By Jean Doran Matua, Editor
A special meeting was held Tuesday, Nov. 20, with all council members and the city attorney present. The mayor began the meeting stating that there was to be no open forum, and that no one present in the audience would be allowed to speak or ask questions.
The Kimball city council agreed to contract with the Stearns
County Sheriff’s Office for temporary supervision of the Kimball Police Department after the resignation of Police Chief Jason Mehr.
City attorney Tom Jovanovich advised the council to do as Paynesville did when their chief quit: contract with the county for 40 hours a month. Under the contract, to be approved by Stearns
County Tuesday this week, Chief Deputy Jon Lenz will spend up to 40 hours per month doing scheduling and supervision for the department, as needed.
Mayor Tammy Konz noted that it has “never been on my radar screen” to have the county take over. She also indicated that the two council members-elect were invited to this meeting but chose not to attend.
Jovanovich explained that Lenz would be in Kimball the next day (Wednesday) to discuss the contract with the mayor and city clerk to see what services will be needed; mayor Konz suggested the personnel committee participate in the discussion, so that an additional council member is there. Jovanovich called it a “very vanilla contract” with payment to the county to be $55/hour ($2,200 per month) and the city paying no benefits or anything in addition. He said the contract will run until Jan. 31, 1919 (although he no doubt meant 2019), and is revocable on 30 days notice. Extending beyond Jan. 31 is negotiable for hours and rate, and the new person (chief) may need to work with Lenz for a bit, Jovanovich explained. “I’ve worked with him (Lenz) in other cities and he’s really easy to work with,” he said. He added that the Paynesville city attorney said it worked very well for them. The council voted unanimously to accept the contract.
Jovanovich then brought up the issue of payment to Chief Mehr of his PTO. At the Nov. 13 regular meeting, Mehr submitted his two-week notice and the council voted unanimously to pay out 100 percent of his PTO after mayor Konz pointed out that “PTO is yours, and it should be paid.”
A week later, however, Jovanovich said that clerk Nicole Pilarski had told him about the policy requiring 30-day notice for department heads. “He’s not entitled to anything,” Jovanovich said, even though the council had already approved it Nov. 13, unanimously. He then suggested the city have Mehr sign a release form. “I always recommend it,” he said, although Mehr is the first Kimball employee who has been asked to sign one. “End it and move forward,” he said. “It looks very complex, but it’s standard.”
Council member Aaron Dahlinger said he has one issue with the release, clause #6 that would bar Mehr from ever working for the city again, or even applying to work for the city. “I don’t want to seal his fate,” Dahlinger said. “He’s born and raised here.” Mayor Konz said, “I would have thought Jason would be here to see how this all goes.” Jovanovich again stated that Mehr has requested his PTO but that he’s not (in his opinion, not the council’s) entitled to it. “You can accept my advice, or not,” Jovanovich said. Dahlinger said, “Because of all in the community, we need this to be black-and-white.” Konz added, “As far as what people think, every decision we make here at the table should be for the best interest of this community.” Mehr’s resignation has certainly been the talk of the town since Nov. 13. Konz said, “We know what’s going on, … and we’re doing the best for the community. And for Jason. We’re all looking out for the best for [unintelligible].”
Dahlinger asked if the release would void employee data privacy. Jovanovich answered no, it keeps all confidential; the city will handle all requests for information according to law. Jovanovich explained that the release waives all rights to any claim (including lawsuits), and that the city would pay him his PTO 15 days after Mehr signs it, as required by statute.
The council voted unanimously to strike clause #6 and to approve the release. Jovanovich said the release contract should be signed by the mayor and city clerk and then presented to Mehr. (The release was revised that night and signed by both the mayor and city clerk, and it was inserted into his paycheck, without discussion or explanation, on Friday. Mehr will seek legal advice before signing it. There is no apparent deadline to sign it.)
The council then shifted to finalizing the capital improvement plan for 2018-2019-2020 with clerk Pilarski. Of note, Pilarski slashed $10,000/year of the $20,000 budgeted for a new police vehicle. She also suggested getting rid of the Public Works truck and plow truck to have only one vehicle, but settled on cutting the budget there as well. MnDOT has scheduled a major project for Highway 15 through town, narrowing the highway on both sides, and re-doing the sidewalks; a substantial portion of this project will be assessed to residential and commercial property owners along Main Street. The city will need new radio-controlled water meters soon, even with purchasing Eden Valley’s cast-offs; when that time comes, each property owner in the city will have to pay the full cost. A total of $1,115,154 has been budgeted for the new library, including the grant (not yet decided), donations and pledges. A new comprehensive plan is budgeted for 2019. $39,500 in ADA improvements (Americans with Disabilities Act) to City Hall are included in 2018, although no work has yet begun. It was noted by Pilarski that ADA requires hearing devices for the hard of hearing at council meetings, although none are currently available; this requirement would not be in force if the speakers currently used (but not very helpful) are not present. A new park in the Scheeler Addition is planned for 2020.
After nearly an hour of discussion and adjustments to the plan, the council unanimously approved it for the three years.
The council returned to discussion of the chief job, suggesting that it should be posted (advertised). Dahlinger noted that it is very interesting taking applicants from other communities, that it’s a learning opportunity. The council agreed to request applications by Dec. 17, so they can select candidates at the Dec. 18 meeting for interviews. The job was to be posted on the city’s website (it appeared there on Sunday), and on the POST board (it was not until Monday this week). Kimball does not include pay in their postings, although it is unlikely to be above the current chief pay of $22.28/hour. (The current state average pay for a police officer is $25/hour, generally ranging from $23.34 to $27.24. The pay of city employees is public information.) The council would prefer candidates with chief experience. Mayor Konz mentioned something about a POST audit, but it was impossible to hear what was said about it.
Not mentioned during this meeting was the fact that Mehr and the other police officers are at-will employees which means by law that either party, the at-will employee or the city, can stop the employment at any time for any reason, without notice. There also is no state or federal law requiring the standard, courtesy two-week notice, much less a 30-day notice. Also not mentioned was scheduling of the two remaining officers, both of whom work alternating nights; how will the day shift be covered?
Notably absent from the meeting and discussion during the meeting was Fair Haven Township and their contract with the Kimball Police Department to patrol the township. That $35,000/year contract covers one officer’s pay.
As always, regular and special meetings of the Kimball city council are open to the public and anyone may attend. They may only be closed to discuss pending litigation, or for employee evaluations if the employee requests the meeting be closed.