WHEELING — Former Ohio County Administrator Greg Stewart — now manager of The HIghlands — apologized Wednesday night for any controversy his recent job change brought to Ohio County.

The Ohio County Development Authority, meanwhile, has determined a contract approved by the OCDA on Dec. 15 to hire Stewart and his newly-formed company CMAD wasn’t approved properly. Work continues in crafting to correct flaws and get a second contract approved.

Members speaking out indicated they had a great deal of confidence and respect for Stewart, and want to see him continue in the job. They passed a motion giving him authority to negotiate any needed lease agreements with tenants at The Highlands.

Stewart told the OCDA board he has plans to retire within the next four years, and had just hoped to finish out his career working to make certain The Highlands was on track for the future.

He explained during 2020, he found himself under even more pressure than usual. The Highlands Sports Complex was nearing completion, and there were retail concerns at the development brought on by the COVID pandemic.

During this, Stewart said he also was dealing with personal health issues, as were members of his family. He felt pulled strongly in both directions and felt it unfair to the county and The Highlands.

“It seemed like at whatever place I was,” Stewart said, “I was needed at the other place.”

County and OCDA employees were being affected by his split attention to both entities, according to Stewart.

“I discussed it with the commissioners, and I told them what I really want to do is spend the last three or four years of my career at The Highlands,” he said. “Maybe by the time I hit 60 I might not be even able to do just that job because of the mandates.

“I didn’t mean to create conflict on the board, or major controversy for anybody.”

Stewart said negotiations with the county for his move first began last fall. County Solicitor Don Tennant said a contract that was initially agreed upon then was changed by some board members prior to the Dec. 15 OCDA meeting, when it was approved.

He said during his 10 years with the board they had never seen “such turbulence” as there was following Stewart’s hiring.

“When you don’t follow the rules, you have such turbulence,” Tennant said. He encouraged the board to “self-correct” terms and re-approve a contract with Stewart, as they violated three rules when approving the contract.

The matter, a management contract, shouldn’t have been discussed first in a private executive session just prior to the vote, Tennant told board members. Secondly, the item to approve the contract was not on the OCDA’s agenda for the Dec. 15 meeting, he said.

Lastly, not all of the board members — including county commissioners — had access to the contract before the meeting, and the ability to read it beforehand.

Commissioner Randy Wharton, also president of the OCDA board, predicts a new contract with Stewart will be achieved “within the next 10 days.”

Stewart, who was to make $205,000 annually under the contract in question, will continue to be paid under the same framework, according to Wharton.

“We will pay him based on a general feeling of where this thing is going to be when it is finally done — just so we don’t get behind on paying him,” Wharton said. “We have a framework that spells out salary. That really isn’t a point that’s going to be negotiated differently…. It’s all o.k.”

Wharton also announced there will be a change in OCDA meeting times. The board has traditionally met prior to scheduled county commission meetings at 6 p.m. on Tuesdays in the commission boardroom.

Going forth, the board will meet at 6:30 p.m. on days separate from the commission meeting, and future meetings will take place at The Highlands Event Center.

Ohio County Circuit Judge Michael Olejasz swore in new members to the board prior to Wednesday’s meeting. These included Commissioner Zach Abraham; County Emergency Management Agency Director and interim county administrator Lou Vargo; Wheeling Mayor Glenn Elliott; Eriks Janelsins, president of the Oglebay Foundation; Tanner Russell, senior commercial banking executive at Unified Bank; Bob Smith, owner S&P Engineering and Engineered Foundation Solutions; W. Franklin Evans, the new president of West Liberty University; and Eran Molz, president of the Upper Ohio Valley Building and ConstructionTrades Council.

Mary Pockl, managing principal of the Zeno, Pockl, Lilly and Copeland accounting firm, also was recently appointed to the OCDA and participated in Wednesday’s meeting by phone. Wharton told her she will need to make arrangements with Olejasz to be officially sworn into the position.