The Independent-News, Volume 110, Number 10, Walkerton, St. Joseph County, 9 August 1984 — Page 2

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- THE INDEPENDENT-NEWS - AUGUST 9, IM4

EDITORIALS

AN EXPENSIVE DECISION A serious matter was supposedly resolved at the Town Board meeting on Monday, July 23 which turned out not only to be a serious matter, but an expensive one for the taxpayers of Walkerton. And the way it was handled left very much to be desired. We are talking about the Board’s 3-0 sole to reimburse an employee damages and attorney fees for time off work. At no way are we trying to judge the innocence or guilt of the partyins ohed despite hasing read the complete case history of the events as they happened. We are simply going to question, and feel the people of Walkerton deserve an answer of just how and why this decision was reached. Our complaint is that the Town Board, in office for not quite seven months, made this decision to award 55.494.00 out of the General Fund on the damages claimed when they did not seek advice of counsel or even have access to the complete record of the matter at hand. We were reluctant to say anything about this matter until we felt we had thoroughly investigated the matter so as to comment from facts and not hearsay. Here are the facts that we found: The Board did not consult with their legal counsel before making this decision. The only reference directly to this matter as far as town attorney James Clevenger was concerned prior to that meeting was, a telephone call on Friday afternoon to his office (he was on vacation and couldn’t take it personally) that an executive session would preceed the meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, July 23. Second, attorney Ron Gifford, the town attorney at the time of suspension of the employee on April 29, 1982, through the end of 1983, who incidently is in the same firm as Mr. Clevenger and the file on the case was in their possession, also was not contacted by this Board, all of whom were new the first of this year. Jack Rizek, the Board president through all the procedings that pretained to this matter up to December 31, 1983, was not approached on the matter. Gladys Prentis, Board member who was the go-between for the Board and the Police Department during this time, was not contacted about this matter. Former police chief James Van Vactor, the one who originally suspended the employee on April 29, 1982, before the board took the matter into their hands, was not contacted on the matter. The new counsel for the Board to start 1984, who later resigned this position, did not have the file on this matter during his tenure serving the Board as the only copies of the entire case were either in the hands of the law firm involving Mr. Gifford and Mr. Clevenger, or in a lock box of Mr. Van Vactor’s. And finally, probably as serious as any phase of this action was that the entire thing was settled so quickly at a meeting when only three of the five Board members were present. It appears to us that alter this length of wait, a little more time could have been extended to include the entire Board and certainly a lot more time should have been extended to investigate the entire situation. There are more irregularities that occured in this situation. It started with the timing of the entire matter. The employee in question was not involved with the suspension of the three police officers at that time on drug charges which investigation was conducted by the Indiana State Police. She was suspended, as preferred charges state, after an allegation by chief Van Vactor that she had leaked information pretaining to police business. The Board then placed her on indefinate suspension with pay after Van Vactor dismissed her and the issuance of the suspension called for her to answer charges in September of 1982. However, with one delay after another, finally at the March 21, 1983 board meeting, her attorney had presented a compromise agreement to town attorney Gifford which he stated was not the wishes of his client. She then asked for a voluntary leave of absence without pay giving her 30 days to seek new counsel. The request was graned by the Board. The time from this voluntary leave of absence without pay to the current time is what she is being reimbursed for. It may be argued that this was the “easy” way out to avoid a court case, etc. However, without completely investigating the situation and studying the entire string of events, we feel the decision was entirely too hasty and certainly a serious financial setback for the Town of Walkerton. It is ironic that at the same meeting requests were turned in from six Town departments totaling $42,682 from Federal Revenue Sharing Funds which amount to only $19,610. There has to be a need tor the money if these departments are that much in need as the financial situation of the Town of Walkerton has been becoming more and more serious as years go by. Last year some big deficits were reported in certain departments and also notice that this year the Town is seeking a $.2 7 45 higher tax rate than last year on an evaluation that is some $150,000 higher tor the town. And then add to this the tremendous increases that have been coming on utility bills, which many feel are questionable, and it doesn t take long to see that money is a key element of the Town of Walkerton. The $5,494 would not cure the ills, but losing it certainly adds to the pain. We strongly feel that the Walkerton Town Board owes the

taxpayers of Walkerton an explanation on this decision we feel was made without legal counsel. Add to this the fact that one of the Board members involved in this decision not too long ago volunteered to be a witness for the Town in the same matter. This, the voluntary leave of absence without pay and the Board’s action without investigating the situation and without counsel are the incidents that make this a great misuse of tax dollars and a decision that has let the constituents of the Board down severely. As always, we will offer the Town officials all the space they want to explain this latest of bad judgements. In sumation, we personally feel the Town of Walkerton now is in need of very strong leadership and after an often controversial first seven months, it doesn’t appear the Board is displaying the strength and leaderhsip needed at this time. We do appreciate the fact they sought and worked very hard to attain their positions on the board and certainly hope that this effort and hard work can in the future be put to the best advantage in their job of running and operating the Town of Walkerton. Their job isn’t easy and cannot be handled as such. Such decisions as this, without complete investigation and the counsel needed is, we feel, inexcusable. F^REMEMBER^^ WHEN... jMS

