News

Recall expressed at city meeting

By Scott Wagar

12/13/2011

The city council meeting this past Monday evening was an evening of individuals expressing their own personal opinion about issues which are presently concerning them about certain public figures on the council. The remarks went as far as one resident asking for the resignation of one council member and the promise of recalling a number of other leaders.

The primary issue of the evening was the city-county police contract, which the city police committee (made up of Troy Marsden, Brad Gangl and Jeff Hall) found themselves at an impasse with the county commissioners concerning a number of items.

The impasse started when the city police committee sent the county commissioners a police contract with seven stipulations the city wanted to see met. The county commissioners stated the stipulations were unacceptable because they felt the city’s police committee was attempting to micromanage the Bottineau County Sheriff’s Department.

The committee also removed the city share of the dispatching funds because they stated dispatchers’ fees were paid through 911 fees on local residents’ telephone bills. The county disagreed, stating that the phone bills only paid a certain amount of the dispatch fund. The county also added that through county taxes 50 percent of the funding is provided to operate the dispatch department, while the city pays 25 percent by taxes and 911 pays the reminder 25 percent.

Finally, the financial committee (made up of Mayor Doug Marsden and Gangl) stated that through city taxes Bottineau paid over 62 percent, or $478,387 of the city-county contract. The county commissioners, with their auditor, Lisa Herbel, and Bottineau’s city auditor, Penny Nostdahl, stated that was incorrect, and showed through their own budgets the city pays only one-third of the total budget, or $236,000. The two entities also showed that when it came to the total population of the county, the city of Bottineau has one-third of the population, which the entities stated was the city’s share of the contract.

The police committee members stated that they would pay no more than $215,000, and made the demand that if their stipulations were not met they would establish their own police department, which brought on the impasse between the city and county.
When Mayor Marsden asked for public comments at the beginning of the meeting, Cole Watson, senior deputy for the Bottineau County Sheriff’s Department, asked to speak to specific council members who were in favor of starting their own city police force, and who believe the county deputies, who patrol the city, are doing an insufficient job in handing out tickets, controlling left hand turns, noise in the city and speeding.

“It deeply saddens me when certain city officials believe that I am doing an inadequate job in policing and protecting my community, especially when the town that employs us says we are doing a terrific job,” Watson said. “Sheriff Watson has bent over backwards to make sure the city has 24 hour police protection, and those that have bothered to pay attention to this know that it is a job that he’s done well at.”

Watson also talked about the statistics of crimes that have been solved in the city.

“Out of the time I have been here, I have accumulated numerous police files, there is a lot happening in our town and it is a continuous process in keeping the criminal elements in check. Out of the several hundred case files that I can think of, less than 10 have remained unsolved by myself. And, the numbers are not much different with the other officers in town,” Watson added. “We have lost several officers for a multitude of reasons. Three officers have left for other departments or agencies, and one has left because of personal reasons. I can’t blame them for wanting to get away from Bottineau because they are not getting paid nearly enough to take the brunt of the criticism they receive at the direction of this council."

“This police department has been taking care of this city and its citizens just fine over the course of time that I’ve been here, and to hear someone stating that they don’t think that I am not doing my job right is down right disrespectful and degrading,” Watson continued to state. “If this negativity continues towards us we (the police officers) will not be able to keep officers because we get tired of hearing that we are doing a bad job when the exact opposite is happening.”

At the end, Watson requested that the city and county police department find a quick answer to their impasse, so they could move forward, together.

“We need to solve this issue so we can move on and salvage what can be a great working relationship. If there are personal vendettas or grudges, wave them aside for the better of our community,” Watson concluded.       

Following Watson, Tim Sanderson, a Bottineau resident who is part of a city committee made up of local residents attempting to get the city to sign the police contract and to bring back some professionalism to the council, which they feel is lacking due to Mayor Marsden, T. Marsden and Gangl, spoke up.

