Deschutes County commissioners voted 2-1 Monday afternoon to terminate the employment contract of county Administrator Dave Kanner after five years in the job.

"After reviewing performance evaluation standards and the expectations of the BOCC, the board decided in a 2-to-1 vote that discontinuing the contract would be in the best interest of Deschutes County," said a county news release issued Monday evening.

The decision to dismiss Kanner was made during his annual review. Commissioners Tammy Baney and Tony DeBone voted to terminate the contract, while colleague Alan Unger voted against doing so.

The commissioners then appointed Deputy County Administrator Erik Kropp on an interim basis to fill the top county managerial position.

Kanner became county administrator in mid-2006, chosen to succeed Mike Maier, who had been in the position for 27 years.

"The board is grateful to Dave Kanner for sharing his vast knowledge and experience that has benefited Deschutes County residents in the areas of policy, procedure and finance," the commissioners said in their announcement.

Baney, the board chairwoman, said, "Deschutes County is fortunate to have dedicated and professional department directors and employees."

"While change is difficult, we are confident that through department leadership, county residents will continue to receive the quality customer service they have come to expect," she added.

The last several months have been fairly tumultuous for the county, with high-profile legal and personnel disputes with new District Attorney Patrick Flaherty and contentious contract talks with employee unions.

Most recently, the county filed an unfair labor practice complaint against its largest employee union last week, alleging the unions threat to file a similar grievance during bargaining violated a state labor law.

Commissioners Tammy Baney, Tony DeBone and Alan Unger can be reached at board@co.deschutes.or.us.