JCC to Cast a Wide Net for Wanner Replacement

By WY Daily Staff Wednesday, January 14, 2009

The James City County Board of Supervisors has decided to hire an outside firm, Executive Search Services, to begin the recruitment search to replace outgoing County Administrator Sandy Wanner.

The job was outsourced at a meeting Tuesday night of the Board of Supervisors. The Board agreed that the firm's fee, approximately one month's salary for a County Administrator, was well worth it.

But current and former county workers say no matter who is chosen to replace Wanner, they will have a very difficult task replacing his five decades of expertise in government work when he retires later this year.

"I think there's no question it will be very hard," Board of Supervisors member John McGlennon says of the job of finding Wanner's successor.

"I think Sandy has taken special efforts over the years to be fully engaged in the community. He's widely respected for the work he does understanding every issue, and for his willingness to get involved in the community to help him better understand it."

Wanner's nearly 13 years as county administrator have coincided with explosive growth in the county. He's actually been working in local government here for 25 years, either at the school board or James City County.

He says the favorite part of the job has been his interactions with citizens of James City County - good and bad.

"I think what I've experienced is a really engaged citizenry from both sides of the equation, and it's always great to interact with them," Wanner says. "I've also been really fortunate to have a great staff all these years working for the county, people who take a great deal of pride in what they do."

When Wanner started working for James City County back in the 1980s, he was the county point-man for the construction of the Williamsburg/James City County Rec Center. That was one of many times he worked closely with the City of Williamsburg on municipal issues. His counterpart with the city, Jack Tuttle, says it's been a pleasure to work with him.

"Sandy is the best in the business of local government – tough, smart and courageous," Tuttle says.

"He is the best of regional partners – caring deeply about the future of not only James City County, but the City of Williamsburg. And he's a good friend and mentor, someone I respect and trust completely."

At the time Wanner was promoted to the position, then-Board of Supervisors member Jack Edwards says there was a difficult decision to consider – promote him, or advertise the position broadly.

Ultimately, the Board of Supervisors felt that Wanner's expertise was more suited to the county than anyone they could find nationwide. Edwards believes the last dozen years have demonstrated it was the correct decision.

"He's got the discipline of a Marine, which he was, and the empathy of someone who really listens to people," says Edwards, whose 28 years on the Board of Supervisors ended in 1999. "It's a powerful combination, and Sandy's got it in spades."

After years of explosive growth, Wanner has presided over something new in the county in the past year – a real economic slowdown.

"The last year's been a little bit of a downer," Wanner says."The downturn in the economy has limited what you can do with county government and staff. But one thing about it is it's forced us to focus on the core services we provide, because we have to make a budget."

Wanner says he hopes his successor can experience some of the economic boom times he's been fortunate enough to oversee. When he officially retires July 1, Wanner wants to spend more time with family, and is looking to do some teaching.

What he doesn't want to do is second-guess the person who steps into his large shoes.

"I'm the type of guy who wants to keep my head in what's going on. But I'm not going to be glued to the TV watching the meetings or anything."