“The cops are mad at you, the community is mad at you, and you guys have a big share of it. You guys who signed the letter, you have half the community ticked off at you, more than half. If you think it’s only the minority Brad, take us on,” said Sanderson, speaking about the police contract not being signed, and a Letter to the Editor, which was written and signed by D. Marsden, T. Marsden, Brad Gangl and Ron Martin in the Nov. 22 issue of the  Bottineau Courant, which spoke poor of the police department and county’s police contract. “You guys should be ashamed of yourselves for dividing this community and making them mad. And, I can’t believe the contract the county gave you guys and the garbage you gave back to them – that’s micromanagement, micromanagement – that’s all it is. (For the full story on this issue, go to the Nov. 8, 2011, issue of the Bottineau Courant)

“Another thing – it’s a contract, and Brad you should know better. It’s a contract Troy, you are signing a contract with the county’s Sheriff’s Department,” Sanderson continued to say. “When you guys are signing a contract with Wold Engineering or Ottertail, do you go micromanage them? Do you want to know who their employees are? Do you want to tell them how to run their business? No, you don’t. You are hiring the sheriff’s department in a contract. You don’t tell Mayo (Construction) how to pave. You don’t tell Otter Tail how to run their business. You’re hiring them in a contract, if you don’t like them, you don’t have a contract with them. Try jamming your city police department down these people in this town – it’s ridiculous. The sheriff runs the sheriff’s department.
Sanderson asked the council members who refused to sign the Letter to the Editor to take control of the council."

“All of you can undo the damage that these guys have done to you,” Sanderson stated.  “When you guys get to the police committee report tonight it is up to you guys, along with you Mr. Mayor, to replace your police commission and put new guys on there and get this contract signed.”

Sanderson also spoke to Gangl about his behavior to city employees.

“The police officer spoke about personal vendettas and the problems you have created with the cops, the auditor’s office, and the shop is unbelievable,” Sanderson said. “You guys (the council members who refused to sign the Letter to the Editor) if you are on top of it, you should be chastising him for it or he should resign over it."

“And Doug (Marsden), I owe you an apology because I thought you were the puppet master, but he (Gangl) is the puppet master and you and Troy tangle for him,” Sanderson added.

Sanderson concluded by saying that the city committee he is part of is preparing for a recall for their actions.

“We are prepared to recall the people in the wrong,” Sanderson said. “There better be changes Doug, and that is not a threat, it is a promise and we are coming.”   
After the meeting was called to order, the city police committee announced that it was their recommendation to sign the 2012 City-County Police Contract at $236,000.

With the impasse settled, and the city police committee agreeing to pay the $236,000. T. Marsden made the motion that the additional $21,000 for the city’s portion of the contract come out of the police reserve fund #7070, which was seconded by Ron Martin and passed unanimously by the council.

With the police contract dispute over, Phyllis Getzlaff filed a complaint against Mayor Marsden, T. Marsden and Gangl over the 2011 street paving project, in which Getzlaff stated Gangl (who lives across from Getzlaff) had additional work down on his side of street where he extended his curb, gutter and pavement an additional seven feet.

Getzlaff had concerns over Gangl’s additional work because she worried how the pavement would be placed on the street.

“When I told you guys to come down, what did you say to me when I asked you where the paving was going to go? Straight across you told me,” Getzlaff said. “Now look how my sides looks, look where all the water is on my side. I knew you guys lied to me.”

When the additional work was completed for Gangl’s property, the pavement was in a triangular shape, not straight across, and the runoff did collect in Getzlaff’s yard, causing her problems.

Mayor Marsden stated to Getzlaff that there was no intention on their part in lying to her, and that he was not there when the paving was taking place on her street.

“The way I understand it Phyllis is that when they got done with the paving there, there was some extra stuff they just left there, that’s what we were told,” D. Marsden said. “I don’t even think that he (Brad) should have to pay for it to be honest with you, because they didn’t charge any extra fee for it.”

