With July deadline looming, county starts interviewing new administrator applicants

Nearly 10 months after firing their last top executive, in an era described by one council member as a “mess” - county leaders began this week interviewing candidates for a permanent replacement.

“As Chairman of the Beaufort County Council, I am pleased to confirm that interviews for the vacant administrator position are underway,” Council Chair Joe Passiment said. “We are committed to a thorough and transparent selection process to ensure the best candidate is chosen to lead our county forward.”

So far this week the council has had four closed-door executive sessions, two on Monday and two on Tuesday, signaling at least four candidates have been interviewed as of Wednesday. The agendas for the meetings read “to engage in discussions incident to employment, appointment or compensation of a person regulated by a public body.”

One of the candidates is known to the council. According to county spokesperson Hannah Nichols, “John Robinson did apply for the permanent administrator position, and is participating in the interview process.” He has been the interim administrator since late July 2023. It is unknown if he was one of the people who already interviewed this week.

In February, the council contracted with a Greenville-based headhunting firm Find Great People to assist in lining up candidates for the county’s top position. At the same time Find Great People was hired, Chairman Passiment told the Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette his goal was to have an administrator hired by July 1, meaning the council has less than two months to fill the job.

“Some of the key things that I’m pushing for is somebody that thinks outside the box,” Council Member Logan Cunningham said. “It’s going to be different, it’s going to be energetic and bring in that positive morale in Beaufort County that I think that has been lacking years prior.”

“I mean, you know the mess that came out with the previous administrator, and that is continually ongoing, but we do have a standard here in Beaufort County. We are responsible for the trust of the public and that starts with us and starts with the County Administrator to put that onto our staff. So we need to make sure that we can build that positive morale and also set that expectation of what we want here in Beaufort County, and to build trust with our residents,” Cunningham added

Cunningham seemed optimistic after this week’s interviews.

“I can tell you that we had a lot of highly qualified people apply. We’re excited about the people that did apply and the interviews we’ve had.”

Council Member Tom Reitz echoed many of Cunningham’s sentiments and added a heavy emphasis on transparency.

“We want someone that is open, transparent not only with colleagues within the county council and staff but the people,” Reitz said. “The first thing that I believe is most important is that we start to build the trust back with the people that we serve.”

What happened to the previous administrator?

Eric Greenway was terminated on July 28 for cause. At a hearing requested by the former administrator to contest the action, Chairman Passiment cited Greenway’s failure to follow the statutes on hiring outside contractors, his relationship with a former contractor turned employee and his disregard for the county’s procurement process as the reasons for his termination. The former employee accused Greenway of sexual harassment and retaliation.

A series of other questionable actions came to light in the wake of the Greenway firing including a mysterious purchase of nearly $36,000 worth of weighted blankets, reportedly from a company owned by then Deputy Administrator Whitney Richland’s husband. It was later discovered that the county was in possession of the blankets, which were all still boxed and on the floor in a county warehouse. Officials had previously denied that the county ever took possession of the order.

Unrelated to the blankets, county leaders eventually learned that $800,000 in playground equipment had been purchased and installed in Port Royal before getting the required council approval. The council retroactively approved the playground despite the substantial expense with a vote of 8-2.

Beaufort County’s former director of Parks and Recreation Shannon Loper now faces a hearing from the South Carolina Ethics Commission later this year over a separate complaint alleging she used her position to benefit family members. The allegation is focused on Chapter 13 of the South Carolina Code of Laws.

County contracting questions continue

This year, the county has found itself caught in a fight with residents of Daufuskie Island, who have raised issues about the new contractor for the island’s ferry service and the details in the contract. Accusations of breach of contract, longer travel times, a lack of cargo space, safety concerns and higher prices all have been part of the rancor. Last month someone fell off the ferry and needed assistance from people on another vessel to get to safety.

In the wake of Greenway’s firing the council tasked Greenville-based law firm Haynsworth Sinkler Boyd to complete an audit of the county’s purchasing rules, purchases and contracts in the previous year. In March, a representative for the firm gave a brief oral report to the council about their findings. There has been no written report made public.

Boyd Nicholson Jr., the firm’s managing director said the investigation concluded the issues began at the top, saying the county’s leadership at the time “at worst willfully flouted the county’s procurement code, or at the very least, were woefully ignorant of it.”

Nicholson described the county’s P-card purchases since 2019 as “excessive, personal, frivolous, not business driven and often in violation of the county’s P-card manual.” Unnamed employees used their purchasing cards on things like an Apple watch, office decorations, earbuds, cellphone cases, meals and “inappropriate books.”

All the while, the investigation into Greenway and possibly others has been elevated to the South Carolina Attorney General’s Office, the state’s top prosecutor. There have not been any updates to the public about its status or findings and no charges have yet to be filed.