Administrator talks county staffing and HR updates
In the Jul. 9 meeting of the Cook County Board of Commissioners, the main topics of discussion centered largely around requirements for current and prospective county employees. County Administrator James Joerke spoke with WTIP about the conversation that those agenda items spurred.
Sheriff’s Deputy Residency Requirement
The first agenda item related to staffing was a request from Cook County Sheriff Pat Eliasen. He made a proposal to the board to change the residency requirement for sheriff’s deputies. He said that the requirement was a barrier for prospective deputies from outside the immediate area, who may have a difficult time finding affordable housing in Cook County. Eliasen gave the example of a current newly hired deputy who currently lives in Silver Bay, where housing costs are lower than in the Grand Marais area. Eliasen pointed out that from the U.S. Canada border crossing at Pigeon River to the end of the Gunflint Trail, and from that crossing to Silver Bay were both 99 miles. He argued that for a deputy to commute from Silver Bay was no different than someone coming in from the end of the Gunflint Trail.
The request spurred a lot of conversation among the commissioners. Commissioner Stacey Johnson said, “I understand the dilemma with housing. Lots of people are experiencing that. I have concerns about taxpayer dollars leaving the county, families leaving the county, and then joining new communities to volunteer their time send their kids to school in a different district.” She and Commissioner Deb White both expressed concern over public employees living outside of the county.
White and Johnson were concerned about making permanent changes to the department’s residency requirement in an effort to address the immediate need. Johnson said, “I hate to make a long term decision based on what hopefully is a short term need, and I get it $360,000 for a house is ridiculous. But that’s what happens when people who have means come in and can do that for their second home. It really hurts all of us that are trying to live here. So I really thought hard about this one, but I just cannot support saying sheriffs can live outside the county.” Joerke told WTIP that ultimately, the commissioners needed to balance those concerns with the need to address public safety issues.
After discussing the sheriff’s request, and weighing commissioners’ concerns, the board ultimately voted to temporarily rescind the resolution that established the residency requirement for deputies. The board opted to include a requirement that the resolution be reviewed in two years. This will allow the board to reinstate the residency requirement if affordable housing has become more accessible by that time.
Director of Facilities
The other agenda item regarding staffing came from Cook County HR. The department has been reviewing and updating all of the county jobs, and the Jul. 9 meeting included a group of six for the board’s approval. While the approval process was smooth for most of the jobs, one particular description got a lot of attention. The current Maintenance Director, Brian Silence, has announced his intention to retire in September. Instead of hiring someone for the same role, the county has opted to create a new role, the Director of Facilities.
During the meeting both White and Johnson raised questions about how the new role differed from the old one. They pointed out that there was a change in grade, meaning the new job would be placed on a higher scale than the previous role. Joerke told WTIP that the new role was part of a shift in the maintenance department from being what he described as “reactive,” to a more “proactive” department. He said, “What this change in job description is geared toward is making sure that we are able to transition to having a skill set within the facilities department, where we can fully implement the capital improvement plan, where we are establishing regular equipment replacement schedules, where things are being maintained in a more proactive way. And where we’re also adequately staffed to not only do that important repair work and putting out fires, but also being a little more forward looking.”
The commissioners expressed concerns about some of the wording in the job description, and while they approved the other descriptions put forward during that meeting, they opted to send this particular description back for re-tooling. White and Johnson said vehemently that they wanted to ensure that the requirements included in the description emphasized practical experience in the field over education requirements. Johnson also asked that the description be reevaluated on how it is graded for pay without some of the more specific education requirements.
The board will vote on the updated description as long as the edits have been made by the next regular board meeting on Jul. 23. Joerke said that with Silence retiring in September, and the job description still being finalized, it is unlikely that the new role will be filled before Silence’s last day. Joerke said, however, that Silence has agreed to continue on a limited contract until the new employee is settled in.
WTIP’s Kirsten Wisniewski spoke with James Joerke about the staffing-related agenda items from the most recent Board of Commissioners meeting, as well as an update on the Capital Improvement Plan and the beginning of budget planning for next year. Audio of that interview is below.
Kirsten Wisniewski July 11, 2024
