O.C. Is Still Looking for Top Executive

Seven months have elapsed since the Orange County Board of Supervisors fired its top administrator, but the county is still far from choosing a replacement to manage its nearly 18,000 employees and $4.8-billion budget.

The board has interviewed three candidates for county executive officer and is considering at least four others, said Tom Wilson, the board chairman. He declined to identify any of the applicants, but said two are women.

County officials familiar with the search said those who have been interviewed are J. Allen Clemson, administrator of Dallas County, Texas; Theresa Ann Parker, executive director of the California Housing Finance Agency in Sacramento; and Michael Ruane, executive director of the Children and Families Commission of Orange County.

John M.W. Moorlach, appointed county treasurer by the board after the county’s 1994 bankruptcy, also has applied for the post but has not been interviewed.

Another candidate is Riverside County Executive Officer Larry Parrish, said the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the county is trying to keep the candidates’ names confidential to encourage applications.

For Parrish, the Orange County job would represent a homecoming. Parrish, who has not been interviewed, served as Orange County’s top executive from 1985 to 1989, when he left to become a lobbyist in Sacramento. He joined Riverside County in 1992.

Parrish declined to say Thursday whether he is interested in the job or, if so, why he would return to a job he once quit. He said he has not yet spoken to the Orange County Board of Supervisors, which has been conducting interviews behind closed doors.

Parrish, 63, left Orange County shortly before his 50th birthday, saying he wanted to mark that milestone with a change in his lifestyle. He had spent the four years dealing with financial shortages, jail overcrowding, and disputes over housing developments and other problems. “It does wear on you,” he told The Times in 1989. “After you put so many nuts on so many wheels, sooner or later you want to get off the [assembly] line.”

Wilson said the board would like to find a replacement for Michael Schumacher, whom the board fired after little more than two years on the job, within the next couple of months.

“It’s quite a diverse group we’re talking to: some from Orange County, some from outside Orange County, some from outside the state,” Wilson said.

The county’s executive officer will oversee such tasks as helping prioritize services and negotiating with unions.

“Having a competent, skilled and effective CEO is critical in the operations of counties in California. It’s the most difficult appointed public job in the state,” said Steven Szalay, executive director of the California State Assn. of Counties and past top officer in Alameda and Tuolumne counties.

It’s been a particularly tough job in Orange County. The past four top executives either quit or were fired after tumultuous relationships with the supervisors.

Finding someone who can work well with the current board and at the same time show leadership and financial savvy will be essential, several supervisors said.

“I’m looking for an experienced, senior level, either city manager or county manager or somebody very senior within our own county management structure,” Supervisor Bill Campbell said. “I do believe They need to understand county finance and county services, so I’m not putting much of a priority on somebody who would come in from the business community without strong government experience.”

Supervisor Chris Norby, who has already persuaded Moorlach to apply for the job, said he is looking for someone with a financial background and strong management skills.

“I want someone who will tread that thin line of leading but also following board direction,” he said. “It’s almost a tightrope of a CEO who’s a leader but also someone who will follow board direction. Too strong a leader might go out on a limb beyond what the board wants them to do. But a weak leader can’t fulfill what the board wants them to do.”

Parker, who has served as executive director of the state housing finance agency since 1997, declined to discuss her interview or even confirm that she applied.

Her agency encourages affordable housing by offering loans to first-time home buyers and for the construction of affordable housing projects. The agency lent more than $1 billion to first-time home buyers last year. She is also the past chief deputy for policy for the state Department of Finance.

Neither Ruane nor Clemson, the other candidates who have been interviewed, could be reached for comment.

Former Anaheim City Manager Jim Ruth has been serving as the county’s interim executive officer, but he has told board members he is not interested in the job permanently. The board hired a consulting firm to search nationwide for a replacement for Schumacher, who served as the county’s executive officer from 2000 until January.

Schumacher was paid $212,244, including his car allowance, during the 2001-02 fiscal year, county records show.

“The job is a spectacular job, so people should want this job,” Campbell said. “They have to say, ‘Given the history of change, can I work with this board long enough to accomplish what I want to accomplish?’ ”