Woodville: Administrator taking job with county

After a little more than 12 years as the administrator of the Village of Woodville, Keith Kruse will be starting a new chapter in his life as a Geographic Information Specialist with the Sandusky County tax map office.
As a GIS, he will be maintain current tax maps for the county with data from property splits and transfers, surveys and other inputs. He will be working with the county auditor and recorder’s offices.
Kruse completed his time in Woodville in mid-December. He was appointed village administrator in 2010, following the retirement of Bob Rickard.
Prior to the appointment, Kruse had been an operator of the village wastewater treatment plant for six months and he worked in the wastewater industry for 15 years before being hired by the village.
Village councilmember Pat Dunn stated “Working with him on the Public Works and Maintenance Committee has been a pleasure. His knowledge and expertise helped me gain the knowledge of our infrastructure of the village.”
As village administrator, Kruse was the manager of facilities and oversaw a wide variety of projects. When he first started in the position, the village was going through a major sewer separation project, which covered his first 2 1/2 years on the job.
Another major project he oversaw was the construction of a new wastewater treatment plant. That project started during the early months of the pandemic and because of the safety protocols required and the slow-downs in the supply chain, there were some tough times getting the project completed.
Kruse describes the construction of the plant as one of the highlights of his tenure; he was in a position to improve the efficiency and safety of not only the treatment plant, but also in the sewer collection system as well.
“Keith has been a great asset to the Village of Woodville for the past 13 years. He has taken on many projects during his time, and has guided them to completion. He will be missed,” mayor Ty Tracy said.