SLO County administrative officer quit before performance review, supervisors say

San Luis Obispo County’s top administrative official resigned before a performance review with the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday, according to two supervisors.

Wade Horton’s last day on the job as SLO County administrative officer is May 1, according to county counsel Rita Neal.

“Recently, the board decided to initiate a performance evaluation of CAO Wade Horton in closed session with the intent to discuss the work ahead, the state of the county organization and what resources are necessary to achieve positive outcomes for the county and community,” Supervisor Jimmy Paulding wrote in his newsletter Wednesday morning.

Horton resigned during closed session before the evaluation started, according to Paulding and Supervisor Bruce Gibson.

Paulding told The Tribune on Wednesday that he didn’t know how many supervisors requested the evaluation.

As SLO County administrative officer, Horton creates the board meeting agendas.

Horton could have added the performance evaluation to the agenda if he was “getting an indication” that the board was interested in a review based on individual meetings with the supervisors, Paulding said.

Performance reviews are a common process in local government, Paulding said.

“It’s not only intended to do an evaluation of where they are, but it’s to set expectations and talk about goals and to ensure that there’s processes for ensuring those expectations were met,” Paulding told The Tribune.

“Our board is moving forward with many initiatives to address homelessness, the statewide mental health crisis, and the regional need for affordable and workforce housing,” Paulding wrote in his newsletter. “A key factor in and how fast and strategically we can address these issues is to assess the status of the organization.”

Paulding told the Tribune that he was “not comfortable” going into details about which goals and expectations he wanted to set with Horton, but said he appreciated Horton’s work at the county and holds him “in high regard.”

Gibson also told The Tribune that performance evaluations are a routine process.

The board conducted annual reviews of former SLO County Administrative Officer Dan Buckshi, but the board hadn’t reviewed Horton in a long time, Gibson said on Wednesday.

“It’s a standard process that we hadn’t conducted in a while,” Gibson said.

Gibson didn’t know which supervisors requested the evaluation, but said he supported it.

“We have a new majority. We also have a wide range of issues that are in front of us,” Gibson said.

That includes housing, behavioral health and homelessness, Gibson said.

When asked if the board wanted to discuss phasing out the Kansas Avenue Safe Parking Site program during the evaluation, Gibson said, “That’s one project among many that we’ve done.”

Gibson said he appreciated Horton’s work at the county.

“He worked on some really challenging issues, not the least of which is COVID response,” Gibson said. “He’s also done a really fine job developing relationships with the cities, particularly our city managers.”

Paulding echoed Gibson’s praise in his newsletter.

“I can’t thank Mr. Horton enough for his public service, his significant contributions as CAO over the past five years, and for graciously agreeing to stay on through April to assist in finalizing the budget and assuring a smooth transition to new leadership,” Paulding said in his newsletter.

San Luis Obispo County spokesperson Jeanette Trompeter told The Tribune that Horton will not take interviews on his resignation, and Horton has not responded to The Tribune’s request for comment.

Horton was hired as the administrative officer in November 2017 after years of experience in local government, previously serving as the San Luis Obispo County Public Works Department director and the deputy director of the city of San Luis Obispo’s utilities department.

As administrative officer, Horton oversaw the county budget and staff — navigating the county through the COVID-19 pandemic and a recent series of destructive storms.

Now, the county will start a nationwide search for Horton’s replacement.

“Hopefully we get a bunch of good candidates,” Gibson said. “I think there’s a really bright future for the county, I think we’re poised to make a lot of progress,”