HomeMy WebLinkAbout930962.tiff I. ' f r�-, .
MINUTES
WELD COUNTY COUNCIL
March 3, 1993 rj
Tapes #6-93 and 7-93
The Weld County Council met in regular session in full conformit jw.ix.'h :the Weld
y
County Home Rule Charter in the First Floor Assembly Room at the Centennial
Center, 915 Tenth Street, Greeley, Colorado, on Wednesday, March 3, 1993, at 7:30
p.m.
ROLL CALL:
The meeting was called to order by President Young, and the following members
were present, constituting a quorum of the members thereof: President Young,
Vice President Campbell, Councilman Gardner and Councilman Orr. Councilwoman Ott
was excused.
Also present were approximately 30 citizens and employees of the Weld County
Sheriff's Department, Patrick Armijo and the Council Secretary.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES:
Councilman Gardner made a motion to approve the minutes of the February 3, 1993
meeting. Vice President Campbell seconded the motion. Vote was taken and the
motion to approve the February 3 minutes carried unanimously. Councilman Orr
made a motion to approve the minutes of the February 17, 1993 meeting.
Councilman Gardner seconded the motion. Vote was taken and the motion to approve
the minutes carried unanimously.
President Young then changed the order of the agenda, moving the Sheriff's
Reorganization issue to the first order of business. He briefly explained the
purpose and duties of the Weld County Council to the audience, thanking everyone
for their attendance.
APPOINTMENTS:
President Young noted the appointments listed and mentioned that he would be
unable to attend the Elected Officials' Meeting on March 8, 1993. Councilman
Gardner will make every effort to attend that meeting.
ADDITIONS TO AGENDA:
There were no additions to the agenda at this time.
CORRESPONDENCE:
The correspondence received was duly noted by President Young and was
subsequently circulated among the Council members.
OLD BUSINESS:
SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT REORGANIZATION
At this point in the meeting, President Young explained that he had contacted
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Weld County Council Minutes
Page 2
March 3, 1993
Lisa Carlson of the "Reinventing Weld County Government" seminar regarding the
possibility of recommendations on improving communication within the Sheriff's
Department. The fee for this service is $1,000 per day, assumably negotiable
depending on time and manner of time spent. President Young also mentioned that
Dr. Osorno of the University of Northern Colorado deals with conflict resolution.
Vice President Campbell felt that this avenue should be pursued since it is right
in Greeley. Then the Council would have some price and method comparisons.
Councilman Gardner stated that he had spoken with at least six people since the
last Council meeting, and the consensus is now that things have been aired, it
is time for some concrete solutions to be initiated. He thought that perhaps a
suggestion box would be helpful and also felt that the published grievance
process needs to be initiated and followed up for the protection of all involved.
Vice President Campbell gave some figures regarding the Sheriff' s posse that he
had received from Bill Dudley, a posse member. During the year 1990, 6,971
volunteer posse hours had been logged; for 1991, there were 4,719 hours and 1992
had a total of 4,452 volunteer hours. There are 105 persons involved with the
posse, with ten to 15 being very active. The hours quoted are for the posse only
and do not include other volunteer programs. Vice President Campbell is trying
to get a feel for the total volunteer program, i.e. hours and services provided
and how.it fits into Sheriff Jordan' s reorganization. President Young mentioned
that he had followed up with Wayne Hoover's suggestion that the foreman of the
grand jury be contacted. However, a new jury has been commissioned and the
former grand jury foreman has had his previous telephone number disconnected.
The meeting was then turned over to public comment on the issue.
Margaret Carleton then stated that at the last meeting, Sheriff Jordan had said
that the reorganization was never called a reduction-in-force and that it must
have been a typo on a memo in which it was so referred. She then distributed a
computer memo dated August 18, 1992, to all Sheriff' s Department personnel, from
and typed by Sheriff Ed Jordan, to the Council members. The memo states that
reduction-in-force procedures will be followed." This document was
submitted to back up her allegation that procedures were not followed during the
reorganization. Councilman Gardner allowed how he had concerns whether or not
the reorganization was a reduction-in-force. His questions included whether or
not people lost their jobs and got rehired or just got demoted, and why not all
interested or qualified parties were not allowed to apply for the managerial
positions because they were not advertised. Jim Hayward explained the reduction-
in-force procedure to the Council, adding that the outcome of the reorganization
could have been different for some employees if it had been considered a
reduction-in-force. Margaret Carleton added that a grievance has been filed with
the County regarding the reduction-in-force issue. Concerns of hers include when
and why were the rules changed and why no one was told. Mike Metzger stated that
the Sheriff's Department employees that have been demoted have just received a
90-day review form, meaning they are "on review" and evaluations are due as if
they were on probation again, even after having held positions up to two, levels
higher than their current ones.
