BY LARRY SOBCZAK
EDITOR
Reelection to the office of clerk in the Village of Romeo is not the only position Kathryn Trapp is seeking this autumn.
Trapp was among five finalists interviewed for the position of village manager in Lake Orion on Sept. 30.
Simultaneously, she is running for reelection for village clerk in Romeo, a fact she told the Lake Orion Village Council during her interview which took about 20 minutes.
“Here I am, I’m the current village clerk, as you all know, this is an election year for villages so I am on the current ballot again though just to see if I can continue, or you know, what’s my prospect right now,” she said.
Besides Trapp, candidates for the village manager position include current Lake Orion Interim Manager D. Wayne O’Neal; Justin Lakamper, manager for the Village of Edmore in Montcalm County; Ken Marten, the village manager of Bingham Farms; and Darwin McClary, manager of the Village of Stockbridge in Ingham County.
Each of the candidates were given the same five questions and the interviews were limited to 40 minutes total by the Lake Orion Village Council. The council told Trapp that she could reiterate her answers when her interview ended in half that time.
One of the questions asked of each candidate is whether they would relocate to Lake Orion if they were given the job.
“I do have plans to leave Romeo if it calls for it,” she said.
Later in the interview, Trapp volunteered more about leaving Romeo.
“I am ready to go beyond the village limits over there of what I am comfortable with and to breakout and pursue something larger and bigger to continue with my career,” she said.
The Lake Orion Village Council asked Trapp when she would be able to begin working if she was given the position.
Trapp told the Lake Orion Village Council that she has already confided with Romeo Village President Christine Malzahn about her application for the village manager position and her intentions to help appoint someone to fill her vacancy, if it arises.
“It probably would not be until after November. I do have a replacement in mind,” she said.
The Lake Orion Village Council did not discuss the interviews on Sept. 30 but did schedule a meeting for Monday, Oct. 10 to go over the applications. The meeting concluded after The Record went to press this week.
It was unclear if the council was going to make a final decision at the Oct. 10 meeting or if it was going to ask for a second round of interviews with the candidates.
The Record learned of Trapp’s interview on Thursday evening, Oct. 6. The Romeo Village offices were closed on Friday and Trapp could not be reached for comment before the newspaper went to press on Monday.
Trapp was elected to office in 2018 when she ran against Mike Lee who was the incumbent clerk at the time.
Prior to her election to clerk, she held a part-time clerical position at the Ray Township offices.
The village manager position in Lake Orion became vacant when former village Manager Joe Young submitted his letter of resignation addressed to Lake Orion Village Clerk Susan Galeczka and the village council on June 24, stating that his resignation would be effective at 5 p.m. that day.
Young cited ongoing health concerns for his resignation.
In June, while Young was out of the office, the council formed a three-member committee to begin searching for an interim village manager, selecting D. Wayne O’Neal.
A video recording of the village manager candidate interviews, including Trapp’s can be found at orionontv.org.