Sanderson stated that he looked into Gangl’s billing of the additional work and discovered through Wolds Engineering and Professional Concrete Services (PCS) that Gangl was not billed for the work.

Nostdahl spoke up and stated that Wold Engineering that day (Monday) had sent a bill to the city for Gangl’s additional work, but Gangl could not answer as to why he had not been billed by PCS, which Sanderson stated was fraud. (For a complete story on this issue, go to the front page of this week’s Bottineau Courant.)
Another issue that came forward during the council meeting was T. Marsden and Gangl wanting the council to look into a fingerprint or computer time card clocks for the city’s employees to use, which the city employees are against.

“I just mentioned to the guys about this finger print thing and the guys asked if the city didn’t trust them punching in. That was their concern,” said Keith Fulsebakke, Bottineau’s city superintendent. “And, at times, we don’t have the time to be finger printing ourselves. Sometimes, when we have water troubles, which at times happens around the noon hour, we don’t have time to run back to the shop at 1 p.m. and punch in, it just seems a little more difficult doing it (finger print or computer) this way.”  

“We don’t have that many employees, so it is not a time issue for me,” stated Nostdahl who records all the city employees’ time cards.

Gangl said that it would be more accurate and better records if they used the finger printing or computer card time clocks. T. Marsden added that their accountants wanted the council to look at these types of time cards.  

However, Alderman Grant Tagestad stated the city had hard working and trusting employees, and if the present time clock (figuratively) wasn’t broken then it shouldn’t be changed.

Gangl then made a motion the council explore options of a new time clock systems, which was seconded by T. Marsden. On the vote, Tagestad, Martin, Hall, Ben Aufforth and Harley Getzlaff voted no, while Gangl and T. Marsden voted in favor of the motion, which failed on a 5 to 2 vote.

Gangl also requested from the council to have the city computer networking system upgraded, removed from the city auditor’s office, and replaced in the east stage room (near where the telephone line comes in), at a cost of $5,000.

Nostdahl stated that she had concerns about the security of the east stage room, and stated that if individuals, who are not employed by the city, were able to get inside the room, they would be able to look at the female employees without their knowledge, invading their privacy.

Nostdahl added that she talked to Gangl about this issue, which he said could be fixed by changing their passwords at times.  

Nostdahl also said that the Computer Store in Minot, which originally installed the network system, stated that it was unnecessary to move it from the auditor’s office to the east room.

At the present moment, there is no money in the budget for updating and moving the network system and the council will make their decision on it at a later date.

At the conclusion of the meeting, Tagestad requested the floor and stated he was under the understanding that Nostdahl was considering resigning from her position with the city after 24 years, because of negative actions taken against her by certain members of the council.

“There are some issues that I think we need to address and discuss,” Tegastad said to the council. “The problem is, that the first thing that should be done is to refer it to the employment committee, but part of the problem is dealing with the employment committee. So, I feel like we need the council involved and discuss this quickly.”

(The employment committee is made up of D. Marsden, Gangl and Ron Martin)   
Nostdahl stated there was only one councilman who had been abusive toward her through constant accusations against her, and dictating office procedures to her, which had taken place for the past six years, and that she had come to her breaking point. She also stated she didn’t know who her boss was anymore because of this one individual’s actions toward her.   

At that time, Mayor Marsden stated he had sat down with Nostdahl prior to the meeting and they were able to clear up a number of matters.  

Nostdahl stated D. Marsden had spoken with the councilman but she added the councilman’s actions toward her had gone on for so long she didn’t know if it could be resolved.

Tegastad stated he and many other councilmen would like to meet with her, listen to her complaints and assist her in clearing up the matter because they could not afford to lose her.

“I appreciate that,” Nostdahl told Tagestad. “But, the moral is low right now in our office, not just the police, because we are always in constant fear.”

The mayor stated the talks were moving forward with Nostdahl, but by the words of the auditor, it appears that is yet to be seen.