Royce Clark then took the floor, demanding to know what kind of investigation the
Council had conducted regarding personnel policies, legal matters and financial
Weld County Council Minutes
Page 3
March 3, 1993
implications. He stated that Sheriff Jordan had properly gone through these
channels and gotten opinions from the Personnel Director, County Attorney and
County Finance Director, all paid County employees whose advice the Sheriff
should be able to rely upon. He believes these persons should be asked to appear
and give testimony before the Council, as Sheriff Jordan has done. President
Young replied that members of the Council had spoken with the aforementioned
persons individually but not as a Council and thought that it would be
appropriate to do so. Mr. Clark felt the meeting should be called off until such
time.
Councilman Orr asked Margaret Carleton about the status of the allegations she
had brought up regarding Sheriff Jordan at the first meeting. She replied that
the two issues were being separated, with the reduction-in-force issue being
brought before the Council and the other allegations being pursued through other
channels. Ken Poncelow brought the Council up-to-date on the inter-departmental
communication issue. Letters have been sent to all employees and spouses
requesting input, with five responses received thus far. He felt that the last
advanced officers' training session went well, with small groups of four to seven
employees meeting with a manager and Sheriff Jordan for a period of two hours.
Undershgriff Rick Dill had requested that all employees be contacted regarding
any unanswered questions. There are plans for inter-personal training sessions
in the near future. President Young thanked him for his efforts. Bev Turner
stated that Sheriff Jordan' s young son was present at the training session she
attended, which she did not deem appropriate. In addition, she was told by
Sheriff Jordan that there would,be no perks for anyone not loyal to him. She did
not find this remark conducive to open communication.
President Young intends to contact Lisa Carlson, Dr. Osorno and Sheriff Jordan.
Councilman Gardner will contact Dave Worden and look into the policy issue,
adding that the reorganization is done and he supports it and the Sheriff.
Councilman Orr will speak with the County Attorney. Reports will be given at the
next Council meeting.
REPORTS:
COORDINATOR REPORTS
There were no Coordinator Reports.
OLD BUSINESS:
RESOLUTION RE 1993 MEETING SCHEDULE
President Young read the Resolution re the Council's 1993 meeting schedule into
the record. Councilman Orr made a motion to adopt said Resolution. The motion
was seconded by Vice President Campbell. Vote was taken and the motion carried
unanimously.
INVESTMENT RECOMMENDATION FOLLOW-UP
Weld County Council Minutes
Page 4
January 6, 1993
President Young reported that Weld County Treasurer, Mike Loustalet, was unable
to attend this evening's meeting, but would appear at the next Council meeting
to report on Council's recommendation.
SALARY/BENEFITS ISSUE
This issue originated with a memo issued to Personnel Director, David Worden,
from County Attorney, Tom David, during the Weld County employee salary freeze.
In said memo, Mr. David stated that in his opinion, Council had no authority to
consider benefits, but should deal with salary-only issues. President Young
requested this agenda item because the Council will be dealing with salary issues
in the near future and felt Council discussion now would be appropriate. He
added that he had not yet spoken with Tom David regarding this, but would at the
direction of the Council. Councilman Orr felt that benefits are part of the
salary package and not two separate items, adding that the issue should be
addressed. President Young expressed that it was his feeling that the spirit of
the Charter is for the Council to set a total compensation package and is willing
to pursue changing the Charter if necessary. He will discuss the issue further
with the County Attorney.
NEW BUSINESS:
VIEWING OF "AMERICAN AGENDA" VIDEO
The Council watched this short video about the city of Sunnyvale, California,
population 120,000, as an example of what is right with government. That city's
government is being run like an efficient business. There is a system of rewards
and all are held accountable for keeping costs down and services up. A brief
discussion followed the video. Vice President felt that Weld County is headed
in the right direction, especially in light of the recent "Reinventing Weld
County Government" seminar. Councilman Gardner will be in San Francisco on
business at the end of April, and will attempt to set up a meeting with the City
Manager and deliver specific questions from Council regarding the set-up and
operation of their government.
PAYMENT OF THE BILLS
Vice President Campbell made a motion to approve the payment of the bills as
amended. Councilman Gardner seconded the motion. Vote was taken and the motion
carried unanimously.
Mileage for Ralph Campbell $22.00
Mileage for James Gardner $32.00
Greeley Tribune renewal $90.00
Windsor Beacon legal notice $ 7.13
SECRETARIAL RESEARCH REQUESTS
Weld County Council Minutes
Page 5
January 6, 1993
There were no requests of the Council secretary at this time.
PUBLIC COMMENTS:
There were no further public comments at this time.
ADJOURNMENT:
The meeting was adjjoou ed�i at 9:40 p.m.
j �` Presi t
Date Approved David L. Young,
Sandra Nagel, Secrets
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