Several county departments are in the midst of transition this spring as staff retire or are reassigned.

“We have been planning this transition for some time,” said Public Works Director Jon Shannon, who stepped down April 29 to become the county’s Transportation Planner. Public Works Department veteran Russ Harvey will serve as Interim Public Works Director until a new director is appointed, a process Shannon estimated will take three to six months.

Other transitions include the looming retirement of County Engineer John Van Lund and Deputy Prosecutor Karen Vedder. Replacing Van Lund will be Senior Project Engineer Rachel Dietzman, recently promoted to County Engineer and the first woman to ever serve in that capacity in San Juan County, according to Shannon. Deputy Prosecutor Jon Cain will move up to the Senior Deputy position vacated by Vedder, and other county staff have been promoted to fill Cain and Dietzman’s shoes. Public Works Administrative Assistant Barbara Wright will retire May 23 and Court Administrator Marion Melville will retire June 2.

“Serving as San Juan County Public Works Director for the past eight years has been very rewarding and I am proud of the accomplishments we have achieved,” Shannon told the Sounder. “It is a difficult job that requires a big time commitment and it has taken a toll on my health and my family. I have been the “boss” for the past 22 years of my career and I am looking forward to getting back to my roots doing technical work and not worrying about the issues that come with leadership and management… The best thing for me about these changes is that I can stay and work in San Juan County. We love Shaw Island and hope it remains our home for years to come.”

Shannon will work from county offices in Friday Harbor and Orcas Island.

Public Works Department veteran Russ Harvey will serve as Interim Public Works Director until a new director is appointed. Harvey joined the department in 1981 as a landfill operator and is now Road Maintenance Operations Manager.

Van Lund came to the county with 38 years of structural and civil engineering experience and served as County Engineer for nearly seven years. He recruited Dietzman in 2007.

“[Van Lund] has his own unique style, he has built a great team and he has my utmost respect,” said Dietzman.

Former County Transportation Planner Shannon Wilbur has been promoted to the Project Engineer slot opened by Dietzman’s promotion.

According to the county, Vedder is one of the last attorneys in Washington state who won her license to practice law by “reading law” rather than attending law school. She holds a degree in microbiology and worked as a research biologist and as a newspaper reporter before clerking and studying under former Prosecutor and then County Council Member Gene Knapp. An avid hiker and biker, she said she is looking forward to traveling by bike and a trip to China this fall.

Cain is a magna cum laude graduate of the Seattle University Law School who joined the San Juan County Prosecutor’s office after practicing law with local governments in California and Washington for eleven years. He has spent the bulk of his time here working on land use issues and litigation, but has also been called upon to handle civil cases.

A search has begun to fill the position left vacant by Cain’s promotion.

Melville joined the County staff in 1982 and has overseen the operation of the District Court since 1997. Wright joined the County’s Juvenile Court staff in 1986 and moved to public works two years later.