Lyon County Community Development manager Andrew Haskin speaks Monday to the county commission as he is being considered for the role of interim county manager. The board approved Haskin’s appointment and contract.
Photo by Jessica Garcia.
YERINGTON — The Lyon County Commission appointed community development director Andrew Haskin to serve as interim county manager Monday during a special meeting after former manager Jeff Page quickly announced his retirement last week.
But the discussion to determine Page’s acting replacement and the county’s process to fill the position permanently drew disagreement from the board about its next steps.
Chair Vida Keller said the meeting was necessary to resolve the situation as soon as possible. The board oversees the county manager as its sole employee, with Keller calling it the one position where it hires “from the top down, not bottom up.”
She also said every department head acted swiftly on short notice once Page publicly announced he was retiring as of Sept. 19.
“I just want to commend everyone in Lyon County,” Keller said. “When the chips are down, we stick together, and that was very notable this last week.”
The agenda was to appoint Haskin in the position and approve an associated employment contract for him. The proposed salary range for Haskin per the agreement will be $175,000, representing the employer/employee-paid PERS contribution. Should Haskin resume his position as community development director by formal board action or by his written notice to the board chair, he reverts to his original salary.
Commissioner Robert Jacobson, representing District 4, asked whether the position was offered to other department heads last week, stating he worried about any favoritism in the hiring process and wanted to ensure there was confidence in Haskin’s ability.
Jacobson also wanted to make sure Haskin wouldn’t gain an advantage on potentially
filling the role full-time down the road.
“I’m afraid of hearing about the ‘good ol’ boy’ system,” Jacobson said.
Human resources director Eric Milavsky said the request came from Keller to act accordingly and speak with staff members about finding a qualified interim. He said his staff spoke with department heads or other personnel and without betraying their confidences, he felt staff members would support Haskin as interim county manager for the length of his contract.
“I think it would be fair to represent that staff supports this initiative,” Milavsky said.
Haskin was given an opportunity to speak and expressed his appreciation for being considered, referring to his past experience with the Northern Nevada Development Authority.
“I think I can do the job very well,” he said. “I wouldn’t even dream of taking this on without the staff here. Lyon County has something special here.”
Haskin was hired with the county in August 2021 and has overseen Lyon’s building plan activities, code compliance, zoning procedures airport planning and development and frequently presents before the commission, citizen advisory boards and workshops and works with state and local agencies. Previously, he served in various business and management capacities for the Northern Nevada Development Authority and is a graduate of the University of Nevada, Reno.
He said he would intend to pursue the position permanently when the time came.
The board also discussed how to determine its next steps for a search.
Board members expressed disagreement about its procedure to explore filling the position permanently, with Commissioner Wes Henderson wanting the public to make sure “we appoint, we don’t anoint.”
Commissioner Ken Gray said any discussion at this time might not be necessary until Haskin is given an opportunity to perform as county manager.
“We did do a national search and we did find a more capable person in house, but this isn’t new territory,” Gray said.
Page worked as Lyon’s fourth county manager since June 2010 and had been with the county since 1985, when he started as a reserve deputy sheriff. His predecessors as manager include Steve Snyder, serving from 1990 to 2004; Donna Kristaponis, serving from 2004 to 2007 after a national search; and, after a second national search, Dennis Stark, who was selected and served from 2007 to 2010. Page was chosen as an interim for about three months before being hired permanently in the role, according to Comptroller Josh Foli during Monday’s meeting.
Community residents who attended the meeting supported Haskin’s appointment.
Stagecoach resident Andy Seachak said he hoped the board was not “kicking the issue down the street” by delaying action on a search procedure.
“The person assisting you in your county manager’s role will sink or swim in his own volition,” he said. “But the public is going to be watching.”
The motion to approve Haskin carried 5-0, with Gray and Vice Chair Dave Hockaday, representing District 5, joining the meeting by Zoom.
The board also agreed to take no action on a plan for recruiting and hiring a new county manager on this time but agreed to bring it back for a future agenda item. The motion was approved 5-0.
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