For county treasurer, time has come to retire

Michelakis has touted his office manager to finish out the four-year term.

By TIM YOVICH

VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF

WARREN — Trumbull County Treasurer Christ Michelakis has decided to retire early.

Michelakis, who has been treasurer since 1995, will leave office Sept. 1. His current four-year term expires Sept. 2, 2009.

“Your body sometimes tells you to retire,” said Michelakis, who will be 70 in September.

Michelakis said Tuesday that as treasurer, his office “has made record interest for the county under the most difficult of financial times.”

Michelakis, who also is chairman of the county’s Democratic Party, said he wants to devote his full attention to the presidential race in 2008.

Michelakis will be leaving a $66,415-a-year job, and he is touting Sam Lamancusa, his office manager, to fill his unexpired four-year term when the county Democratic Central Committee meets in September.

Lamancusa, who is married to Michelakis’ niece, is paid $51,321 annually.

Michelakis said he is recommending Lamancusa as his replacement because he has done an “excellent job.” He lauded Lamancusa for his knowledge of investments.

Michelakis pointed out that Trumbull is one of the few counties in the state that makes its own investments rather than relying on a financial adviser.

Possible replacement

Lamancusa said that if selected by the committee he will continue to operate the treasurer’s office as Michelakis has done.

Lamancusa, 50, is a 1975 graduate of Ursuline High School and attended Youngstown State University and Hiram College.

He was Girard city auditor from October 1993 to February 2001, when he was named office manager by Michelakis. He is married with two children.

In 2002, a state audit issued 26 findings against the city for its handling of money. There were no findings for recovery, however.

In several instances, the audit pointed to individual city funds that were permitted to go into the red and financial transactions not being provided to council by Lamancusa when he was city auditor.

Lamancusa has said he takes exceptions to the audit, adding that he kept the city administration and council appraised of the city’s financial situation before the city was placed in state-imposed fiscal emergency in August 2001.

yovich@vindy.com