Meet Daniel Kunz, the new leader of Stark Soil & Water. He wants to rebuild agency

MASSILLON − There's a new person in charge of the Stark County Soil & Water Conservation District and he's eager to rebuild the agency.

Daniel Kunz started as district program administrator of the conservation district on June 10. He joins an entirely new staff after the previous staff of seven quit in 2023 and 2024.

He said the new workers are taking this as an opportunity to build something better and be creative.

"You don't get too many chances in a career to be there to help rebuild and reshape a department," he said. "[That was] one of the things that was so attractive to me when this position came open."

The agency handles drainage complaints, performs stormwater inspections and reviews development plans on projects of more than one acre across Stark County.

A 'hectic transition' for new staff

Kunz, who lives in Marlboro Township, said it has been a "hectic transition" so far. Many of the new employees started at the same time as Kunz. Another new employee started a few weeks later.

Many of the employees are still learning and picking up the slack in what was a nearly empty office before they started.

"When you come into an office that's been, I don't want to say empty, but nonfunctioning or barely functioning, there's a lot of pieces that need picked up," Kunz said.

Recovery: 'An opportunity to grow and rebuild.' Stark Soil & Water recovering from employee exodus

Janine Rybka, who worked for the Cuyahoga County Soil & Water Conservation District prior to her retirement, took over as interim director of the Stark office between April and June . She spent a few days working alongside the new staff before returning to retirement.

There is still one opening for a stormwater specialist, who will be in charge of plan reviews for the urban program. The job is currently being filled by interim part-time stormwater specialist Julie Berbari. Kunz said they won't likely fill the position until the beginning of next year.

Kunz said the office continues to prioritize the urban program, which includes conducting plan reviews for stormwater for new construction in the county.

The department is still relying on EnviroScience, Cuyahoga County and Summit County to get work done on the program while training and onboarding new staff.

The stormwater plan inspectors have been training with soil and water staff in Summit County.

"Our inspectors have been shadowing Summit County's inspectors to get a good idea of the process. ... That program is probably one of our most important programs, the urban program, we have responsibilities and legal responsibilities that we have to fulfill," Kunz said. "These guys are at a point now where we're getting ready to cut them loose, so we're gonna reach equilibrium on that. We're picking up more and EnviroScience is picking up less."

What's next for the department under Kunz's leadership?

Before starting at Soil & Water, Kunz was parks superintendent at Canton Parks and Recreation . He has also worked at Stark Parks and in various conservation roles for over 30 years.

Doug Foltz, director of Canton Parks and Recreation, worked with Kunz on conservation projects.

"Dan provided exemplary public service for Canton Parks and Recreation, under his tenure many projects were completed that will provide a lasting positive experience for residents and the Canton community to enjoy," Foltz said in an email. "Looking forward to working with Dan in his new position as program administrator and wish him the best."

Kunz's priority right now is working with a human resources consultant to develop a new employee manual.

"I don't want to say that they did not have it here, but it's something that we can build on," he said. "The HR consultant is doing a review of our current plan, I'm looking at other counties' plans and just building that foundation."

Moving forward, Kunz said the department will get back to doing public programs, such as educational workshops, pond clinics, and the tree and fish sale.

He's also looking forward to potential new programming.

"We have a very talented staff now who have new ideas on additional programming," Kunz said. "I think our constituents are going to be happy with the progress we're making."

The staff is also working to improve and develop its Facebook page and website for better outreach.

"We definitely want to rebuild," Kunz said, "and develop a district that the county and state can be proud of."

What happened to Stark Soil & Water?

Every employee at Soil & Water quit their jobs in 2023 in 2024, according to previous reporting by the Canton Repository .

Former employees claimed that Executive Director John Weedon created a toxic work environment at the office. He resigned in March.

Employee exodus: 'Definition of a toxic work environment.' Every worker quits Stark Soil & Water District

His departure came days after the board of supervisors gave him written warnings for having alcohol in his office and for creating public documents about employees, including a document dubbed the "Game Plan" that detailed how to deal with workers.

Weedon said he accepted reprimands for the alcohol and "Game Plan" and decided to resign after realizing he and the board were going in different directions.

Reach Grace at 330-580-8364 or gspringer@gannett.com. Follow her on X @GraceSpringer16.

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Meet Daniel Kunz, the new leader of Stark Soil & Water. He wants to rebuild agency