Paul Morris resigned as chief executive of the Grey District Council on March 7 and left immediately.
His tenure at the council was marred by high staff turnover and failure to meet financial targets.
A request for an interview with Mr Morris was responded to with an email advising "he says thanks but no thanks".
The Central Otago District Council declined to answer questions about Mr Morris’ appointment.
The emailed reply said: "Thank you for your inquiry. It is CODC’s practice to not comment on appointments beyond the executive team and as such we will not be responding to your specific questions."
Mr Morris went to Greymouth via the Mackenzie District Council initially as corporate services manager.
In December 2019 he was appointed chief executive. In early 2021, Mr Morris had commissioned an "independent strategic review" by super-consultants Bruce Robertson and Kevan Scott, leading directly to a restructure that disestablished four management positions.
Those managers were informed their jobs were being axed during a Zoom video meeting in August 2021.
The ongoing restructure eventually led to a slew of council staff — many of them long-standing — deserting the council, whether by redundancy or resignation.
Even the library and museum manager's role was disestablished, at a time when the council had committed to building a new multimillion-dollar library.
The council then struggled to recruit and retain staff, relying heavily on consultants and contractors to fill roles. Nearly 150 people resigned during Mr Morris’ time at the council.
The last annual report showed a $5.4 million spend on consultants and contractors, and an overall deficit of $4 million. That report also showed only 27 out of 70 financial performance targets had been met.
Mr Morris replaces Susan Finlay who had worked at the Central Otago District Council twice, with a period as chief executive at Central Lakes Trust in between.
