County CEO Frank Kim will retire next year, opening questions on who will take his place running the $9 billion county government going forward.
“After careful consideration, I believe this is the right time for me to embark on this new chapter in my life,” Kim wrote in a resignation letter to the board of supervisors on Monday. “Thank you once again for the invaluable experiences.”
To read a copy of the letter, click here.
“I will miss him,” OC Supervisor Doug Chaffee said.
OC Supervisor Vicente Sarmiento, who only worked with Kim for the past year since his election, issued a statement saying he was sad to see him go but that he had “tremendous respect,” for Kim.
“He has impressed me with his professionalism and commitment to the residents of the County,” Sarmiento said. “His successor will have large shoes to fill.”
Supervisor Katrina Foley praised Kim’s work and noted it would be hard to find a good replacement in a Wednesday phone call.
“He’s going to be very much missed,” Foley said. “He’s had a lot he’s done in a very short period of time. More crises in the last five years than a CEO at another county other than LA might have in a lifetime.”
The news of Kim’s abrupt retirement – first reported by City News – comes after he renewed his contract with the county last year, bringing his total salary and benefits to nearly $600,000 a year.
“I’m really excited about the coming years,” Kim said at the Aug. 2022 meeting when his contract was extended. “We have much left to do.”
But Kim is now set to leave by July 2024 at the latest, after he notified county supervisors he hoped to leave as soon as April but would stay on until someone new was found.
CEO Departs After Nearly 30 Years at County
In an interview with Voice of OC, Kim said after 29 years at the county, ongoing discussions with his wife prompted him to retire, saying his retirement package didn’t really play a factor in his decision.
Kim, 54, grew up in Placentia and attended Valencia High School where he nurtured an interest in water polo and surfing, a hobby he’s hoping to get back into next year.
Kim acknowledged that the CEO position is a stressful one – especially in the social media era where government decisions are analyzed and criticized in real time like never before.
But it’s a unique role, one he’s enjoyed.
“There’s a lot of positives to this job where you get to make such an impact on the community,” Kim said.
He’s most proud of the animal shelter the county built in Tustin in 2018 and the partnership with cities that keeps it funded.
While he acknowledges criticisms of how the facility is run, Kim said “the animals are much better off,” referring to the WWII-era shelter it replaced.
Kim also said he takes pride in the county homeless services – shelters, housing, mental health services – that improved under his tenure, but he acknowledged there was still room to improve.
Kim said big projects – like revamping the county civic center and the revitalization of Dana Point Harbor – are also things he saw as major accomplishments.
“We did a lot of projects we talked about,” Kim said, giving credit to county supervisors from that era like Shawn Nelson, Andrew Do and Todd Spitzer.
“We actually launched them.”
No replacement has been announced yet, with Kim noting he was “committed to ensuring a smooth transition,” in his resignation letter.
“I am more than willing to assist in onboarding my replacement and to provide any necessary
support during this period,” Kim wrote in his departing letter. “The date range for my retirement should provide sufficient time to complete a successful recruitment.”
Outgoing CEO Faced Multiple Crises In Recent Years
Kim’s tenure as CEO saw a series of crises, including the county response to COVID-19, the recent Tustin hangar fire and evictions of the homeless from the Santa Ana Riverbed in 2018.
It wasn’t without controversy either.
The riverbed evictions led to a federal lawsuit, which eventually roped in the rest of Orange County and forced many cities to build homeless shelters.
The county was criticized for its handling of the pandemic – including a scathing Orange County Grand Jury report, highlighting the lack of early efforts to combat the spread of the virus in working-class neighborhoods – ones that would bear the brunt of COVID disease and deaths.
And Tustin residents are still dealing with the fallout from the hangar fire that started earlier this month, with some people saying they’re grappling with toxic materials like asbestos getting inside their homes.
[Read: Questions Over Evacuations Mount in Tustin Hangar Fire Fallout]
Kim took over the county’s top executive job in 2015 after three years as the county’s Chief Financial Officer, and decades on the county payroll from when he started as a staff accountant in 1995.
“I have thoroughly enjoyed my time at the County of Orange and am grateful for the opportunities for professional and personal growth that I have experienced during my tenure here,” Kim said. “I have had the privilege of working alongside a dedicated and talented team, and I am proud of the accomplishments we have achieved together.”
Norberto Santana Jr. contributed to the reporting of this story.
Noah Biesiada is a Voice of OC reporter and corps member with Report for America, a GroundTruth initiative. Contact him at nbiesiada@voiceofoc.org or on Twitter @NBiesiada.