The Leelanau County Board of Commissioners has issued its official statement concerning the recent investigation into a grievance claim brought against County Administrator Jim Dyer. The statement formally absolves Dyer of any wrongdoing and states that the case is now closed and will see no further investigation.

“An investigation was recently conducted into an allegation by a County employee that the County Administrator violated County Policy,” the statement reads. “After a thorough investigation, it was determined that a violation of County Policy did not occur, and the Board of Commissioners considers this matter closed. The Board of Commissioners seeks to protect the integrity of the investigative process and maintain confidentiality as it relates to internal personnel matters to the extent possible; therefore, the Board of Commissioners declines to provide additional details regarding the specifics of the underlying investigation.”

The Leelanau Ticker reported last week that the complaint had been brought against Dyer by one of his direct-reports, County Finance Director Cathy Hartesvelt. Hartesvelt reportedly filed the claim over a dust-up that happened in the wake of the county commission's August 12 executive board meeting. According to District 1 commissioner Rick Robbins, Dyer reprimanded Hartesvelt after she made a budgeting recommendation to commissioners that conflicted with his wishes. Read more here.