The Rowan County Fiscal Court has appointed Justin Caudill as the county's new Road Foreman, replacing Steve Kelsey, who is retiring at the end of August.
Fiscal Court approved Caudill's appointment during its Tuesday, August 18 meeting.
Caudill will serve a two-year term beginning September 1, 2026, and ending September 1, 2028, at a rate of $31.27 per hour.
Caudill currently serves as the Rowan County Building Inspector and will transition from that position into his new role with the county road department.
Rowan County Judge-Executive Harry Clark noted during the meeting that Caudill comes from a different occupational background than might typically be associated with road department leadership, but said he believes Caudill is well suited for the position.
Clark described Caudill as "very well rounded" and said he believes he will do well in the new role.
County to Use Contracted Building Inspector
Caudill's move to the Road Foreman position will leave the county's Building Inspector position vacant.
Until Rowan County can officially fill that position, Rodney Fouch will serve as a contracted building inspector.
Fiscal Court approved a pay rate of $32.50 per hour for Fouch's contracted work.
The county is expected to fill the Building Inspector position at a later date.
Perkins Appointed Project Supervisor
Fiscal Court also voted Tuesday to appoint Justin Perkins as the county's new Project Supervisor at a rate of $24.66 per hour.
The Project Supervisor position has been vacant since the retirement of Wayne Lambert, who previously served in that role.
According to discussion during the meeting, the Project Supervisor functions essentially as an assistant to the Road Foreman. However, because of legal requirements, the county cannot formally designate the position as "Assistant Road Foreman," so the position carries the title of Project Supervisor.
Perkins has previously served Rowan County as a light equipment operator, giving him prior experience within county operations.
With the appointments of Caudill and Perkins, Rowan County will enter September with new leadership in both the Road Foreman and Project Supervisor positions.
