4-3 vote ends funds for Salem safety job

Schory: Can’t fund position that wasn’t created

By LARRY SHIELDS
SALEM — With a 4-3 vote city council stripped the funding for the deputy director of service/safety position, held by Greg Oesch, from a wage ordinance on Tuesday.

Oesch had been appointed safety director by Mayor Jerry Wolford before council merged the position with the service directors in February, but Wolford vetoed that.

Council the overturned the veto and the administration created the new “deputy” position and swore Oesch back in the next day, a move that Councilman Earl A. Schory II called a “slap in the face” to the legislation.

Councilman Justin Palmer, who introduced the ordinance to merge the positions also introduced the wage ordinance Tuesday which paid Oesch $704.57 a month ($8,455 annually).

Palmer wanted it passed, a reversal of his previous position.

Palmer said in March that with his appointments, Wolford had decided to focus on patronage rather than moving forward and working with council.

“But, ultimately, that’s fine,” Palmer said at the time, “because I’ve still accomplished my goal of saving money.

“As far as I’m concerned we’re still saving about $8,000 a year from here out every year...I’m looking at it that way.

“So if Greg wants to work for free then that’s fine. The city benefits, we still save money and the mayor gets what he wants.”

Palmer added that his name went on the budget.

“I have no intention of funding the position,” he said.

But on Tuesday, Palmer, along with Councilwoman Rita Joseph O’Leary and Councilman Dave Nestic, voted to fund the part-time position, but Schory invoked Council Rule 15 demanding a separate vote to delete the deputy service/safety position from the ordinance.

“The reason,” Schory said, explaining he was temporarily off council when the merger issue was discussed, was the “lawyer in me has been offended by the division of power.”

He said council moved to delete the position and the mayor overrode it and swore Qesch in the next day.

“I don’t feel it was created,” Schory said, asking, “how can we fund a non-existing position?”

Palmer pointed to the former council’s failure to move forward.

“I believe we need to put this behind us,” Palmer said, and Nestic and O’Leary agreed.

But the vote, with a “yes” in favor of deleting the position from the ordinance, went 4-3.

Afterward Palmer said, “It’s done, the salary is stripped from the budget” and he referred further questioning to Law Director Brook Zellers who said, “I guess it’s a moot point,” and added, “I guess council doesn’t want to fund it. It’s an unfunded position and assumed now not even in the budget.”

Schory underscored his position, saying, “Somebody’s working in city hall in a job I don’t think exists.”

Schory said he had problems with it from a liability standpoint in having someone telling police what to do.

“The lawyer in me...it really bothers me...can any department go out and do something against the legislature?” he asked, adding council determines the number of jobs in the city.

“The biggest thing,” Schory added, “was who has the final say.”

He continued, “As a former law director the position has not been created and doesn’t exist. Look at every other position in the city and there is an ordinance underpinning it...is he still going to show up for work every day?

“I have liability issues. I think he is not an employee. He has no salary. I didn’t think we were bringing up an issue again, we were putting it to rest finally.”

Schory said there might be state law, but nothing in the city.

When the administration formed the position, it said the “office will assume the duties and authority of the past director of public safety position, and will fill in for the director of public service and safety as needed.”

It was signed by Service Director Steve Andres.

In other business, Perry Township Trustee Larry Parker received assurance from council that the old fire district ordinance allowing township residents to obtain city sewer services without annexation was valid until August 1.

Treasurer Robert A. Tullis said tax receipts were “significantly higher than before” noting April showed an 8.81 percent increase, but he cautioned they were processing returns faster and the “bump” that occurs during tax time was even larger than before.

He expected it to flatten out. Tullis also reported the city government cable Channel 9 should be upgraded and come on the air in mid-June.

Auditor Jim Armeni advised that eligibility criteria to receive reduced premiums from its healthcare provider fell short. The city needed 90 percent participation and receive 54 percent, he said, adding it if had hit the 90 percent mark it would have meant a $33,000 savings.

Armeni said he felt his office did everything it could to make employees aware of the cost-reduction programs after being questioned by Nestic.

Also, Utilities Superintendent Don Weingart said an ordinance for a new sludge removal contract should be ready by council’s next meeting. He also noted the Utilities Commission was in the process of applying for U.S. Army Corps of Engineer grants totaling several million dollars for an equalization basin at the wastewater treatment plant, a sanitary sewer upgrade on Snyder Road, and additional sewer work in the southeast section of the city.

Andres advised the streets are being hot-patched, a list is being compiled for a fall auction and the city will not pick up large bushes and shrubs residents leave on the curbside.

“We will pick up brush,” he said.

In other business, Councilman Clyde Brown surrendered his president pro tem position and stepped down from his position as chairman of the Committee of the Whole, handing them to Schory, noting Schory had seniority.

Larry Shields can be reached at lshields@salemnews.net