Board approves hire for assistant county engineer; candidate is mechanical engineer with licensure pathway

The Muscatine County Board of Supervisors on Aug. 25 approved the hiring of an assistant to the county engineer to fill a vacancy created by a recent resignation. County Engineer Brian Orchoski described the candidate as a mechanical engineer with experience in computer-aided design and specification checks. Orchoski said the position is being filled at grade 17 and that, with successful performance and attainment of engineering certifications, the employee could advance to grade 18: "We treat the grade 17 as once they get their EIT ... and then, once if he were to go after his PE, professional engineer, then that could justify going to grade 18," Orchoski said. Orchoski also said the hire is expected to start in about two weeks. The board voted to approve the hiring request; the meeting record shows a motion, a second and that the motion passed. No salary figures or written offer terms were discussed on the record, and the transcript does not include the candidate's full biographical details beyond the engineer background referenced by Orchoski.