Three finalists have been named for the position of Montezuma County administrator.
Chuck Giannone, Travis Parker and Shak Powers were chosen out of 12 applicants by the county commissioners for additional interviews, said current administrator Melissa Brunner.
Brunner is resigning to take over as finance director for the RE-1 Montezuma-Cortez School District.
Giannone has lived in Cortez for 22 years and has a professional and education background in finance. He was the comptroller for Nielsons Construction, and was the chief financial officer for Weminuche Construction of the Ute Mountain Ute tribe for seven years. He is currently the finance manager for the Piñon Project.
Giannone has bachelor’s and master’s degrees in business administration and is a certified public accountant.
“My background in accounting and experience with budgets will serve the county well,” he said.
Travis Parker has professional experience from his 24 years with the Colorado National Guard and is a graduate of Fort Lewis College. He has a bachelor’s degree in science and multidisciplinary studies.
As an operations sergeant for the National Guard, he oversaw an engineering unit and was responsible for budgeting, personnel, project management and recruitment.
“A big part of the my job was planning and organizing projects, whether it be mobilizing to go to a foreign country or building a multimillion-dollar retainer dam for the city of Fruita,” he said. “My organizational skills and project experience will benefit the county.”
Parker is the chief human resources officer for Southwest Health System.
Powers has been the Montezuma County Landfill manager since 2014. During that time, he has implemented a recycling program, opened an Upcycle Store that salvages usable items for sale to the public and managed the landfill in compliance with Colorado Department of Health and Environment regulations and permits.
Powers said he is a good fit for the county administrator job because he has worked well with various county departments and is familiar with county government processes.
“I’ve already worked with planning, the health department, GIS, the fairgrounds, the commissioners, and the Sheriff’s Office, and I have management experience,” he said.
Powers also is a volunteer for the county search and rescue department.
There will be a public open house to meet the finalists on Dec. 17 from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the commissioners’ chambers on the second floor of the administration building, 109 W. Main Street, Cortez.
jmimiaga@the-journal.com