Devils Lake's city auditor is returning to private business.
Terry Johnston, who has been with the city since March 2006, is leaving his city hall job Dec. 31.
He is the majority owner in Flatlander Foods Inc., a relatively new company that markets pizzas and grocery store sandwiches to grocery and convenience stores and bars in eastern North Dakota.
The city of Devils Lake currently is advertising throughout the region for a new auditor/administrator. City officials hope to have a replacement in place before Johnston leaves at the end of the year.
"I enjoyed it," Johnston said of his city job. "It was something different for me."
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Now he's returning to a business he knows well. He was president of Pugsley's Premium Sandwiches in the 1990s. Pugsley's, which was based in Devils Lake, later was sold to Deli Express, a national chain.
After leaving Pugsley's, Johnston owned a Dairy Queen and a pizza shop in Devils Lake, before going to work for the city.
At Flatlander Foods, he'll be working with Gary Senger, who founded the original Pugsley's Premium Sandwiches.
The new company is competing with Deli Express and other companies for space in businesses throughout eastern North Dakota. Flatlander Foods products currently can be found in Devils Lake, Grand Forks and several smaller communities in the region.
The company has nine employees.
Flatlander Foods recently secured four low-interest loans to buy the building and equipment and to pay off outstanding loans, according to Johnston. Financing is coming from a loan package of $90,000 each, for $360,000 total, from: Forward Devils Lake; North Central Planning Council; North Dakota Economic Development and Finance; and the Governor's Fund.
Reach Bonham at (701) 780-1110; (800) 477-6572, ext. 110; or send e-mail to kbonham@gfherald.com .
