City manager explains 10% pay raise for police chief
From City of Woodland, City Council:
The following are excerpts from a memo sent to members of the Woodland City Council on September 22, 2009, from Mark G. Deven, City Manager.
Subject: City Manager authorization of temporary pay Increase for the Chief of Police
Click here to download the complete memo from City Manager Mark Deven – 859.8 kb PDF
The purpose of this memorandum is to provide the City Council with an explanation regarding the City Manager's decision to grant a temporary pay increase to the Chief of Police in association with his assignment as Interim Director of Parks & Recreation. This explanation was requested by the City Council as part of the Council comments during the September 15 Council meeting.
As the Council is aware, the FY 2009-10 General Fund budget required the reduction of nearly $7 million in order to offset corresponding reduction in sales and property tax and other similar revenue sources. Council direction provided to the City Manager during the March 31 Council Study Session expressed that these reductions needed to be accomplished with as little impact to the public and employees as possible. Therefore, the City Manager, Senior Staff, Human Resources and Finance staff focused on expenditure reductions that utilized vacant positions and implementation of a retirement incentive program known as the "Golden Handshake" to generate most of the savings.
Read more at the Woodland Record.
Posts
22 comments:
So for 10% we have gotten this 5%
Carey Sullivan has worked with the Parks & Recreation staff to initiate or complete the following
actions:
With staff, developed funding plan to provide new level of services.
Funding such as what? From free use of meeting rooms, free use of the community center for retirement parties by police officers and retiring city employees. Yes it has happened. We get charged they do not. Just ask for the accounting of all city events.
Realigned staff assignments to better match available resources.
Have to see assignments in order to give my opinion
Targeted contract programs to utilize fitness center.
Would like to know more of how he plans to do that since it would be competeing directly with outside businesses that already provide service like they are talking about. Unfair competition in my opinion. I will keep and open mind.
Initiated development of
centralized Department procedures/policies.
Shouldn't that have already been defined by the city human resources dept or is the chief running that too?
Shift resources from administration to recreation service delivery.
So are you saying we are paying higher salary people to answer phones now and wait on customers?
Implementing IT solutions to improve staff utilization.
Chief still has not addressed the IT problems affecting computers in officers cars when writing reports.
Completed process for naming of Jack Slaven Park.
Hmm all of that could have been accomplished in 3-4 days.
Since overseeing the Parks and Rec. what has the Woodland Police Dept accomplished? Would be more of an appropriate question.
From Mark Devens Letter
However, these employees lack
the knowledge, skills and abilities to oversee complex budgets, consider broad organizational
issues and otherwise provide the leadership required for a major City function.
Then why did we give them a golden handshake and then hire them back? Can anyone answer this?
The FY 2009-10 budget for Parks & Recreation is
approximately $6.1 million and there are 25 full time equivalent employees.
What is the mothballed excerise equipment costing us?
What expenses vs income have we gained since the chief took over?
The action considered by the City Council last January recommended
an increase of 7% for the Chief of Police and 5% for the Parks & Recreation Director based on
the findings of a compensation study. After consideration of the findings, the City Council did
not approve the recommendation. Council members expressed concerns regarding the timing of
the increase as the impacts of the recessionary economy were growing worse in Woodland and
the region.
Nothing to comment on! This is exactly what needed to be done.
A temporary pay increase is not an increase or other adjustment to the salary range. The action is
directly associated with changed conditions, usually the temporary assignment of new or
additional responsibilities. When the responsibilities are removed, the temporary pay ceases. In
the case of the Chief of Police described herein, the temporary pay increase will cease when a
restructuring plan is completed that reorganizes Senior Staff responsibilities.
Accurate with a slight correction. Since the increase was given the Chief retirement money will have risen as well based upon his highest pay recieved as the police chief in other words we will be paying for the later down the road. That does not cease Mr. Deven.
Some comments have been made stating that all employees have had to assume additional
responsibilities due to the sudden downsizing of the organization. In fact, the City has lost 69
positions over the last two years (18%) and this decrease requires business practices, policies and
procedures to be revised in order to continue the best possible level of service to the public.
There is no question that nearly all employees are feeling the impact of the lost positions and are
working harder to keep up the pace. However, there is only one employee who has been assigned
the additional task of directing the activities on an entire additional department and who is
willing to hold himself accountable for this assignment. Further, the Chief s willingness to
oversee the Parks & Recreation Department following the departure of all five management
positions illustrates the magnitude of the assignment. In summary, no employee has been
requested to take on the level of additional work that has been accepted by the Chief of Police.
