Newly re-elected Winnebago mayor Scott Robertson takes the oath of office at the start of the Winnebago City Council meeting, as council member Jean Anderson, left, and city attorney David Frundt look on. Two other council members, Chris Anderson and Paul Eisenmenger, were also sworn in last Tuesday night.

The Winnebago City Council began the New Year with innovative suggestions for attracting officers to the Winnebago Police Department during their meeting on Wednesday, Jan. 11.

The discussions were sparked by several resignations which Winnebago Police Chief Eric Olson received within the past month.

Recently, full-time police officer Jacob Pettit submitted his letter of resignation to Olson following five years of service to the Winnebago community. Pettit has accepted a full-time position at the Faribault County Sheriff’s Department, but also wishes to remain on the Winnebago Police Department roster as a part-time officer.

“Jacob was community-oriented, being a member of the Winnebago Fire Department (and) president of Bago Fun Fest, and organized National Night Out,” Olson said via written correspondence. “He recently completed his Defensive Tactics Instructor School and will continue to provide training to Winnebago. Jacob Pettit will be missed as a full-time officer.” 

The council accepted Pettit’s resignation, as well as that of part-time officer Ben Johnson. The council also approved Pettit’s appointment to the police department’s part-time roster.

Olson brought a recommendation for a new full-time officer hire to the council, as well. He had received an application from Fairmont resident Michael Sharp, who is currently finishing his skills training in law enforcement. Sharp will be taking the Minnesota POST Board exam for licensure at the end of March.

“He seemed to be a very good guy,” Olson said. “He had a lot of life experience.”

The Winnebago City Council approved Sharp’s hire contingent on him passing his Minnesota POST Board exam, completing a background investigation, completing his physical testing and completing a psychological test.

To strategize ways to attract more full and part-time officers to the Winnebago Police Department, Olson recently met with the Winnebago Personnel Committee, Sheriff Mike Gormley and Chief Deputy Scott Adams.

On Jan. 10, city administrator Judi Hynes, a member of the Personnel Committee, shared several of the strategies which the group recommended for the council’s approval.

“Discussion centered around being able to start a new full-time officer at a higher step than is currently listed,” Hynes said. “This would especially be an option for someone coming into the job with previous law enforcement or similar work experience.” 

The police department’s current starting wage at Step One is $23.97 per hour. The group suggested starting a new full-time officer hire at Step Three, with a $25.39 per hour starting wage.

The group also recommended amending the police department’s Personnel Policy to remove on-call officers’ requirement to maintain a 10-minute response time under normal conditions.

“All of the officers present at the meeting said that removing this requirement from the Personnel Policy would help with the hiring of new officers and getting part-time officers to help out more,” Hynes reported. “They said many communities no longer have this requirement in their policies.” 

Olson also explained that the amendment to the Personnel Policy would not leave Winnebago residents without police services.

“The Sheriff’s department will be there even if Winnebago isn’t right away,” Olson said, adding he is also working on recruitment initiatives for the future.

Finally, the group recommended instating a temporary part-time officer wage of $28.84 per hour to incentivize current and previous part-time officers to help out the police department until a new full-time officer is hired.

“Once a new full-time officer starts working, the part-time wage needs to revert back to the current $19.50 per hour,” Hynes clarified. “Reverting back to the current wage is necessary for union purposes.” 

The council discussed the recommendations, with council member Jean Anderson, also a member of the Personnel Committee, noting that Sharp would benefit from the recommended new full-time officer hiring wage.

“This particular applicant, Mike Sharp, I think everyone was very impressed,” Anderson said. “You do get what you pay for.”

The council ultimately voted to approve all three recommendations.

In other business, the Winnebago City Council: 

• Had council members Chris Anderson and Paul Eisenmenger and mayor Scott Robertson, who were re-elected to their positions last November, sworn in at the start of the meeting.

• Approved Resolution 805-2023 receiving a feasibility report from Bolton & Menk and calling for a public hearing on planned improvements to the Cleveland Avenue West area in Winnebago.

The report proposes improvements on Cleveland Avenue West from T.H. 169 to Eighth Street NW; on First Street from First Avenue SW to First Avenue NW; on Second Street SW from First Avenue SW to Cleveland Avenue W; on Fourth Street from First Avenue SW to First Avenue NW; and on Sixth Street from First Avenue SW to First Avenue NW.

The estimated total cost for the project is $6,102,800. Construction would start in the fall and continue through the summer of 2025.

The council scheduled the public hearing for Tuesday, Feb. 14, at 7 p.m.

• Held a public hearing regarding an ordinance granting CenterPoint Energy Minnegasco a nonexclusive franchise to construct, operate, repair and maintain facilities and equipment for public and private use of gas energy in Winnebago, which received no comment from the public.

Following the public hearing, the council approved the ordinance unanimously.

• Approved a payment of up to $15,000 in engineering fees to Bolton & Menk so they can determine the infrastructure upgrades necessary to potentially provide a city water connection to Greenfield Global’s site in Winnebago.

“The ultimate want of Greenfield is for the city to serve 100 percent of their water. That would require a plant upgrade,” explained Bolton & Menk engineer Matt Cole, adding that costs paid up front by the city would be reimbursed, and more, by Greenfield Global’s future contributions to the city’s water revenue.

• Approved the hire of Muir Library assistant Shawnie Cintura, with a starting wage of $12.50 per hour.

• Approved a routine cost of living raise for the Winnebago building official. Effective Jan. 1, the position’s salary will increase from $6,949.54 to $7,227.35.

• Agreed to schedule an annual review for Hynes to assess her performance as city administrator and discuss the possibility of giving her a raise.

• Accepted donations to the city of Winnebago, the Winnebago Ambulance 890 Fund, the city’s housing study, the Winnebago Swimming Pool and the Muir Library.

The funds, which were donated by Shivering Denizens, the American Legion, Greenfield Global, the Ken Schutt Memorial, the Ladies Brunch, Louise Patten and the Friends of the Muir Library, totaled $68,032.57.

• Approved the purchase of a $17,780 replacement pump for a submersible pump at the Wastewater Plant from Minnesota Pump Works.

• Approved a $6,370.90 quote for ambulance pagers from Motorola Solutions, as well as Alpha Wireless’ $214 programming fee. Hynes noted $6,000 of the costs will be covered by a recent donation from the Winnebago Legion, and the funds in the 890 Ambulance Fund are sufficient to cover the remaining costs.

• Approved Olson’s request to attend an MPCA ETI Chiefs Conference in Duluth on April 11-14. The cost of the conference is $525, plus a hotel stay.

• Approved deputy city clerk Kendra Reineking’s request to attend the 2023 MFOA Annual Conference on March 21-24. The conference will cost an estimated $875.

• Approved Hynes and EDA specialist Jennifer Howard to apply for any grant opportunities which emerge to offset the cost of installing push button door openers at the Municipal Center.

• Amended the city’s Personnel Policy to reflect similar policies that were set by union negotiations.