On March 22 at 10 a.m., about 20 Forest Lakes residents attended a public meeting to select a new manager for the Forest Lakes Metro District, a special district that maintains the water, sewer, roads and recreational services for the 840-home subdivision. The room was chilly in the Community Recreation Center because the noisy heater had to be turned off in order to hear, but the temperature wasn’t the only thing that was uncomfortable in the room.
The meeting allowed the public to view the process of choosing between two finalists for the job, like a public works reality competition. Jon Wolf was hired to fill the position. The other finalist out of nine applicants was Gabriel O’Reilly.
FLMD board vice president Dave Sheetz said a state statute requires that whenever there is a quorum of three or more board members, there has to be a public meeting. The former manager, Brain Sheffield, said his interview process was not public, although there is a requirement to let the community know who the two finalists are.
At the meeting, there was an abrupt motion by the selection committee, consisting of board president Tony Schrier and Sheetz, to hire Wolf before the interviews were over. The board went back to ask a few more questions to smooth things over before another motion was made to select Wolf again.
“Do I get a silver medal?” O’Reilly said before exiting the room.
Sheetz said they were impressed with both candidates, but Wolf’s recommendations tilted the scale. Wolf is a construction site manager who has been working in California away from his family and two daughters who live in Durango. The FLMD board and Wolf agreed on a $100,000 salary.
“This is a dream job for me,” Wolf said. “It’s time to come home.” He is taking the position after some turbulence in Forest Lakes. The board was accused of a lack of transparency with funding about a year ago. Residents pay about $1,500 a year to the metro district. Sheffield resigned after two years to take a position as an HR director for the Southern Ute Permanent Fund. Sheffield said they tried to improve transparency during his two years as manager. Residents could see the audits and were free to ask questions.
“One of the biggest challenges the new manager is going to have to deal with is dealing with residents who are never ever happy with anything,” Sheffield said.
He said there will also be some relationship-building work to do as there are some new board members. Former board president Rich Hillyer resigned in February.
“As with any group, there is going to be a difference of opinion,” Wolf said. “Communication is key. I am looking forward to the challenge.”
The FLMD board meets every second Tuesday of the month.
prt@pinerivertimes.com
