Council Chair Livingston: Statement regarding the Interim Administrator
March 29, 2019
Richland County Council Chair Paul Livingston announced today that Interim County Administrator Ed Gomeau’s agreement with the County ends March 31.
Council will vote to name a new Interim Administrator in the next few days. Additionally, the Council’s Administrator Search Committee is in the process of finalizing a list of candidates for the permanent role.
Gomeau joined the County on an interim basis on Oct. 29 and had extended his Feb. 22 departure to the end of March at the request of Council leadership.
He brought to his County role decades of experience at all levels of government – local, state and federal – including 23 years of service as a State of Connecticut Fire Commissioner. His career has been primarily as a turnaround agent for governments as an administrator, finance director and consultant.
During his brief tenure in Richland County, Gomeau restructured the management of County government highlighted by the appointments of Dr. John Thompson and Ashley Powell as Assistant County Administrators. The restructuring moves County government toward more effective and responsive response to the needs of residents. He leaves in place a plan to assess the information technology needs of the County throughout all areas.
Working with Dr. Thompson, Gomeau recommended and gained Council approval to transition the Transportation Penny Program from an outside contractor to County management. The move is expected to save millions of dollars over the remaining years of the transportation program, which will be toward funding more of the projects originally approved by Richland County voters in 2012.
Gomeau led the effort to meet with the SC Department of Revenue (DOR) to gain acceptance of the County’s current process of administrating the penny fund tax dollars in compliance with DOR’s guidelines. He led the County Administration team’s successful efforts to gain Council’s approval to get the Richland Renaissance program back on track.
He also oversaw the process to secure Council approval to provide more than $100,000 in emergency funds to Allen Benedict residents to help meet their essential needs. He initiated a study of the County’s information technology needs, including cyber security. Along with staff, Gomeau also provided leadership for the momentum to upgrade and modernize the County’s aging wastewater treatment facilities.
“Please join me in thanking Mr. Gomeau for his commitment and the contributions he made to the County in such a short period of time,” Livingston said.
