When the new Board of Supervisors was installed in January, one of their first acts was to appoint county comptroller Loretta Brantley as interim county administrator.

It was an appointment supervisors had not thought they would need to address in such a way when they were elected in November, but when long-time administrator John Smith resigned due to serious health issues, the board was faced with a significant vacancy; a vacancy Brantley has served in the weeks since.

Now, the process for finding a permanent administrator is underway and the deadline for those wanting to apply for the position is set for March 16.

Board President Dr. Jeff Holland said an announcement for the job has been sent out and supervisors are looking for those with crucial experience.

“The people have to have personnel experience, they have to have administrative experience, this is a complex county,” Holland said. “We want them to know how to work with people, how to work accounting systems, how to work with money, how to manage — in other words, it is not a situation where someone will come say fresh out of school and expect to do this job. They’re going to be experienced.”

As for Brantley, Holland would not comment on whether she has expressed interest in the position permanently.

“I won’t comment on those who have expressed an interest; that’s a personnel matter,” he said. “But, it would be my hope she would, certainly.”

Holland said no official timeline has been placed on the process, but it is something the board has made a priority.

“We have not set a really hard deadline, but my hope is that we would narrow the field down substantially to a very reasonable number of candidates who would be interested in just a couple of weeks after that deadline,” he said. “Then we would get really serious to see those candidates who are serious about the job.

“Senior positions, it’s all about the courting process.”