Work begins to fill two key positions at Sherburne County

County auditor-treasurer and veterans service officer are both retiring

by Joni Astrup

Associate Editor

A process is underway to fill two key positions in Sherburne County.

Veterans Service Officer Bruce Price is retiring on May 24 and Auditor-Treasurer Diane Arnold is retiring on July 9. The Sherburne County Board of Commissioners held a workshop on May 7 to discuss the process of filling both positions.

Veterans service officer position

The veterans service officer is appointed by the County Board for a four-year term and may be reappointed.

County Administrator Bruce Messelt said they are not recommending that there be an interim appointment as there are two associate veterans service officers who are fully certified and accredited and staff is also in place to handle administrative duties between Price’s retirement and the appointment of the new veterans service officer.

Requirements of the veterans service officer job include U.S. and Minnesota citizenship as well as veteran status. Annual certification is also required by the state.

“These positions are very competitive, so when we recruit we do see a fair amount of interest in the VSO positions, and statewide that’s true as well,” Messelt told the board.

It was the consensus of the County Board to have the recruitment process be open to both internal and external candidates. Under a tentative timeline, the position will be advertised in May, with the County Board selecting the new veterans service officer in July and the person taking the oath of office in August.

Price announced his plans to retire last month after 12 years with Sherburne County, the last nine of which have been as the appointed veterans service officer.

Auditor-treasurer

The auditor-treasurer post is an elected position.

Diane Arnold was reelected in November 2022 to a four-year term, which will end on Jan. 4, 2027. With her retirement in July there will be about 2.5 years left of her term.

The County Board will appoint a person to fill the remainder of Arnold’s term. The position will then be on the ballot in the 2026 election.

It was the consensus of the County Board to accept applications from both internal and external candidates to complete the remainder of Arnold’s term. The goal is to fill the position before Arnold retires.

Positions like the auditor-treasurer would typically be advertised though entities like the Association of Minnesota Counties, professional organizations and so forth.

Commissioner Andrew Hulse asked that the position also be advertised locally so Sherburne County residents are aware of it.

“Whoever gets this (appointed) role, if they are interested in the elected portion, it gives that person a leg up. So we need to make sure that the general public in Sherburne County has the opportunity to apply for it if they wish,” Hulse said.

After some discussion of the details around the process for filling the position, Commissioner Lisa Fobbe asked Arnold if the process sounded like a good one. Arnold said different options have been laid out for the County Board to consider, adding, “I’ve been grooming a couple of people within my office to take over eventually when I was going to be retiring. My retirement just came a little earlier than I had anticipated. But, with that, I still have very competent people that are more than capable of doing the job.”

Messelt said he believes that there are strong internal candidates in both the auditor-treasurer and veterans service officer departments.

“I’m hopeful that they will consider applying. And I don’t believe that choosing to have external opportunities is in any way an indictment on the department or the leadership, in fact I think it’s a ratification.”

He pointed to instances where the county has chosen internal candidates after soliciting applicants from both inside and outside the organization. He cited specifically Health and Human Services Director Amanda Larson and Planning and Zoning Administrator Lynn Waytashek. Both were internal promotions.

Arnold, meanwhile, has dedicated 34 years to Sherburne County, the past 17 of which have been as elected auditor-treasurer.