City council approves hiring 5th police officer

At its Sept. 7 meeting, Holyoke City Council approved the hiring of a fifth police officer in a 4-2 vote. Council members Gene Bittner and John Schneider voted against the motion, and Steve Moore was absent.

After Officer Mary Winterrowd resigned March 31, council members approved filling that vacancy at their May 4 meeting.

At that same meeting, Holyoke Police Chief Doug Bergstrom asked council members what their thoughts were on hiring a fifth officer since the department has had one in the past.

The issue was ultimately tabled to be discussed at the May 18 meeting. Again, no action was taken at that time.

“I know we’ve brought this up several times before,” Bergstrom said Sept. 7, noting that the last few months have been fairly taxing not only on him but also on Commander JR Myers and Officer Wyatt Bishop.

Bergstrom told council members that from the first part of June through Sept. 2, Holyoke Police Department handled 494 calls for service, 47 of which were 911 calls.

He also highlighted tactical callouts the department was involved in, including one in Sedgwick County and one assisting U.S. Marshals in arresting a felony fugitive from Wisconsin.

“We’re just asking to possibly get more help because we’re all feeling it,” Bergstrom said, adding that he, Myers and Bishop are working anywhere from 65-100 hours of overtime a month.

“I know it’s part of the job,” he said. “I’m not complaining about that, but we’re all getting tired. I know everyone has their own thoughts about it, but I wanted to at least ask again.”

Bittner said he hasn’t changed his mind and still thinks four officers are enough.

Council member Brian Akey said he doesn’t feel four officers are enough. He referenced last December’s officer-involved shooting, noting that other officers had to cover shifts at that time. He went on to say that HPD needs to be staffed to the best of the city’s ability.

Schneider pointed out that a fourth officer will be joining HPD. He also noted that in the two-week period in Bergstrom’s report, HPD had one arrest and one citation.

Bergstrom acknowledged that the activity comes and goes in spurts, and sometimes there is a down period followed by a time where they’re very busy.

Myers said officers are taking on-call time more frequently to relieve themselves of the overtime hours they’ve been working.

He said that even when the fourth officer arrives, there will still be vacations, trainings and bereavement leave that require someone to pick up the extra shift, adding 10 hours of overtime.

“We still have trainings to maintain an adequate department to make sure that we give the best services to our community, and we just can’t do that if we’re covering a bunch of extra shifts because of training, or bereavement, or vacation leave that these guys deserve to take,” Myers said.

He added that a fifth officer will allow them to create a floater and minimize officer overtime and on-call time, creating more opportunities for officers to be proactive in their work.

Akey asked if HPD has anyone in mind. Myers said they have interviewed one person who is now in the academy and will graduate in December. Myers said the person has a clear background and went on to say that he has previous experience in Logan County Jail and a jail in Kansas.

Myers added that they’ve been keeping tabs on his performance in the academy. He reported that he’s been doing well and passing all of his tests.

He said that since he had to quit his job and go to the academy with no income, he is asking to be put on the payroll at minimum wage. Myers added that he feels he would be a good fit for the department and the community.

After the 4-2 vote, Mayor Orville Tonsing told Bergstrom to proceed with the process of hiring a fifth officer.

Pool concerns discussed

Kayla Kafka was present at the meeting to follow up on the concerns about the city pool that she first shared at the Aug. 17 meeting.

She said after that meeting, she was asked to submit the concerns in writing, and she provided those details and asked if council members had any questions.

Although they had no questions for her, the council discussed the situation at the pool after council member Ashley Sullivan requested the issue be added to new business.

It was eventually decided that the pool committee will meet with pool manager Karla Pargas and proceed from there.

Reinstatement of tree board discussed

Tonsing said he feels something needs to be done about the numerous dead or dying trees in Holyoke.

He noted that the prior tree board is inactive, but it might be time to look at reinstating some form of the board.

City Attorney Al Wall said the code is already on the books now and just needs to be enforced. Tonsing said extra assistance might be needed. The issue was tabled to allow council members more time to think about the issue.

Wall requested a work session be scheduled following the Sept. 21 council meeting to discuss the necessary details.