Case and Point Mr. Deven has no asst manager and took a cut in his pay. So why would our police chief not follow the same type of leadership as the city manager did? Then there is the question of why is the city manager is so consumed with keeping this police chief? One that is the last remaining hire by our ex city manager Rick Kirkwood. We have all seen how well those people took care of our city.
This memo fails to cover the reason for actions by Councilman Monroe.
It does not cover the fact the Monroe has openly told people he is going to take out Sullivan.
It does not cover the employment action that Chief Sullivan made as a member of the Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence Center.
Once people start talking about these things we will all start to understand the whole story.
Me thinks "Honest person" sounds like Rectoad ohh sorry Rexroad.
How about Sullivan take pay cut n do the token job of park and rec. Take on more like rest o city employeez.
O better shut whole parks n rec thing down, save money, staff n Las Vegas style signage which is garrish art not fitting with rural pasture setting monstrocity stuck in .
Deven good guy. May Bee he should let City Mayor take over cause he n rest no get paid pay nothing. Take turnz / split pay. Martie n Skip qualifi. Wee no need guy with gun running kidz and ole fokz programs.
Arnie Swartznegger is shutting down parks, why cant Woodland?
XO
Honestly Honest Person? Why would the memo explaining a raise in dire fiscal times include the tripe you list? I don't believe you're honest.
6:59
You had me until your last sentences.
I don't get your conclusion about "Nothing to comment on!" after you had a lengthy comment... then you said "This is exactly what needed to be done" after you outlined reasons why the raise shouldn't have occurred.
Gangsta Gollum,
What has chief gots in his pocket?
6:59
You had me until your last sentences.
I don't get your conclusion about "Nothing to comment on!" after you had a lengthy comment... then you said "This is exactly what needed to be done" after you outlined reasons why the raise shouldn't have occurred.
Sorry Dino
My complete post was sent in 2 different postings since I had more characters posted then it would allow so.
the posts 6:59 and 7:01 was the complete posting.
As to the reason for no comment on that. The council did their job of not handing out raises when they were already in discussions of possibly laying off city staff and furloughs so that would in my opinion clearly have sent the wrong message to the city employees. I always believe in cutting from the top down. I have done so in companies that I worked for and always cut my salary first and the employeess last. You lead by example.
The police chief is trying to avoid taking personal responsibilty for his own actions. If he didn't want this controversy over his secret raise he should not have talked to the Daily Democrat. BTW his own officers tipped off the newspaper reporter.
This report shows that four other people got 10% raises at the Parks and Recreation center.
The senior managers are abusing policy for a loophole to sneak through pay increases for a few lucky individuals who get to escape the city wide pay cut. This is morally wrong.
Are there any more people who got increases in any other departments since this report seems to focus on just the Parks and Senior Center? How long is "temporary"? One would think 2-4 months max but as long as we are abusing policy, let's get an estimated time frame because "temporary" positions in government have been known to last for years.
Mr. Monroe was correct when he said this puts the integrity of the council in jeopardy because the council made employees believe that they were all in the same boat so they would get on board and agree to the 5% pay cuts.
Like the Titanic.... the privileged few in first class were escorted to life boats, while lower class families in steerage thought they were "all in the same boat" drowing equally.
Here is an idea the mayor might want to consider.
#1 Rescind ALL raises until further notice. #2 Each council member appoint a citizen to serve on a review committee and let them evaluate any raises given since the mayor approved the budget. If they were really needed, let the citzen panel give some peace of mind to city employees that these were not arbitrary but truly fair or justified. #3 Report back to council for final approval and then MOVE ON. The crime wave in Woodland is what they should all be working on. I moved from LA so I could raise a family without fear.
12:44
The mayor has no power to do such a thing in Woodland... it is just an honorary position for being the top vote-getter as one of any number of council candidates (for two or three seats) in any one particular election. The mayor did not approve the budget, council did.
Those are good ideas and maybe city council can rescind any raises given since summer and freeze any for a period of time in the future unless council approves them. I don't think a committee would need to be formed.
Generally speaking, I'm still uncomfortable that the 10% doesn't actually equate to anything. The city manager said it was based on past practice, but it would seem more legitimate if the raise was equal to extra time... 10% more money for 10% more time on the job (44 hour week rather than a 40 hour week). But there are even problems with that since a salaried manager doesn't necessarily have to work a 40 hour week. Bottom line, I guess, is that it just doesn't seem "clean." Monroe and the other council members have every right to question the raise. (And the "net 5%" is pure spin... if it's "net 5%" than the chief never got a pay cut... either way it's not fair.)
Let's face it......
Woodland really needs some outside intervention.....
Someone needs to come in and cause drastic change. No one "in" the spiral in the City Staff Elected or other wise will pull the trigger to get things cleaned up as they have to live amongst those who will feel the pain and those who won't like it....
