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The new head of the Metropolitan Council will have a full-time job, a spokesman for Gov. Mark Dayton said Friday.

The news comes after Susan Haigh, the part-time chairwoman of the regional planning agency, announced her resignation Nov. 19.

Haigh, 63, said it was too time-consuming to juggle the demands of her Met Council position along with her full-time job as president and CEO of Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity.

The position to lead the Met Council will be filled by gubernatorial appointment, and applications are due Monday.

"The governor has the legal authority to make it full time and he intends to," said Linden Zakula, a Dayton spokesman. "He feels it merits a full-time position based on the responsibilities."

Haigh was paid $61,414 a year for her part-time Met Council job. State law characterizes the council chair job as a cabinet-level position, so salaries can be up to 20 percent more than the governor's pay of $120,000.

The Met Council is a mammoth agency with an $890 million annual budget, 3,700 employees and a 17-member board. Its oversight ranges from transportation planning to affordable housing to wastewater management for the seven-county metro area.

It also is one of the most heavily criticized state agencies around the Capitol and the Twin Cities. Lately, the council has faced intense criticism from suburban leaders who say the agency has ignored their concerns and is too focused on the needs of Minneapolis and St. Paul.

Janet Moore • 612-673-7752