La Plata County has a new county manager.

In a statement released Thursday morning, the La Plata County Board of County Commissioners said they appointed Chuck Stevens as the new county manager. He will start April 23.

“We are impressed with Chuck’s exceptional leadership and communication skills,” Commissioner Julie Westendorff said in a prepared statement. “He knows our county organization and our community and brings many years of management experience to the position.”

Stevens, who has served as interim county manager since January, could not be reached for comment Thursday morning.

He replaces Joanne Spina, who retired in January, capping a three-decade run in the public sector.

The county had narrowed down an applicant pool of about 60 people to three finalists: Stevens; James Halasz, a former county administrator in Halifax County, Virginia; and D. Michael Segrest, a public sector consultant based in Boulder.

Stevens came to La Plata County in 2015 as an applications manager in the county’s information technology department. He became assistant county manager in October 2017 and then was tapped as interim county manager when Spina retired.

Before coming to La Plata County, he served 25 years in the U.S. Marine Corps as a senior leader, managing organizations and supervising large numbers of staff in various roles.

At a meet-and-greet with candidates Monday, Stevens said he would like to make significant progress on the revision of the county’s land use code, as well as come up with a solution for the county’s revenue woes.

“I look forward to continuing to serve the citizens of La Plata County in whatever capacity I can,” Stevens said in a previous interview.

jromeo@durangoherald.com