By Ilsa Minor

iminor@dailypress.net

ESCANABA — The Delta County Board of Commissioners voted Tuesday to offer the county administrator post to Former Delta County Administrator Emily DeSalvo, in perhaps the most significant reversal of the actions of the 2023-2024 Board of Commissioners.

“I’m excited to have Miss. DeSalvo onboard. I really enjoyed working with her when I was a commissioner previously, and I really look forward to moving on and working with her again,” Commissioner Patrick Johnson said Tuesday.

DeSalvo was originally hired to serve as the county’s administrator in 2019 after a stint working for the Delta County District Court. In February of 2023 she spoke at a Delta County Board of Commissioners meeting, claiming three of the then-seated commissioners had engaged in unethical, self-serving and disrespectful behavior, which included failing to explain low scores she had been given on an annual review.

The three commissioners who were the subject of DeSalvo’s statement — Dave Moyle (R), Bob Barron (R), and Bob Petersen (R) — voted to terminate DeSalvo’s contract immediately after she finished making it. The commissioners repeatedly pointed to the statement as the reason for DeSalvo’s firing, arguing it was insubordination. They also argued that comments she made about serving at the board’s pleasure and suggesting the commissioners only communicate with her in writing showed both a desire to be terminated and an unwillingness to work with the board.

“On February 7th, ’23, DeSalvo, with the direct help of (Commissioner) John Malnar, goaded the board into firing her with her 11-minute manifesto as a disgruntled, insubordinate employee, degrading and attacking three of her five bosses. This was done for her ego and with the help of John Malnar to fleece the County Delta County taxpayers of $50,000-plus,” Barron said during public comment Tuesday, referencing a severance package in DeSalvo’s contract that was awarded if the county terminated DeSalvo and not if she resigned.

While the former commissioners were not entirely without support for the move to terminate DeSalvo in 2023, many Delta County voters were outraged by the dismissal, believing her criticisms of the commissioners were justified and her firing was unwarranted.

The three commissioners were controversial figures for a number of reasons unrelated to DeSalvo, including open opposition to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI); the handling of the county’s relationship with the Delta Conservation District; and Barron’s connection to solar development and an attempt to redefine the boundaries of Escanaba Township. However, it was DeSalvo’s firing that became the flashpoint of the movement for the commissioners’ recall and was the stated reason for the recall on the petitions that were signed by thousands of Delta County voters.

The recall was ultimately successful in May of last year, removing all three commissioners who voted for DeSalvo’s firing. Moyle and Petersen were replaced by commissioners Kelli van Ginhoven (D) and Matt Jensen (R), respectfully, as a direct result of the recall. Barron was replaced by Former-Commissioner Myra Croasdell (I), who failed to secure the seat last November and was replaced by Commissioner Christine Williams (R).

The rest of the current board of commissioners is composed of Malnar (R), who is now the board chair. In 2023, he was the commissioner who placed a discussion of DeSalvo’s contract on the agenda, which became her prepared statement. He was also one of two commissioners who voted against DeSalvo’s firing, the other being Former-Commissioner Steve Viau (R).

Viau no longer sits on the board, as he was was defeated by Johnson (R) in last August’s primary election.

Fourteen people applied for the open administrator’s seat after Administrator Ashleigh Young — who was hired while the three recalled commissioners were still seated — announced her intention to leave the post to become the full-time manager of the Delta County Airport. Five of the applicants were offered interviews, but only DeSalvo and one other applicant actually interviewed for the position due to candidates dropping out or failing to schedule an interview.

The commissioners had planned to hold a second round of interviews, but after four of the five commissioners selected DeSalvo as their top pick, the second round was scrapped during a committee of the whole meeting held Monday. It is not publicly known which commissioner opted for the other candidate, but all five commissioners voted unanimously to offer the position to DeSalvo Tuesday.

Contract negotiations between the county’s and DeSalvo will now take place, with most of the work taking place in the county’s personnel and finance committees. If DeSalvo accepts the position and terms of a contract, a vote to officially hire her will take place at a future meeting of the board of commissioners.