Luzerne County Manager Search Committee still has “a lot of work to do” before making recommendations

Rick Morelli said Monday he is urging fellow Luzerne County Manager Search Committee members to perform more due diligence before bringing all four out-of-state finalists here for in-person interviews, citing “allegations that have surfaced in newspapers across the country” about “more than one” of the finalists.

Committee members won’t confirm the names of the five applicants who have reached the finalist stage, including one local resident.

Morelli said he forwarded information to fellow search committee members about recent litigation involving more than one finalist. He said the committee must determine whether this litigation impacts its decision to advance those applicants.

Search committee Chairman Chris Hackett said Monday the committee had planned to advance all five finalists to a second in-depth interview, but the committee always has been free to alter its plans based on its still-ongoing assessments.

For example, he said background checks and outside personality assessments of all five are still underway.

“We still have a lot of work to do,” Hackett said. “We will continue our process of evaluating candidates in a comprehensive way.”

No travel arrangements have been locked in because council is set to vote tonight on the committee’s request for applicant interview travel and lodging, he said.

Required by the county’s home rule charter, the committee has said it will recommend at least three applicants to council.

Once the seven-citizen committee makes recommendations, council must perform its own independent evaluation of the applicants. Seven of 11 council votes — a majority plus one — are required to hire the manager.

The committee has requested an additional $10,000 allocation, including an estimated $6,000 for applicant travel and lodging.

Several council members said they want to give the committee the resources it needs to meet finalists face-to-face before making a recommendation, while others have questioned whether in-person interviews should be reserved for council’s final hiring process.

With the exception of Morelli, search committee members have said they are not comfortable recommending the highest-ranked applicants without meeting them face-to-face.

Morelli has said he believes the committee can obtain enough information on whether applicants are qualified in a second remote interview, if necessary, and leave it up to council to conduct in-person interviews.

If council allocates the funding for travel, Hackett said the committee has more flexibility to schedule second interviews because it does not appear council supports the committee’s proposal to have both the committee and council interview the applicants in the same visit here.

Several council members have said they can’t be rushed and need time to review the committee recommendations before performing their own interviews.

Hackett reiterated the committee has been frugal with its initial $5,000, spending only $2,500 to date, and would take the same approach with an additional travel allocation.

“We will be as judicious as we can utilizing all funds provided by council,” he said.

The manager position is open because C. David Pedri resigned in July. Romilda Crocamo has been serving as acting county manager and declined to say if she applied for the position, saying she is respecting the committee’s decision to maintain confidentiality.