After five months on the job, Langley City Administrator Mark Rentfrow has resigned.

Rentfrow announced he would be stepping down from his role with the city in a Jan. 7 resignation letter to the mayor. He cited a lengthy commute as being the reason why he decided to leave.

“After discussing the matter with my family over the holidays and again this weekend, it became clear that the distance between Langley and my family in Olympia has created an untenable situation and I must do what’s in the best interest of my family, and the City of Langley,” Rentfrow wrote.

Rentfrow’s last day will be Jan. 19.

“I appreciate the opportunity that Langley has given me to participate as a part of your community and am proud of the work we’ve been able to accomplish in my time here,” he wrote.

Mayor Kennedy Horstman said Rentfrow came on board to help establish a critical role for the city. He was hired by former mayor Scott Chaplin to fill a new administrative position that was created in 2023 by the city council.

“He’s been focused and committed in spite of a weekly commute from Olympia where his wife and son live,” Horstman said in an email to the Record. “I sincerely appreciate his contribution and absolutely respect his decision to prioritize his family.”