Door County Administrator’s Leave Related to Personnel Problems

Door County Administrator Mike Serpe was placed on paid administrative leave by the county’s Administrative Services Committee Friday, Feb. 24, pending the result of an investigation.

Officials and county board supervisors refused to comment on the situation, but a source with knowledge of the investigation said that it is the result of an employee complaint that Serpe had created a “hostile work environment.”

On Wednesday, Feb. 29, Serpe said he was still unaware exactly what the investigation was about.

Multiple sources close to the situation confirmed that the decision to place Serpe on leave was not related to his decision to merge the Sanitarian Department with the Soil and Water Conservation Department in December. That merger was later rescinded after a heated meeting with 25 Private Onsite Wastewater Treatment Systems professionals Jan. 31.

On Feb. 24 the Administrative Services Committee met in closed session for the “preliminary consideration of specific personnel problems involving and/or the investigation of charges against the County Administrator which, if discussed in public, would be likely to have a substantial adverse effect upon the reputation of any person referred to or involved in such problems or investigations.” The closed session also included the consideration of “whether or not the county administrator’s conduct of the county’s administration is satisfactory.”

When the committee reconvened in open session its eight members unanimously approved the motion to place Serpe on leave and to retain the counsel of Godfrey and Kahn of Green Bay to investigate complaints regarding Serpe. Upon completion of their investigation Godfrey and Kahn will make a recommendation to the administrative services committee on how to proceed.

Serpe, the county’s administrator since 2006, was in Kenosha visiting his grandchildren when County Chairman Leo Zipperer notified him in a brief conversation Feb. 24 that he was being placed on leave.

Zipperer said complaints from county employees were brought to his attention Monday, but it was too late to add the topic to Tuesday’s regular meeting of the Administrative Services Committee. After meeting with Corporation Counsel Grant Thomas to review the matter, of which Zipperer said he could not disclose details, a special closed door meeting of the committee was called for Friday at 1 pm. After more than two hours of discussion, the committee voted to place Serpe on leave.