After nationwide search, Tarrant County commissioners find new administrator nearby
Tarrant County commissioners voted 4-1 Tuesday to hire assistant county administrator Chandler Merritt as the county’s next top administrator.
Commissioner Alisa Simmons was the lone vote against Merritt’s hire.
Merritt, 41, has been an assistant administrator in Tarrant County since May 2021. He previously served as a chief of staff for former County Judge Glen Whitley.
Outgoing county administrator G.K. Maenius is set to retire Sept. 30. He’s been in the position since 1988 and is the only person who has served as administrator in Tarrant County’s history.
Merritt will start in his new role Oct. 1.
As county administrator, Merritt will be in charge of all 4,844 Tarrant County employees and its newly adopted $896.6 million budget.
Merritt, who’s originally from Azle, told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram it was always his goal to be a county administrator or a city manager.
“Being from Tarrant County, I really wanted to work in Tarrant County,” Merritt said.
Merritt’s goals have yet to be determined. First thing he’s doing though, is meeting with members of the commissioners court to understand what their priorities are so he can make a strategic plan.
The commissioners chose Fort Worth-based firm Mackenzie Eason to conduct a nationwide search for candidates to replace Maenius in July.
Experts had said the position may be difficult to fill, citing a growing partisan environment in Tarrant County.
Commissioners met for more than three hours Sept. 12 and more than six hours Sept. 13 to interview candidates.
The Star-Telegram filed a Texas Public Information Act request for all application materials submitted for county administrator. The county did not fulfill the request for the public records and instead asked the Attorney General’s office to withhold the records, citing the ongoing application process.
Darien George with Mackenzie Eason told the Star-Telegram more than 130 people applied for the position.
Ahead of their vote Tuesday, commissioner Roy Brooks was careful with his wording — the county wasn’t hiring a replacement for Maenius. They were appointing a new administrator, he said.
Maenius, Brooks said, was irreplaceable. His statement was met with applause from a packed courtroom.
Simmons, however, found Merritt’s appointment “problematic.” She said the county had a tendency to hire people who were familiar and not necessarily the most qualified, and said she was worried because it could lead to a stagnant organization that lacks innovation and promote a “good ol’ boys system.”
Simmons said there was a uniquely qualified candidate who was not considered who was called “superior” and the “Ferrari” of candidates by her colleagues. She did not specify which colleagues.
“The ‘isms’ crept into this process,” Simmons said. “Cronyism, racism.”
Simmons then offered Merritt her congratulations.
Commissioner Manny Ramirez said he was proud of Merritt and earned the opportunity.
“We need a bridge from our longtime 35-year incredible county administrator, and I think Mr. Merritt, his experience, his education, and everything that he brings to the table is the perfect person to step in and be that bridge for us into the future,” Ramirez said.
County Judge Tim O’Hare said Merritt learned from an amazing mentor during his time as assistant administrator and has his own ideas about how the county can improve and be more efficient.
Commissioner Gary Fickes saw Merritt’s hire coming.
“Chandler, when I first met you this I where I thought you’d be,” Fickes said.
A LinkedIn job posting shows the county was looking for a candidate who would be a “visionary leader” with an “open, transparent, respectful, and collaborative management style” and could come to solutions through “partnerships, strategic planning, and fiscal stewardship.”
The county also wanted someone with five to 10 years experience of “successful leadership at a senior executive/administrator level in a public or private organization with comparable hands-on responsibilities.”
A chapter closed
Tuesday marked Maenius’ last commissioners meeting as the longest serving county administrator in Texas.
And as it closed out, each commissioner had something to say about Maenius’ departure.
Brooks jokingly told Maenius he was probably getting out at the wrong time because it was getting harder to herd all the cats.
Simmons said Maenius has been supportive and educated her in her first nine months as a commissioner.
“Your knowledge about this county is just boundless,” she said. “I have a deep respect for you and I appreciate you.”
O’Hare called Maenius a “great man,” and thanked Maenius’ wife Linda, who stood alongside him as the commissioners made remarks, for lending him to the county. He said Maenius was to Tarrant County as a late night television host was to their show, and said working with Maenius was the highlight of his professional career.
Ramirez said Merritt was ready for the job because Maenius made him ready, and called him a mentor.
Thirty-five years meant progress for the county under Maenius.
“We’ve done a lot of things,” Maenius said when his time came to speak. “We really have.”
He referred to Tarrant County as an outlier among the state’s 254, and said his tenure had been enjoyable and that Merritt would be “just fine.”
Also in attendance was former county judge Whitley. Whitley recalled a story in which former commissioner J.D. Johnson, who represented Northwest Tarrant, voted against Maenius’ hire.
Whitley said there would be a lot of people who want Maenius’ time in retirement. He advised Maenius to wait six months and give his time to Linda instead.
Commissioners also passed a resolution to rename the county government building the G.K. Maenius Administration Building in honor of the outgoing administrator.
Maenius told the court he didn’t deserve the building namesake, but called it one of his greatest honors.
This story was originally published September 19, 2023 at 12:46 PM.
