At a special meeting Tuesday afternoon, members of the Dukes County Commission discussed the next steps in filling the open position of county treasurer.

Treasurer Ann Metcalf will step down Friday from the elected post to take a job as financial controller at the Martha’s Vineyard Airport. Ms. Metcalf is in her second year of a six-year term. “Resigning for just better work and life balance,” she told the Gazette early this week. “That’s the primary reason.”

County commissioners had previously suggested that one of their own members be appointed to the position and waive the compensation, although the proposition was abandoned after it was found in conflict with the commission’s bylaws.

“We explored the possibilities of what we could do with existing county personnel . . . and we’ve come up dry with that,” said commissioner Christine Todd.

The new treasurer must be a resident of Dukes County, which has prompted questions about the difficulty of filling the position. The position salary is capped at $100,000.

Ms. Todd said the commission has “set the wheels in motion” by taking out recruitment advertisements across the county and state.

“I really think that someone’s going to step up,” said commissioner Leon Brathwaite.

Ms. Metcalf was first appointed as county treasurer in 2018 to replace longtime treasurer Noreen Mavro-Flanders, who had stepped down before the end of her term.

She ran unopposed and was elected to the post in November 2020. In the same election, a county commission-backed ballot initiative to change the treasurer from an elected to an appointed position failed overwhelmingly.

County manager Martina Thornton said Monday that it’s is too late to put the position on the ballot for this year’s state election. “The county treasurer position will be on [the] state elections ballot in 2024,” Ms. Thornton said in an email.

 — Aidan Pollard and Noah Glasgow