No matter how much sense drastic change makes.... (especially in Woodland) there are those who will freak the heck out, wave their arms wildly and scream "but this is how we've ALWAYS done it"....
Just because Woodland has a history of stupidity in City Government and operations doesn't make it right!
Bring in some folks that will make the big bad wolf changes then get out of dodge.
They can start by taking a match to Parks and Rec, the biggest rip off con in the City's history... then on to their General Services...then on to health and safety departments... There is money to be saved, no body wants to be the bad guy and bring in an ouotsource company to operate as the City Fire Department. Those companies exist. Saving the City 40% in beefits, burdns and operating costs of the entire department alone....but we live with these guys, so none of us want to do it or suggest it...an outside team may. I'm not anti-fire and it may not work for Woodland but I'm tossing it up as and example of what ISNT even being considered or talked about.
The real issue here is that either everyone infact took a 5% pay reduction or they did not. Which is the real situation here? Please stop pretending.
Thanks to this expose' we now know that we were all duped, even the city council, into thinking one scenario was true and as soon as all the contracts were signed, and the council took vacation in August, the scenario was changed. The department heads that cooked up this rotten idea should be held responsible. Period.
They made the city council look like they don't know what the hell is really going on.
Several other people got raises, forcing our elected officials to have to ask city employees
'Did anyone else out there get a rasie? If so, please raise your hand.'
The council should immeidately modify that "policy" loophole and revoke city manager discretion over salary in any year where where uniform reductions are necessary.
WITHOUT a change in this ridicluous loophpole, (and shame on them for abusing it in the first place) we should expect to find City Manager Mark Devon and Police Chief Carey Sullivan singing Brittney Spears kareeokee
"Oops! I did it again!"
Gangsta Gollum see wife haz precious ring but no love. Love haz no ring but heart. Many know but no say. Honesty iz the first chapter in the book of wisdom.
Master betrayed. Chies Betrayed. Wicked. Tricksy, False. We wants it, we needs it. Must have the precious. Yes, precious, false! They will cheat you, hurt you, lie. Master a liar and a thief.
Wake up. Wake up. Wake up, sleepiez.
Gollum more honest than youz.
Carey Sullivan - Matt Rexroad - Jeff Resig
We will learn more about this.
Gollum sees in chief's pockets.
He knows what else is in there.
They can start by taking a match to Parks and Rec, the biggest rip off con in the City's history... then on to their General Services...
Someone please expand on this, am I missing something?
Hey put the council incharge give them a 10% raise, only $30 a month and it will save us a lot of money.
This time the Smurfs at Park and Rec got a raise, under Kirkwood he gave the planning dept raises and heads of depts, to get allegiance. Not fair to the underlings. Funny Id rather have it go to the parks and rec guys that get no love than Gary Wagener.
In all honesty, no one should be getting a raise.
Chief Carey definalty does not deserve it and should step down to save the City and him some face.
Took the time to read Mr Devens explanation and this jumped out at me.
"As required per the labor agreements, temporary pay increases were authorized for
two Parks & Recreation employees who were assigned additional responsibilities as their
colleagues retired and a Division manager received an additional 10% to act as department head
in the Senior Staff members' absence over the last two months. The temporary pay increase
authorized for the Chief of Police is consistent with these actions."
If I am reading this correctly 4 staff memebers at the parks and rec have gotten raises and the rest have gotten cuts and furloughs.
Is that the way you read it?
Mr Deven only addresses this regarding the parks and rec dept. What other depts has he done this for?
Maybe Sullivan had something to hold over his head, the mice will play while the cats away. Glad to have you back Woodland City Counsel
Park and Rec is a scam.
SAME Park facility. Same lights
Different rates for different organization depending upon if they like you or not. All while lying through their teeth and telling you they are just covering the energy costs of running the lights.
Just one example of the games they play with the varied organizations that provide activities that the City and the School District can't or won't.
Dig through the archives. Look at the brawl that had to occur when Coke GAVE Little League a scoreboard. The City wouldn't let them put it up (for free) for the longest time because they were being territorial.
Park and Rec has been a choke point for activities in Woodland for years. Driving organizations into the ground by trying to make money off of them. Look at the lunacy that occured over the Dubach feilds for years....what a waste of money.
Totally mis-managed. Totally untouchable in thier Taj Mahal.
Since we are on the topic of City expenses/budget, maybe upper management and council should watch budget expenditures a little closer. During the recent budget process, training budgets we eliminated from every department. However, some departments have been able to find money to attend non essential training. Maybe council and City Manager should look into how "creative" supervisors have been in "finding" money. A little digging will turn up some shady business.
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