DAYTON — The Montgomery County Commission could take up to six months to conduct its search for a county administrator.

The county commissioners said a tearful goodbye to county Administrator Deb Feldman on Tuesday, who is resigning to become the chief executive officer of the Children’s Medical Center of Dayton.

Feldman served the county for 30 years. Her last day is Thursday.

Deputy County Administrator Joe Tuss will step into the role of interim administrator on Friday.

His pay will increase from $138,278 to $180,000 per year, said Commission President Judy Dodge said.

“We’re not in any big hurry (to hire a new administrator). Deb has put a team of fantastic directors together and we expect to have a smooth transition,” Dodge said.

“We’re comfortable taking a good look around to see what’s out there.”

Dodge said the commissioners have asked three consulting firms to make presentations on their search processes before the end of June.

“I don’t see much happening (in terms of hiring a replacement) before the end of the year,” Dodge said.

Feldman, 53, earned $182,894 as county administrator and has held the job since 1997. In her decades of work for Montgomery County, she’s been an assistant administrator, a human resources director and a financial analyst in the office of management and budget.

She has been active on a variety of community boards, including Central State University, Community Health Centers of Greater Dayton and the Downtown Dayton Partnership.

Feldman also served on the Montgomery County Out-of-School Youth Task Force and the Homeless Solutions Leadership Team.

“It was a true privilege to serve,” Feldman said. “Though I will not be sitting here every week ... I will be watching.”

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2362 or josmith@DaytonDailyNews.com.