Peter Austin, McHenry County’s top non-elected official, to retire after 20 years in the job

McHenry County’s highest-ranking employee, longtime Administrator Peter Austin, announced Friday that he will retire at the end of the year.

Austin, 55, has been the county administrator since 2005, and the County Board approved a contract extension for him earlier this year that ran through 2029.

Among the achievements under Austin’s tenure are the county receiving its first AAA+ bond rating and becoming debt free, the widening of Rakow and Randall roads, and a new Valley Hi nursing home and its new Heart of the Valley memory care wing, officials said.

“Serving McHenry County has been the highlight of my career,” Austin said in a news release. “While I’m proud of the many projects I helped bring to fruition with the help of a very talented and dedicated staff, I hope I will be remembered for instilling McHenry County’s culture of collaboration, innovation and dedication to fiscal responsibility.”

The county also had “unprecedented collaboration and shared services initiatives” with local governments within its borders as well as the collar counties, Cook County and Chicago under Austin’s leadership, according to the release.

County Board Chair Mike Buehler, one of five County Board chairs Austin worked with, said Austin’s “ability to run a tight and efficient organization has made my job as County Board chairman a lot smoother. He has an unmatched understanding of government, and an equally unmatched drive to help elected offices and departments work better together.”

Austin was an assistant county administrator in Lake County before his tenure in McHenry County. Other career stops included Kendall County, where he became the first county administrator in 1997, and Western Springs, first as a graduate intern and then as an assistant to the village manager after he earned a master’s degree in public administration from Northern Illinois University.

Austin plans to spend more time with his family; visit his sons, who are launching careers out of state; and travel more with his wife, Jennifer, and their dog, Olive. He will continue to live in McHenry County, officials said.

Officials will discuss the process of selecting Austin’s successor in the coming weeks, and he will stay active through his Jan. 2 retirement date “to ensure a smooth transition,” officials said.

The County Board approved a new contract for Austin earlier this year that could have kept him in his role until 2029. Some on the board had issues with the contract, which was adopted on a 12-5 vote in February.

Austin’s base salary was $250,000 under the contract, which took effect May 1.