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Newly-appointed Ottawa County Administrator John Gibbs shares note to residents

His hiring came amidst controversy on how the Ottawa County Board of Commissioners handled its meeting earlier in the week.

OTTAWA COUNTY, Mich. — John Gibbs, the man that the Ottawa County Commission hired as the new county administrator, has begun work at his new position.

His hiring came amidst controversy on how the Ottawa County Board of Commissioners handled its meeting earlier in the week.

The controversy stems from the board's decision to hold a series of votes, including the vote to fire County Administrator John Shay and hire Gibbs in his place, that were not on the agenda.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced a review of the meeting on Wednesday to determine if the board violated the Open Meetings Act.

Gibbs has not directly addressed the controversy, but on Friday he sent out an introduction to Ottawa County residents in an Ottawa County Administrator's Office newsletter.

"I’m thankful for this opportunity to serve you - the hard-working families and businesses that make Ottawa County great," Gibbs said in the note to Ottawa County residents.

Gibbs ran for Michigan's 3rd Congressional seat, unseated sitting Republican Peter Meijer in the primary election, but ultimately losing to Democratic opponent Hillary Scholten in the midterms.

You can read the full emailed statement here: 

Greetings from the County Administrator

I’m John Gibbs and I’m pleased to be your new Ottawa County Administrator. I’m excited to work with the great County staff, elected officials, and stakeholders to continue driving Ottawa County forward.

I’d like to tell you about myself.

In my most recent role as Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development at the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, I oversaw a staff of 700 and an annual budget of $8 billion, covering homelessness programs, economic development grants to states and counties, and disaster relief funding. I also oversaw the successful and rapid deployment of $9 billion in CARES Act Funds in response to coronavirus.

Prior to that, I used my fluency in Japanese to serve as a Christian missionary in Japan. One of my favorite memories was homeless outreach - the kind and polite Japanese were surprised and thankful to see a black American speaking to them in fluent Japanese.

Before Japan, I started my career in Silicon Valley as a software engineer, working on cybersecurity products at Symantec, working on smartphones at Palm, and working on the very first version of the iPhone at Apple.

I hold a degree in Computer Science from Stanford University and a Master in Public Administration from the Harvard University Kennedy School of government. I was born and raised in Lansing, Michigan.

I look forward to leveraging all aspects of the background God has given me to serve you with of all my energy and effort, in cooperation with the great Ottawa County staff, elected officials, and stakeholders.

I’m thankful for this opportunity to serve you - the hard-working families and businesses that make Ottawa County great.

Thank you for your prayers and support as we move forward together,

John Gibbs
Ottawa County Administrator

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