Dare County has announced that William Nash—who has served as assistant public utility director for the Dare County Water Department for the past four years—has been promoted to the position of public utility director following the retirement of long-time public utility director Pat Irwin.
Nash has worked with utilities in various capacities since 2007 and initially began his career with Dare County in December 2017, serving as a treatment plant superintendent at the county’s reverse osmosis facility in Stumpy Point. He was promoted to the position of assistant public utility director in July 2019.
Throughout the course of his career, he has obtained the highest level of certifications in water, wastewater, distribution and collections, along with physical/chemical and cross connection certifications, and in 2019, he attended the UNC School of Government’s Municipal and County Administration program to further his understanding of local government policies and procedures.
“It takes a long time and a lot of work to obtain the certifications necessary in this field of work,” said Nash. “I will do my best to use these certifications and experiences to continue to provide quality water to the residents and visitors of Dare County.”
In his new role as public utility director, Nash is tasked with planning, organizing, and directing the operations of the Dare County Water Department; managing annual budgets for water treatment facilities; establishing and maintaining various reports for county and state regulatory agencies; and managing the department’s Capital Improvement Plan and construction projects, among many other responsibilities.
“The most rewarding part for me is serving the community that I’m a resident of and interacting with other members of the community,” he said. “Assisting customers in troubleshooting hard-to-find issues and helping to resolve those issues is one of the aspects of the job I enjoy the most. I would consider my career successful if no one ever has to consider where their water is going to come from or what’s in it. I want people to turn their faucets on and never think twice.”
According to Dare County Manager/Attorney Bobby Outten, Nash’s wealth of knowledge and experience, as well as the assortment of skills he has developed throughout the course of his career, made him the perfect candidate for the public utility director position.
“For the past six years, William has been an essential member of the Dare County Water Department and has played an integral role in ensuring that Dare County residents and visitors are provided with quality water and exceptional service,” said Outten. “He is highly skilled and experienced and has obtained a wide array of key certifications in this field that make him an incredible asset to Dare County. His promotion to the public utility director position is well-deserved, and I look forward to working with him in his new role.”
For more information about the Dare County Water Department, click here.
