43
Youngstown’s prosecutor is retained
YOUNGSTOWN
The mayor is retaining city Prosecutor Dana Lantz and her two assistant prosecutors with plans to hire another assistant by the end of the month.
After being elected mayor Nov. 5, John A. McNally said he planned to have his Cabinet in place before taking office Jan. 1.
But until Wednesday, he still hadn’t appointed a city prosecutor or a deputy director of public works or found a replacement for Finance Director David Bozanich, who was going to leave city employment no later than July 1.
On Wednesday, McNally announced he was retaining Lantz as prosecutor, a job that pays $68,375 annually plus benefits, and Kathleen Thompson and Shelley Freeze as assistant prosecutors who are paid $61,621 per year.
McNally, a former city law director, said he’ll also hire another assistant prosecutor by the end of the month.
The delay in selecting a prosecutor was to let Martin Hume, selected Dec. 27 by McNally as law director, effective Jan. 1, have the “time to evaluate the criminal and civil sides,” the mayor said.
“Both he and I are happy” with Lantz and the two assistant prosecutors, McNally said.
Lantz, prosecutor for two years who’s worked for the city since 1998, was among those who applied for the job by a mid-December deadline when McNally started selecting his Cabinet members.
Also, Deputy Law Director Anthony Farris, who was replaced by Hume as law director by McNally, is resigning effective Wednesday.
Cleveland Heights City Council will vote Wednesday to confirm Farris as law director.
“I’m excited to work there,” Farris said. “It’s a wonderful place. I used to live there when I went to law school” at Case Western Reserve University School of Law.
McNally said he plans to appoint an assistant law director to replace Farris.
“He’s done a good job for the city and will do a good job for Cleveland Heights,” McNally said of Farris.
He was earning $75,000 in annual salary as deputy law director.
His replacement will be an assistant law director, a job that pays $61,621 a year.
The city has another deputy law director, Anthony Donofrio, who is running this year for a seat on the 7th District Court of Appeals.
McNally says he’ll have a decision on a deputy director of public works appointment by the end of the month, and is restarting a search for finance director to replace David Bozanich, who remains on the job.
Bozanich has worked for the finance department since 1983 as either finance director or deputy finance director.
Bozanich is willing to stay the rest of the year, McNally said.
Bozanich retired Dec. 28, 2012, and immediately was rehired through the end of 2013 by then-Mayor Charles Sammarone. Bozanich is paid $83,949 a year.