ASHLAND — The county’s first-ever maintenance superintendent used to bring his own tools to work.
Thirty-tree years later, those tools are long gone — and soon Dennis Harris will retire.
Ashland County Commissioners approved Harris’ retirement during a Thursday meeting. His last day as maintenance superintendent will be July 31.
Harris turns 66 on Aug. 1.
“That’s what I wanted to do,” he said. “It’ll be my first day being 66 and my first day not working in the county.”
Commissioners Marilyn Byers, Dick Meyers and Bob Valentine hired Harris as “Maintenance and Operation Supervisor” in September 1991 with a starting salary of $24,960.
He’ll leave the job making a yearly salary of $69,763, according to county records.
Before getting hired at the county, Harris worked in construction. “Framing houses, construction, plumbing — stuff like that,” he said.
He’s overseen improvements and upgrades to county-owned buildings over the years. Under his leadership, the county implemented monthly building inspections to make sure commissioners — the ones holding the purse strings — knew which buildings needed work.
Commissioners Denny Bittle, Mike Welch and Jim Justice characterized Harris as a “one-of-a-kind” worker who frequently worked long hours to ensure everything was in order.
“I think one of the things that sets him apart is his passion for his work,” Justice said. “It wasn’t a job to him, it was a passion … he just loved what he did.”
Part of his duties also encompassed that of a risk manager and ADA coordinator.
The titles had him organizing training seminars on how to avoid workplace issues such as sexual harassment and bullying and making sure buildings were compliant with the American Disabilities Act.
He also built a small staff over the years. At one point, he had six employees, but today the office employs four with two part-time custodians.
Together, they are in charge of general upkeep on 14 county properties. They also oversee six radio towers, 13 parking lots and a mile of sidewalks.
Harris makes sure those parking lots and sidewalks are plowed and shoveled during the winter, he said.
‘Irreplaceable’
Ashland County employees have said they will miss Harris. Commissioner Bittle said Harris is irreplaceable.
Nevertheless, commissioners will have to replace him, somehow. They said they have started a search, but the search — for now — is limited to an internal one.
First in line is Jordan Stroub.
Commissioners approved his promotion to assistant maintenance superintendent in June 2021. Since then, he’s received pay bumps and additional duties, such as taking on responsibilities in risk management.
“(Stroub) has been under my wing for several years,” Harris said. “So I’m looking at him. That’s what my hopes are. But everything is up to the commissioners.”
If you ask Stroub if he’s ready to fill Harris’ shoes, he’ll tell you the same thing.
“It’s up to (the commissioners),” he said.
Bittle said the commissioners will make a decision as soon as next month.
“We’ll have to make a decision before long. If we move someone up from the current staff, we’ll have to get somebody to replace them,” the commissioner said.
Stroub, 30, started working for the county at its recycling center in 2017 and even worked part-time for the county while in high school.
He’s already become a mini-Dennis, Stroub said.
“I just don’t have a scanner by my bed and I haven’t shaved my head bald.”
Harris keeps a police scanner by his bed. He said it’s so he can keep up with maintenance issues that might come up at buildings like the jail or the dog shelter or the health department.
“My wife is looking forward to not hearing that every night,” he said.
The sense of humor between Harris and Stroub is purposeful.
“We keep things light,” Harris said, adding he feels the job is more like a hobby. Why not have fun? he asks.