Ben Garbacz/Daily Mining Gazette The Houghton Count Appointments Committee, from left, (From left) Prosecutor Daniel Helmer, Probate Judge Fraser Strome and County Clerk Jennifer Kelly review applicants for the Houghton County Drain Commissioner position. Chief Deputy Clerk Renee Cunningham far right documents the meeting's minutes Monday. The committee will interview five candidates on April 28 to replace the retiring John Pekkala.

HOUGHTON — At its meeting Monday, the Houghton County Appointment Committee narrowed its search for county drain commissioner from nine applicants to five. The position must be filled due to the upcoming retirement of current Drain Commissioner John Pekkala. The position is responsible for stormwater management, soil erosion and enforcing flood protection laws.

The committee consists of Prosecutor Daniel Helmer, Probate Judge Fraser Strome and County Clerk Jennifer Kelly. During the meeting the committee reviewed qualifications of each applicant and narrowed the field to Brian Therrian, Todd Larson, Nolan Miles, Max Jouppe and John Gierke. The finalists will be interviewed on April 28. All men have certifications that qualifies them for the position or are scheduled to take tests to certify them.

Questions for the candidates were discussed at the meeting, with Pekkala offering question suggestions during the public comment portion. He encouraged the committee for the interviewees to be able to ask the committee questions and have knowledge with finances. Pekkala was also concerned with the time that goes into the position.

“One question that might be pertinent to ask is time commitment,” he said. “Some of these people might have full time jobs. I had that question asked to me, ‘What is your time commitment in 2024?’ My time was 30 hours a week during the summer months, during construction season. In the six months, during the off-season, winter months, basically 16 to 18 hours. So can this full-time person support 30 extra hours?”

The committee agreed to include Pekkala’s suggestions into the interview questions. Once the candidate is selected by the committee, he will assume the drain commissioner position but will have to run in Mid-term elections moving forward.