Request for construction of shelter at airport reviewed

Brown told council members he received an email from Steve Rice, an airplane owner from California, who plays golf at Ballyneal about 40 times per year.  

Brown said Rice wants to build a shelter at the airport to park his plane in. Rice is willing to build it if a spot is provided for him to do so.

Brown told council members that the shelter will basically look like a carport but large enough for a jet. It will have open ends so the jet can pull straight through it.

Brown added that when Rice isn’t here, the city can rent the shelter out to others for a fee. He sent the information to Armstrong Consultants to see if they can incorporate the request in the airport master plan.

City dump truck to be used to assist with cleanup from fire

Schneider added to new business a request to assist Gary Kumm with the cleanup of the lot where his recent house fire happened.

The council approved one employee and a city dump truck to help with cleanup for one day that will work with the city’s schedule. Phillips County Landfill will be used for disposal needs.

Council hears from visitors

Gary Herr expressed concerns that the infrastructure below Holyoke’s streets is inadequate and antiquated.

He asked council members if they have a plan to address it. He said he thinks the council needs to make a master plan regardless of budget and then figure out how to budget over a number of years to accomplish the master plan.

Jill Herr pointed out that even lesser rains than the one that occurred Aug. 19 have flooded people’s yards and basements. She reminded council members that at their Aug. 3 meeting, she showed them pictures of a front yard that was flooded at Kellogg Street and Bowman Avenue after a rainstorm.

“That kind of thing shouldn’t be happening. We should be changing things up so our homes don’t flood,” she said.

Acknowledging that she knows it will be expensive, she thinks at some point the city needs to stop seal coating streets and instead dig them up, get them at the right height and fix the storm sewers.

“I know it’ll cost a lot of money, but what needs to be done needs to be done, I believe,” she said.

Council hears reports

Brown reported a secondary voltage outage serving First Pioneer National Bank, Dave Colver’s office and Club 52.

Brown said the underground wire under the concrete went bad, and crews worked from about 3-11 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 23, to make the repairs and pour concrete.

“It was a challenging evening,” Brown said.

He reported that street crews have finished the concrete work at the intersection of SW Interocean Drive and West Hargreaves Street and are now working in the alley behind the post office.

They have also been busy picking up tree branches and repairing the underground piping of the Highway 385 pit that let go during the Aug. 19 storm.

Brown noted that the same storm caused over 50 graves from the 1950s and ’60s at Holyoke Cemetery to sink, and street crews made the necessary repairs.

He noted that he received an email from Armstrong Consultants that the airport lighting project will start on or around Monday, Oct. 4, as long as the necessary materials arrive on time.

Recreation director Victoria Dunker reported that 32 kids in grades 1-4 are signed up for flag football, which is the most they’ve had for that age group.

She noted that Ripley Design Vice President of Operations Sam Coutts was scheduled to meet with the Recreation Advisory Committee and stakeholders Wednesday, Sept. 8. She said Ripley Design has bird’s-eye view designs of the parks master plan done and will start to have price breakdowns for each of the designs.

Bergstrom reported that HPD handled or generated 89 calls for service from Aug. 13-Sept. 1, including two animal complaints under code enforcement.

Other business

In other business at the Sept. 7 meeting, council members:

— Approved the 2022 property/casualty preliminary contribution quote from Colorado Intergovernmental Risk Sharing Agency in the amount of $88,557.72.

­— Approved the purchase of four gas masks, filters and helmets for HPD for a total of $2,952.

— Approved a travel request for Myers to attend SWAT Command Decision-Making and Leadership school in Greeley for a total of $1,480.

­— Approved a request from Holyoke Lions Club for reimbursement of a $1,000 donation for the remodeling of the concessions stand at the baseball/softball field, which did not happen.

— Approved salaries for flag football coaches Kody Timm and Eric Luedke at $500 each for September.

— Approved the permit application and report of changes for manager’s registration at Holyoke Hotel LLC, dba Cobblestone Inn & Suites for Bailey Bradley.

— Waived the building permit fees on roofing and siding for three Phillips County road and bridge buildings located at 420 W. Denver St.

— Hired Danielle Wilkening as a lifeguard at $12.32 per hour.