Posted: 8/17/04
Council to advertise for police chief; wants creamery torn down
by Jane Palen
Managing Editor
The Caledonia City Council took the first step towards replacing the outgoing police chief by setting a salary range and job requirements.
Chief Duane St. Mary will retire at the end of this year. He is paid an hourly rate of $21.20 and is eligible for overtime.
City Clerk /Administrator Robert Nelson presented the council with a survey of salaries of police chiefs in cities similar in size to Caledonia. Salaries range from a high of $61,006 in Proctor (pop. 3,000) to $47,605 in Chisago City (pop. 2,726). In La Crescent (pop. 5011), the police chief earns $47,876 per year and is not eligible for overtime.
The council discussed various options with the position, including offering higher wages and fewer benefits. The council may consider a requirement that the new chief pay 10 percent of his health insurance premium. The council also discussed offering 10 days of vacation the first year, and 18 the second.
The council agreed to advertise the position as paying between $45,000 and $53,000 per year. The council also agreed to advertise that preference will be given to candidates with four-year degrees, but indicated that those with two-year degrees and adequate experience will also be considered.
The council did not specify whether the person selected will work on an hourly basis or be salaried.
In a related matter, Mayor Robert Burns said that he wants the new chief to make enforcement of city ordinances a priority. He expressed frustration with the progress on the former Caledonia Creamery on Old Highway Drive now owned by Jeff Sheehan.
ìNothing is getting done,î said Burns. ìI am of the opinion that it should be torn down.î
In July of 2003, the City Attorney Tim Murphy notified Sheehan that the city considered the property a nuisance and demanded that it be razed or removed by July 27.
Sheehan then appeared before the council and said that he planned to put a roof on the building and make sure that the building could not be entered.
The council agreed at that time to give Sheehan until November 1 to have the building boarded up and until November 10 to have the roof replaced.
Since then, a portion of the front which had been supported by columns has fallen down, and there are two large roll-off trash containers in front of the building. There are large portions of the outside wall missing, and a number of vehicles are parked on the property as well.
Caledonia Argus
314 West Lincoln St.
P.O. Box 227
Caledonia, MN 55921-0227
507/724-3475
E-Mail: editor.argus@ecm-inc.com