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County
appraiser resigns
Wayne White
Managing Editor
After nine years on the job, Osage County Appraiser Marg Archer
is ready to start a new chapter in her life. Archer announced her
resignation Monday to the Osage County Commission. Her last day
on the job will be Sept. 26.
Archer said Tuesday her decision was prompted in part by the birth
of her grandchild.
“I have become a grandmother and am going to take care of
my grandchild,” she said.
In addition to being a grandparent, Archer said she and her husband
will be starting an appraisal business, Archer Appraisals, based
in Topeka.
“I am going to perform fee appraisal for financial institutions
and be a contractor for counties,” she said.
Archer has served as Osage County’s appraiser since September
1999. A resident of Topeka, she has commuted to Osage County the
entire time.
As with any county appraiser, her tenure has had its share of conflicts,
some of which ended with the state board of tax appeals.
For the most part, though, Archer said she has loved her job in
Osage County.
“It has been a wonderful community of taxpayers,” she
said. “I have thoroughly enjoyed it here. It has been a wonderful
place to be a county appraiser and I’m going to miss it terribly.”
“I have very mixed emotions about leaving,” she said,
“but I’ve always wanted to start my own business.”
She said she has previous experience as a fee appraiser and also
served as appraisal contractor before she came to work in Osage
County.
Archer said she recommended to commissioners that deputy appraiser
Stacy Berry, who has worked in the office for over eight years,
be hired to replace her.
“She will make an excellent county appraiser,” Archer
said. “The only problem would be to replace her (as deputy
appraiser.)”
Archer said commissioners are scheduled to discuss her recommendation
and the vacant position next Monday.
“If they don’t hire someone fairly quickly, the state
of Kansas will step in and take charge of the office,” she
said.
Presently, there are nine employees in the Osage County Appraiser’s
office, including Archer. She said staff members knew she was planning
to leave the position once her grandchild was born.
“They’ve been anxiously awaiting … my staff’s
going to miss me,” she said. “I’m going to miss
them, it’s going to be difficult. We are like a family here,
we may have disagreements, but we are like a family.”
She said she is leaving the office in capable hands. “I have
trained my staff,” she said. “They are ready to step
up to the plate.”
Archer said her resignation is not a retirement. “Sometime,
I’ll be back in mass appraisal,” she said.
About county appraisers, Archer said, “We don’t go away,
you can never get rid of us.”
“It’s a great job, it’s the most interesting job
there could be,” she said.
But working in Osage County made it better for her, she said.
“Osage County is a great county,” Archer said. “I
truly thank the taxpayers of Osage County who truly made this a
great place to work.” |
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