. - Administrative and housekeeping edits: The board removed redundant “for cause” language and consolidated various formatting and consistency edits across several sections, including indemnification language, mileage taxation language, and computation-of-benefits wording.

Public comment and dissent

During the meeting’s public-comment period multiple residents urged the board not to rehire a former administrator, raising ethics and performance concerns and disputing past severance amounts. Escanaba resident Bob Baron told the board that rehiring Emily DeSalvo would “condone this unethical and unprofessional behavior,” and that, in his view, a prior severance had been “approximately $50,000 to $70,000.” Bonnie Hakala, another Escanaba resident, said she believed DeSalvo “walked away with” roughly $83,000 and urged commissioners to restart the search. Other callers and in-person commenters asked the board to keep compensation and benefits conservative and to seek additional qualified applicants.

Board directions and next steps

After approving the amended draft, the board appointed a negotiating team—Board Chair John Mellner and Commissioner Christine Williams—to complete negotiations with the candidate and to work with legal staff as needed. Commissioners discussed including the county prosecutor in future negotiation sessions for legal clarity.

Votes at a glance - Approval of agenda: motion carried (moved by Commissioner Johnson; support by Commissioner Jensen). - Approval of draft contract, pages 1–10, as amended: each page was approved by motion and voice vote during the meeting (movers and supporters recorded in the minutes; each page motion passed). - Appointment of negotiating team (Chair John Mellner and Commissioner Christine Williams): motion passed (moved and supported; voice vote).

What the record does not specify The meeting record shows voice votes and aye/oppose calls but does not list a roll-call tally for each approval in the transcript provided. The packet referenced by commissioners (personnel and finance committee markings, original and redline versions) is cited repeatedly; the final negotiated contract language will be subject to the negotiating team’s work and any subsequent written agreement returned to the board for final approval.

Meeting context The meeting was a special session called by Delta County Clerk Nancy Prezrocki to consider the administrator contract and associated procedures. Commissioners said the contract discussions were intended to preserve the county’s negotiating position and to avoid disclosing “maximums” publicly. The board spent more than an hour reviewing and amending contract language section by section, with personnel and finance committee members explaining changes.

Next formal steps Chair Mellner and Commissioner Williams, as the designated negotiating team, will meet with the candidate and legal counsel as necessary to finalize contract terms. The board did not announce a date for the completion of negotiations; the board clerk will circulate any updated packet materials when negotiations conclude.