Wyandotte County leaders name Cheryl Harrison-Lee as interim County Administrator
The Unified Government of Wyandotte County/Kansas City, Kansas unanimously named Cheryl Harrison-Lee as the interim County Administrator on Thursday evening. Harrison-Lee’s appointment comes less than two weeks after Doug Bach announced his retirement as the county administrator.
Harrison-Lee’s term is scheduled to run from Jan. 7, 2022 to April 1, 2023. Commissioners voted 10-0.
This is the first time Wyandotte County will have a different County Administrator since 2014, when Bach was appointed by former Mayor Mark Holland. Bach’s retirement came less than a month into the term of new Mayor Tyrone Garner, who was elected in November and sworn-in in early December. Before serving as County Administrator, Bach served as Deputy County Administrator from 2003-2014.
Harrison-Lee is the CEO of Harrison-Lee Development and Consulting firm, according to the firm’s website, and had previously served as the City Administrator for Gardner in Johnson County. She becomes the first woman and Black person to serve the role — a month after residents of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas elected Tyrone Garner as its first Black mayor.
“I selected just looking at her resume, because of her qualifications and because of my belief that this appointment is what Wyandotte County needs at this time to really address some of the needs that we have within our community when you talk about taxes, when you talk about investing in the disinvested parts of our community, as well as the leadership that’s needed to really move the Unified Government forward,” Garner said during the full commission meeting.
While Harrison-Lee will serve as the interim County Administrator, there’s a chance the Unified Government could vote to appoint her as the full-time County Administrator at the end of her term.
In her previous role as City Administrator in Gardner, from 2012-2018, she helped the city win awards and brought several hundred million dollars worth of new development. She resigned in September 2018, 16 months before her contract was set to expire and the Gardner City Council voted to spend more than $350,000 in taxpayer dollars to buy out her contract.
The written separation said the two sides couldn’t talk about what happened, The Star reported.
“She really wants to engage and get to know this community and that’s what stood out to me,” Garner said.
Garner, who campaigned on bringing more development to certain areas of Wyandotte County, particularly areas east of Interstate 635, is hoping Harrison-Lee can help achieve those goals. Other commissioners were also impressed with Harrison-Lee’s resume. She holds a graduate degree from the University of Florida and was a municipal administrator in Florida for almost 30 years.
“Tonight is a historic moment for Wyandotte County,” said Commissioner Christian Ramirez, who represents District 3. “We always say that Wyandotte County is the most diverse county in this country and we need to be proud of that and celebrate that and I look forward to working with our interim administrator and making real good change for our people.”
