A little less than a week after outgoing Administrator Roger Fraser’s last day on the job, the Cass County Board of Commissioners continued discussion on how to proceed in finding its next department head.

The board mulled over the possibility of hiring an interim administrator during its last meeting of 2015, which took place last Thursday at commissioner chambers in Cassopolis. The talk followed up a discussion that took place during a recent county retreat, where leaders talked about reaching out to several candidates who could be interested in serving as temporary head of the county while the board searches for a permanent replacement.

“We should be looking at getting an interim in here relatively quick,” said Vice Chair Robert Ziliak. “We know the finance director [Angie Steinman] won’t have the time to dedicate to the administration portion. She has her job to do. If somebody was going to do her job she could do the administration job full time, but we don’t have anybody to do that.”

An interim would also buy the county some extra time while they look for someone to take over the role full-time, Ziliak said.

Ziliak mentioned that while the board has yet to interview any candidates as a whole, he and Chairperson Bernie Williamson had briefly talked to one potential candidate.

The possibility of creating a small, three-person committee to determine a recommended candidate was also discussed.

The talks came two weeks after the board, in a 4-2 vote, agreed to terminate the contract of Fraser effective Dec. 11. Fraser had been with the county a little less than two years.

Commissioner Wagel disagreed with the notion of hiring an interim administrator, instead proposing that Deputy Administrator and Finance Director Angie Steinman continue to oversee day-to-day operations during the search, with the commissioners meeting once a week to discuss major items needing to be taken care of. The commissioner said this solution would be cost efficient, mentioning the recent legal expenses the county has paid following an unfair labor practices lawsuit that was settled in late November.

“We need to save the taxpayers some money instead of frivolously spending it,” Wagel said. “I think we need to look at alternatives instead of going out and just hiring someone to be the interim administrator.”

Commission Skip Dyes, on the other hand, said that hiring an interim could help set the stage for whoever is chosen to succeed Fraser; though they must also make sure that whoever is picked to replace the interim is just as qualified.

“We only get one time to get the show right this time,” Dyes said. “We have a lot of people watching us…if they can’t meet that grade, we shouldn’t consider them in the first place.”