By DEBRA HAIGHT
BCR Correspondent
ST. JOSEPH, MI – Juan Ganum began his new duties as the Berrien County Administrator last week including attending his first County Board of Commissioners meeting in his new position.
Ganum, the former Bridgman city manager, was chosen as the next county administrator after a long search process that started soon after Brian Dissette left in late January after five and a half years on the job. Retired County Prosecutor Mike Sepic has served as the interim administrator since then.
Ganum was most recently the director of community and neighborhood services and economic development for the city of Holland. He served as the Bridgman city manager from 2015 to 2025 and before that was the community development director for the city of Niles for over 16 years.
A big part of Ganum’s work in the next few months will be developing the 2027 budget and he told commissioners last week that he’s already gotten a head start on that. He reported that he was able to meet with the county’s department heads last week and looks forward to helping get the budget ready for the board’s approval.
That approval will likely come at the board’s Nov. 19 meeting after a public hearing on Nov. 12, County Finance Director Jake Litaker told commissioners last week. Litaker said that timetable would give the county board time to make changes if necessary before the new fiscal year starts Jan. 1.
Litaker noted that the current 2026 year budget is looking good and that the county should have some savings at the end of the year with revenue exceeding expenditures.
Commissioners debated what the budget development timetable should look like, with Commissioner Chokwe Pitchford saying the most important thing is to have time for commissioners to give input.
“Whatever it takes so that commissioners can give input and really dive into the budget and get a good understanding of what we’re approving,” Pitchford said. “And we want to make that staff have the time they need to get this thing prepared and then feel comfortable bringing it forward.”
As for Ganum’s impressions of his new job so far, he told commissioners that everyone has been fantastic in helping him fit into his new role. He singled out both Sepic and Administrative Assistant Annette Krieger-Christie for their help and guidance.
“It really couldn’t have worked out better because the best way to immerse yourself in an organization is in the budget,” he added. “Having the opportunity to sit down with each of the department heads and hear their budget proposals has been positive for me because there’s a lot more I need to learn but it’s the best place to start in my opinion.”
Ganum said he plans to follow up on the department head meeting by sitting down individually with each of them.
“I gave them a little bit of homework but it’s going to help me get to know them and what they value in a leader and a little bit about their personal lives so we can sit down and establish a good working relationship together,” he said. “That is absolutely critical to having a high performing team.”
“I’m also eager to sit down with each and every one of you,” he told commissioners. “I’m also going to be taking a tour of all the county facilities next week. I’m already familiar with a few because I live in the area but this is going to be a comprehensive tour which is essential to anybody taking this job.”
As they did the previous week, commissioners had kind words to say to Sepic who sat in the audience at last week’s board meeting.
“I want to thank you for your service,” Commissioner Jim Curran said. “I think that it was difficult to step in in an interim role and make it happen but you did an excellent job and I appreciate it.”
Commissioner Teri Freehling agreed. “I also want to take a moment to just thank Mike for stepping into a role that is a difficult one, to sort of keep all of those balls up in the air,” she said. “I want to thank you for your commitment to the county and continuing to serve Berrien County and the citizens here. It is much appreciated.”