Garness hired for St. Louis County records post

Mary Garness, the city administrator for Ashland, has been hired as St. Louis County’s director of public records and property valuation.
Garness will lead the recorder and assessor departments, replacing Mark Monacelli, who retired in March after filling the director role for 31 years, the county announced in a statement.
Garness has worked for the city of Ashland for 12 years in various jobs that included city clerk and human resources director. She holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of Wisconsin-Superior.
“I am excited at the opportunity to assist in positively impacting how the Public Records and Assessment departments serve both external and internal customers. Further, the uniqueness of the county, its people and beautifully diverse landscape, were all a huge draw for me,” Garness said in a statement.
Garness has a “broad leadership skill set and experiences,” County Administrator Kevin Gray said in a statement.
“With her background in city administration, she brings a customer-service focus and business understanding, and will be able to further develop our many community and industry partnerships,” Gray said in a statement.