City council seat now vacant; HPD makes case for 5th officer

    Holyoke City Council chambers were packed for the Tuesday, Aug. 15, meeting, with 15 guests in attendance for various items. Amidst the visitors and a full agenda, a seat on the city council quietly opened.
    Council member J.C. Peckham, upon missing three consecutive meetings, verbally conveyed to Mayor Orville Tonsing that he intended to resign from the board due to health issues. The council unanimously accepted his resignation.
    From the time of the Aug. 15 resignation, the council has 30 days to fill the vacancy. At the Tuesday, Sept. 5, meeting, council members will vote on someone to fill the vacancy until the April 2018 election, at which point the term will have expired.
    The City will be accepting letters of intent from interested citizens until Friday, Sept. 1. To qualify, one must be a U.S. citizen, a registered elector, at least 18 years of age and a resident of Holyoke for at least 12 months.
    
Police department seeks 5th officer
    Each of the four officers at the Holyoke Police Department — Chief Doug Bergstrom, Sergeant Mark Werts, and patrol officers Joe Marcum and Mary Seeley — were in attendance to express to council members the need for a fifth officer to be hired, a request that was ultimately tabled until a later meeting.
    Citing increased calls for service, officers explained that hiring another officer is a matter of safety. As of the Aug. 15 meeting, HPD had received 2,875 calls for service in 2017. By that date in 2015, they'd received only 1,501. What that translates to is more work to be done keeping Holyoke safe and a need for more manpower to complete that work.
    Also of concern is the number of overtime hours the current officers are required to put in. Amber Marcum, Harold Seeley and Lisa Werts, speaking in support of their spouses, emphasized the toll the regular excess hours take on a police officer.
    Two major events within the last calendar year were also cited as cause for another officer. In the case of both a March 4 attack on three of the officers and a July 8 homicide, additional help was required from the Phillips County Sheriff’s Office. Likewise, some particularly difficult arrests require calling in an off-duty officer to assist. There have even been instances of volunteer firefighters responding to the police’s need for aid. “We shouldn’t have to be doing that,” Werts said. “It’s a safety issue.”
    Council member Scott Murray responded, “I think we need to do something to help these people out,” and asked about “renting” officers from other departments. Bergstrom explained that in the past, when they were short officers, they hired officers from the Haxtun Police Department and the sheriff’s office, but that is not a long-term solution. Based on the national average of 2 1/2 officers per every thousand residents, Holyoke would be justified in having six.
    Werts noted that hiring even one officer is a long process and estimated that if they started it immediately, they might have an officer by the end of the year. Bergstrom agreed, adding that it is extremely difficult to get candidates to apply for a job in Holyoke. The last time they hired someone, only four to five applicants even met the initial criteria.
    Council member John Schneider said that he did not feel comfortable making a decision that night but would like to see more cost information. Murray pointed out that the council had seen specific numbers when they did the budget, but the council voted to table the matter until the next meeting. A rough estimate of $100,000 was given as the cost to hire a new officer, which includes salary, initial hiring and equipment.
    Currently, all the officers are salaried employees. Should a fifth be added, Bergstrom will remain on salary, while the others will switch to hourly. While council members were concerned with the added costs of paying overtime wages, Bergstrom reiterated that the number of overtime hours worked would be reduced by hiring another officer.
    
Conceptual plans for fire, police buildings presented
    Five University of Colorado-Denver students, joined by supervisor Jennifer Kovarik and Colorado Department of Local Affairs regional manager Greg Etl, were in attendance to present their final conceptual plans for new fire and police stations.
    Throughout the summer, the engineering students have worked closely with the City to design plans to meet its needs, paring down the plans after criticism that the originals were more expensive and elaborate than Holyoke needed.
    The final report will include an opinion of probable cost, but Etl advised the council that the next step should be pursuing architectural drawings in order to identify a true cost. He also told them, “I think you have a lot of work to do before you’d be able to put it on the ballot.”
    
Officials report
    City Superintendent Mark Brown reported that work on the mini park continues. The water and sewer department is working on the backflow program for the annual review, and the street crew is painting crosswalks and parking lines, picking up lightweight rock from seal coating and cleaning storm drains.
    He also noted that there was trouble with a well that they will need to address. The poly carts used for trash have also been discontinued, and he found an alternative that will work with the City’s trucks with some modification.
    Bergstrom reported that the police department handled or generated 154 calls for service between July 27-Aug. 9. They made two arrests, wrote two citations and four reports, and gave out 26 warnings. Code enforcement handled one animal complaint, two dogs at large and 13 ordinance violations.
    Deputy Clerk/Treasurer Tilie Fisbeck reported that the council received a thank-you card from the family of Kendon Olofson.
    Attorney Al Wall was previously asked to look into increasing the mill levy earmarked for a special purpose — police and fire department construction. He reported that the City can do so, but it would create a special fund. Right now, a mill levy increase goes into the general fund, which is what he recommends they do.
    Recreation director Victoria Timm reported that flag football was to begin Monday, Aug. 21, and background checks for coaches would be completed prior to starting. She also noted that she is working on assembling first-aid kits for the City’s sports programs.  
    
Other business
    In other business at the Aug. 15 meeting, the council:
    —Decided on shingles, as opposed to tin, for the mini park roof.
    —Heard from FCCLA members Cash Adler and Savannah Burris, who voiced the chapter’s intention to be more involved in the community. They requested that the council keep them in mind for volunteer and community service needs they might have.
    —Appointed Ron Goldenstein to serve another five-year term on the Holyoke Housing Authority Board.
    —Approved a special events permit for the Holyoke Chamber of Commerce Los Huracanes Del Norte concert Saturday, Sept. 9, at the Event Center. Bergstrom said that 600-1,000 people are expected to attend the event.
    —Hired John Zilla as head flag football coach at $500 and Morgan Eurich as assistant at $300.
    —Approved a CPR training request for Timm.
    —Purchased a truck body and hoist from Kois Equipment Company at a cost of $22,532.
    —Tabled a request from the Gun Club for support of a benefit they plan to hold Sept. 9 until they have more information. As the event is intended to support Kevin Scott, he will disqualify himself from discussion and voting on the item at the next meeting.