Werts absolved of wrongdoing in dog shooting

Following a nine-minute executive session held to receive advice from an attorney at its Sept. 3 meeting, Holyoke City Council addressed the issue of a dog shot last month by Holyoke Police Department’s Sgt. Mark Werts. Two outside agencies have reviewed the shooting, and both found that Werts acted appropriately.

“The reports fully exonerate Sgt. Werts,” Mayor Orville Tonsing summarized. “He acted within the laws of the City of Holyoke and the State of Colorado.”

The incident in question happened Aug. 2 after HPD received a report that three dogs were running loose and being aggressive toward people in the area of the 200 block of South Coleman Avenue. Werts was dispatched to the scene, and one of the dogs was particularly aggressive toward him. After deploying pepper spray three times didn’t stop the dog from charging, Werts fatally shot the dog. According to one review, Werts rightly assessed that using his Taser would be ineffective.

In the aftermath, public response was fierce and a death threat was made toward Werts over the phone.

HPD quickly made the decision to have the shooting reviewed by outside agencies. Both the Phillips County sheriff and the district attorney refused requests to review, but Michael Beard, standing supervisor of the Haxtun Police Department, and Sgt. Barry Winckler of Sterling Police Department each agreed.

Among the material reviewed were photos of the scene, statements from the initial reporting person and a witness, several HPD policies, a Holyoke city ordinance, and Werts’ certifications.

In their reviews, Beard described the event as “justified, lawful and proper under the law,” and Winckler wrote that Werts had reason to believe his safety was in jeopardy and used the appropriate amount of force to protect himself.

“As far as we are concerned, the issue is closed,” Tonsing said. But several related concerns are still pending.

As a result of the shooting, the city council voted Aug. 6 in favor of a new policy regarding body camera usage by HPD. A specific policy has yet to be adopted though.

Of course there is also the greater dog-at-large problem in Holyoke. On Aug. 6, council members heard from volunteers willing to temporarily house such dogs on their own property since there is no local pound. At that point, further research into regulations and minimum requirements was said to be needed.

PCED requests funds

Trisha Herman, executive director of Phillips County Economic Development, attended last Tuesday’s meeting. She highlighted the PCED work done throughout the past year and requested the $10,900 contribution made by the City of Holyoke each year.

Of the $55,265 income on the proposed 2020 budget, $25,500 would come from Phillips County, $5,500 from the Town of Haxtun and $10,900 from the City of Holyoke.
Herman shared that this year PCED has worked on the housing needs assessment, Rural Prosperity Tour, workforce development, youth development and the Holyoke Community Childcare Initiative. Compared to 32 in 2018, PCED has 41 members this year and is looking to grow even more in 2020.

Ballot question wording approved

Also at the Sept. 3 meeting, council members approved a ballot question to appear in the November coordinated election. It reads:

“Shall the City of Holyoke amend Section 2.3 of the Holyoke Municipal Code changing the regular election date of the City of Holyoke to the Tuesday succeeding the first Monday in November in each even-numbered year and extending the current officials’ terms from April to November of their respective terms starting in 2020?”

City Attorney Al Wall pointed out that if the people vote favorably in November, council members will have to pass an adopting ordinance.

Mayor wonders whether residents want new fire station

Tonsing told council members last Tuesday that he would like to go to the public to see whether they’re in favor of a new fire station being built or not. Furthermore, he wants to know whether people would support such a project financially.

He suggested an ad in the newspaper, as well as questions on Facebook and the City website, to gauge public opinion.

Council member Gene Bittner said he would prefer to hold off until he and Steve Moore, who serve on the fire station building committee, can meet with City Superintendent Mark Brown to discuss the matter. Council members Scott Murray and John Schneider chimed in that people would probably like to see a vision of the building and a rough cost of the project before answering that question.

Officials, recreation director report

Brown reported that, at the time of the meeting, the swimming pool remained closed as Tom Hethcote continued work on the boiler. The outdoor pool has been drained and winterized.

Brown reported that the new camera system is up and operational at the airport and added that Armstrong Consultants will be attending the Sept. 17 city council meeting to discuss the airport.

The electric department continues to trim trees on power lines and work on service drop upgrades across town. The water and sewer department has been cleaning off manhole covers after seal coating as well as working on the alfalfa sprinkler system. The annual waste water efficiency test for the lift station was also recently completed. Street crews have been patching streets and mowing.

Police Chief Doug Bergstrom reported that HPD, including code enforcement, handled or generated 307 calls for service Aug. 15-28. The department made four arrests, wrote nine citations and three reports, and gave out 24 warnings. Code enforcement handled one animal complaint, three dogs at large and five ordinance violations.

City Clerk/Treasurer Kathy Olofson reported that the City’s gross total assessed value for the current year, according to the Phillips County assessor, is $17,316,590. Considering its 21.8 mills, the City will net $377,501.66, which is up about $18,397 from last year. The final assessed value, which will be used to certify the mill levy, will be released Dec. 1.

Recreation director Victoria Dunker reported that flag football started and 32 kids are participating. That is 10 more than last year. Women’s volleyball is also set to begin Sept. 16. Dunker was wrapping up registration for the league last week.