Search for Interim Administrator Heats Up in Orange County : Crisis: Supervisors interview Texas corporate rescuer B. J. Rone. Many officials express fear that front-runner Sanford Sigoloff would make ruthless cuts in jobs and services.

SANTA ANA —  As Orange County supervisors struggled under mounting pressure Thursday to pick a new top administrator--with three ready to endorse tough turnaround specialist Sanford C. Sigoloff and two undecided--department heads and employees openly worried about what life would be like under the leading candidate.

Although Sigoloff, 63, has ranked as the clear front-runner in recent weeks, enough concern about his reputation and $500-an-hour price tag has emerged that deadlocked supervisors turned suddenly to Texas corporate rescuer B. J. Rone, inviting him at the last minute to fly out for a Thursday afternoon interview.

Fear was spreading among those in and outside of county government that nothing would be left of county services if Sigoloff, a strong-willed executive with a reputation for ruthlessly cutting budgets and work forces, is appointed.

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“The talk that we hear is not good--that he is very uncaring about employees,” said Robert MacLeod, general manager of the Assn. of Orange County Deputy Sheriffs. “If he is as ruthless and as uncaring as he is portrayed to be in the media and he came in and conducted himself that way, then when he is gone, the Board of Supervisors are going to have a bunch of wounded animals to contend with as opposed to a cooperative labor force.”

Several county department heads declined to discuss Sigoloff publicly because they feared reprisal if he is ultimately chosen for the job.

“A lot of people are afraid Sigoloff is going to butcher county government,” said one county official who asked not to be identified.

Although there appeared to be a majority of votes for Sigoloff, supervisors say they want to present a united voice and support a candidate unanimously. As a result, supervisors in the midst of a lengthy closed session called Rone on Wednesday for the first time since he and his supporters contacted the county nine days earlier.

Rone, a Texas native, was chief financial officer of Costa Mesa’s Archive Corp. from 1987 to 1992. The company is a leading computer tape drive manufacturer whose sales climbed from $89 million to nearly $400 million during his tenure. He was once praised in a financial magazine as one of the nation’s most promising chief financial officers, known at the time for his signature 10-gallon hats.

Rone arrived in Orange County on Thursday, declaring that he is ready to bring in a team of three assistants at a cheaper price than Sigoloff’s. He said that he doesn’t need an interim job, but that he views Orange County’s situation as a challenge.

“The challenge to me is very interesting,” said Rone, 52. “That’s what I do for a living . . . go into difficult situations and make some order. I just think there’s a real need. This thing is dragging on and dragging on. Some people I know in Orange County contacted me and suggested I throw my hat in the ring, so the supervisors would have another choice. So I did that.”

Rone said that if he is chosen he would charge $275 an hour, and $150 to $175 an hour each for two to three staff members. Sigoloff’s staff would be larger and they would each charge $250 to $350 an hour.

The interim administrator--a six-month term--is expected to make some very tough budget decisions. Some county officials said they believed the position would be so unpopular that it would be better to have an outsider.

County supervisors, who are scheduled to continue discussions today, have not yet prepared a final draft job description for the new administrator, but the position is likely to come with much greater power than that previously granted to County Administrative Officer Ernie Schneider, who was demoted last month after supervisors complained of his lack of leadership and criticized his recovery plans for the county as insufficient.

Acting Chief Administrative Officer Tom Uram, also director of the County Health Care Agency, has filled in for Schneider but needs to resume his other duties full time.

Sheriff Brad Gates questioned whether the county needs outside help from corporate rescue artists--whether Sigoloff, Rone or anyone else.

“Do we really need a guy on a white horse?” Gates asked. “What’s he going to bring to the table?”

In the sheriff’s view, which is shared by other department heads, the interim administrator needs to be familiar with the county’s government, politics and private sector.

“It should be somebody with a stake in the county, a person who is going to live with the design (of government) he creates . . . concerned about the quality of life here,” Gates said.