John Leopold, Anne Arundel?s newly elected county executive, appointed a 60-member transition team Tuesday.
Reprising a campaign theme, Leopold said his picks were designed to reflect “the rich diversity of our county.”
“I?m hoping they will generate ideas to achieve efficiencies in government and also think of innovative ways to solve problems,” Leopold said. He said the team, broken down into four groups ? economic development/BRAC, education and health, public safety, and transportation and environment ? would deal only “peripherally” with personnel decisions.
During the campaign, Leopold said he planned to cut out a level of county bureaucracy, specifically the land use office, as a way to save money and find new funding sources for other pressing county needs.
Members of his transition team include: Nancy Mann, former Anne Arundel County Schools Interim Superintendent; Sheila Finlayson, former president of the Teachers Association of Anne Arundel County; Sid Saab, former Republican candidate for Anne Arundel County Council District 4; and newly elected state Del. James King, R-Anne Arundel County.
Dan Nataf, director of the Center for the Study of Local Issues at Anne Arundel Community College, said the inclusion of some newly minted state lawmakers could be a sign of “how [Leopold?s] going to build relationships” with new legislators despite his absence from the General Assembly after a 20-year career.
Republican County Council member Cathy Vitale, also named as a transition team member, said she was pleased with the inclusion of a number of returning and newly elected council members.
“Several of the members have had to deal with the issues already,” she said. “So the mix of old and new makes sense.”