1974^“ Students of the Polk-Lmcoln-Johnson School Corp, will report to their respective schools at 8:15 a.m. on August 27 and will be dismissed at 11:00 a.m. The first full day of school will be on August 28. Book rentals will be accepted at the principals' offices starting August 19. Fees are as follows: Kindergarten, $6.00; grades 1-5, $16.50; grades 6-8; $20.00; and grades 9-12, $21.00 plus fees. On Saturday, July 27, the Youth Group of the Koontz Lake Missionary Church held a Bike-A-Thon with 22 teens and adult sponsors traveling 15 miles around Koontz Lake and Walkerton area. The sponsors contributed $505 for the youth for a trip to Missouri to attend a convention. Marshall County Fair is running to August 12 and the LaPorte County 4-H Fair, August 6-11. At the market pork steak was selling for 89 cents a pound; tenderettes at 99 cents a pound; roiled pork roast at 89 cents a pound; smoked sausage at $1.19 a pound; boiled ham at $1.79 a pound; franks at 89 cents a pound; stuffed sausage at 89 cents a pound; sliced bologna at 99 cents for a 12 ounce package; pickle and pimento loaf, macaroni and cheese loaf or olive loaf at $1.09 a pound; tapioca pudding at 69 cents a pound; four cinnamon twist roils for b 9 cents; a 15 ounce glass of Musselman's applesauce at three for $1.00; chunk light tuna at 49 cents a can; two large roils of Scot towels at 89 cents; spam, 12 ounces for 89 cents; an 18 ounce jar of Smuckers strawberry preserves at cents; Vlasic sweet butter chip pickles, 16 ounce jar for 49 cents; 12 ounce box of Keebier vanilla wafers at 49 cents; three pack of Pnngies for 88 cents; three ounce jar of Lipton instant tea at 89 cents; eight 16 ounce bottles of Pepsi for 88 cents; 20 pounds of Michigan potatoes for $1.09; watermelon at 99 cents and up; a pint of blueberries at 49 cents; plums and peaches at three pounds for $1.00; lettuce at 29 cents a head; a gallon of ice milk for $1.09; and three cans of lemonade for 89 cents. 1969 Gilbert Fujawa. of South Bend, has been named head football coach at John Glenn High School, announced by Dr. Robert Hanni, superintendent of the Polk-Lincoin-Johnson School Corp. He replaces Lou Koilias, who has resigned to accept a similar position at Concord High School. At the market chuck roast was selling for 59 cents a pound; swiss steak at ”9 cents a pound; family steak at 99 cents a pound; boiling beef at 59 cents a pound; bacon at "N cents a pound; fun franks at b 9 cents a pound; old fashioned or onion loaf at 99 cents a pound; 10 ounce beef steakettes at 79 cents; a 24 ounce bag of mixed vegetables

for 33 cents; a half gallon of sherbet at 49 cents; three pound can of Folger’s coffee for $1.79; two pounds of Flavorkist sandwich cookies for 49 cents; blueberry or strawberry pie filling at 39 cents a can; 3 20-ounce Welch’s grape jelly or jam for $1.00; Miracle Whip at 79 cents for a 48 ounce jar; three 303 size cans of Stokeiy’s asparagus for $1.00; a pound of oieo for 15 cents; peaches at five pounds for 69 cents; and white seedless grapes at 29 cents a pound. 1959 The North Liberty High School band won first place in their division in the contest at Friendship Gardens, Michigan City, last Saturday. They were entered in the concert band division. They received a gold and white trophy and the honor of entering the contests at the Chicagoland Music Festival at Soldier’s Field, August 22. The Little League closed last Saturday and all the boys are anxiously waiting for the evening when the awards will be presented. The final league standings find the Cubs as champions. Jerry Gorby, son of Mr. and Mrs. Claude Gorby, North Liberty, has been named the Champion Strawberry Grower of St. Joseph County. A 40 to 60 percent decrease in the number of school corporations probably will result from the passage of the School Corporation Reorganization Act by the 1959 Indiana General Assembly, says J. B. Kohlmeyer, Purdue University agriculture extension specialist in state and local government. The

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reorganization law outlines procedures for establishing larger school corporations. It became effective with the promulgation of the 1959 laws July 20. 1944 A straw stack on the Wilder Cox farm north of Walkerton burned Monday afternoon resulting in the loss of about 300 to 400 bales of straw. Fire caught from the baler which is operated by a gasoline engine and pulled by a tractor. The baler was pulled away from the stack and little damage resulted to it. The Walkerton Roll of Honor has been enlarged to care for an additional 120 names. To date there are 300 names on the Roll which have completely filled the space. The Mothers Club, sponsors of the project, have several more names to be added at once. For the second time in its production history, the Kingsbury Ordnance Plant will open its gates to the public for inspection on Sunday, August 20. Grant Steele, who has been a teacher in the Walkerton Schools for the past 17 years, has accepted a position as manager of the Castleman Coal Company, South Bend. 1934 The Walkerton Municipal Band played at the World’s Fair, August 2, in Chicago. They were the guests of the Century of Progress officials and played a concert at the Court of States in the afternoon. An invitation to play on the lake steamer, “Theodore Roosevelt’’ during the evening while the board cruised on Lake Michigan, had to be turned down on account of not being able to change arrangements relative to the return trip home. The invitation came after the boys had already left for Chicago and telephoned to them from here bv W. F. LaFeber. Improved black-topped streets for Walkerton were assured last week when a citizen of the town came forward to finance the project which had already received the approval of the members of the city council. Approximately five miles of dirt and gravel streets will be treated with asphaltum oil and made dustless and hard and smooth for traffic, the work to start at once and to be completed within a month. Use our classified ad&l + Keep Red Cross ready

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