Can he do that at the scandal-scarred Salt Lake County Government Center without cleaning house? Corroon won't say, but changes are likely.

The 40-year-old father of three looks forward to working with a newly configured County Council - and its 5-4 Republican majority - but says he won't hesitate to wield his veto.

Five weeks before taking office, Corroon sat down with The Salt Lake Tribune to discuss his plans:

On his staff selections:

We're going to try to make the key positions first so those people can be involved with hiring the people below them. We would like to have them in place by Jan. 1 - hopefully before that, hopefully by Dec. 15. We're going to lower salaries, which may or may not make people happy but that's what we are going to do. There are certain positions we'd like to have that are not there now. An intergovernmental-affairs person that handles federal issues, a minority-affairs officer . . . and somebody to coordinate a master plan for the entire county.

Will the appointments be bipartisan?

We're asking for résumés and it's not going to be based on what party you're with.

Is it time to clean house?

I think the problems were primarily at the top. There are some people there that were not necessarily involved in the scandal. Frankly, I can't say I know who was involved in the scandal and who wasn't. Obviously, I don't want people who are not of good moral character. It may take some time to find out who's part of the problem and who's part of the solution.

Should the institutional knowledge of county employees trump political consideration?

We may not necessarily keep them. There are no promises made. I've asked everybody in the administration, "If you're interested in keeping your job, submit your résumé?" We'll look to make changes where necessary, but you don't throw the baby out with the bath water.

Multiple attempts have been made to rid the county of nepotism and a so-called good old boy network. Will you be the one to finally get that done?

Yes. We're going to have strict regulations about nepotism and hiring practices and then also make sure contractors and people that want to do business with the county go through an RFP [request for proposal] process so everybody is treated the same. I think there's been a lot of sole source contracts down at the county for political payoffs. Treating everybody the same is the right thing to do and the fair thing to do.

How do you envision Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson's role?

I've worked with him through small-business issues and housing issues and he's been supportive of those so I look forward to having a good working relationship with him. There are a lot of needs in the county and they spread from Salt Lake City down to Herriman and Bluffdale and Draper and those areas. So we're going to work with all those mayors and make sure we're doing good things throughout the county, not just Salt Lake City.

With Rocky and yourself, Democratic administrations now control the highest-profile positions in the Salt Lake Valley. Are you worried that people will perceive you as tied too closely to Anderson?

The way I can fight perception is just by doing what I said I plan to do - which is running a good government. My plan is to have an efficient, decent county government. It's not to put forth any social change. My ideas and visions are common sense. They're not partisan, they're just right things for the community.

Should county races be nonpartisan?

There are no issues that are partisan issues. I always say potholes don't care if you're Republican or Democrat, they just need to be filled. It [shifting to nonpartisan races] is not an issue I'm going to spearhead and take on, but if somebody else is interested in doing that, I'd be supportive of it.

Whose idea was it to keep acting Republican Mayor Alan Dayton on for three months during the transition?

It was my idea. He's been involved with the county over the last four years. He's been working on some important issues like the Salt Palace expansion. He seems like somebody who's doing things for the right reason, and I have respect for him.

Are you worried about any political ramifications from your party?

I'll take whatever political fallout there may be. I think, ultimately, running a good, efficient county will be what helps the Democratic Party. If it's a matter of keeping Republicans in, that's what we'll do.

Will you have a deputy mayor?

I will, but I don't know who it's going to be.

Some people called you a sacrificial lamb when you joined the mayor's race. When did you believe you truly had a shot at winning?

I always believed. I wouldn't have gotten into this and spent nine months from 6 a.m. to 9 at night six days a week campaigning. It's always good to believe in yourself. Obviously, timing is a lot of politics, so timing worked out.

What are your favorite anecdotes from the campaign trail?

I got bitten by a dog at somebody's home, went to a tango-dancing contest although I didn't dance, went to a demolition derby, which I've never been to. Going door to door and meeting people are a lot of fun. When you go to their front door and they don't want to talk to you, I think they pretend they're on their telephone. That's a trick I figured out. The county is a really great place, really diverse, too.

What are your political ambitions?

I haven't gotten in [office] yet. We'll see how things go over the next four years. If I like what I'm doing, which I suspect I will, then I'll try to run again for re-election.

Is the council form of government superior to the commission form?

I think it's a better form. Making it work as a better form is the issue here. Having more representation I think is important. Having six council members that represent different districts is a good thing. Having the three countywide representatives is good. And having an executive branch and a legislative branch, a separation of powers, can help solve some of the problems the county had in the past and maybe even still had under the past administration - the nepotism and the cronyism and the backroom deals.

When you sat down with Gov.-elect Jon Huntsman Jr., what did you discuss?

We talked about smart growth and economic development, and those are the two things I'd like to focus on. It sounds like those are two important things for his administration as well, so I think we're going to be working in the same direction.

Is it a plus or minus to have two brand-new administrations taking control at the same time?

I think it can be a good thing. Neither of us have any political history within the state. We both bring fresh ideas and fresh viewpoints, and I think that will be a good thing.

What do you think about being a Catholic in one of the highest-profile offices in predominantly LDS Utah?

The values of the Catholic Church are very similar to the values of the Mormon Church, probably actually maybe even stricter in some senses. I love Utah partly because of the value system it has. I'll be making decisions based not necessarily on what's good for one church or another, but what's best for the community as a whole. I look forward to working with the LDS Church and all the other churches in the county.

djensen@sltrib.com