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About Polk County itemizer observer. (Dallas, Or) 1992-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 6, 2017)
POLK COUNTY WINTER WINTER SPORTS FESTIVALS SECTION Page 7A Volume 142, Issue 49 www.Polkio.com SECTION C December 6, 2017 $1.00 City council votes to terminate Foggin Jolene Guzman The Itemizer-Observer DALLAS — The Dallas City Council voted to part ways with City Manager Ron Foggin in a 5-to-4 vote Monday night. The termi- nation followed Foggin’s an- nual performance evalua- tion and was effective im- mediately. Per Foggin’s contract, he will receive a severance package of $15,425.20 monthly for a maximum of nine months or until he is hired somewhere else. Council President Micky Garus, who voted in favor of the termination, said it was enacted under section 10 of Foggin’s contract with the Contract talks reach impasse Jolene Guzman The Itemizer-Observer DALLAS — Negotiations between Falls City and Southwestern Polk Rural Fire Protection District seem to be at square one after a meeting Thursday between officials of both entities. The con- tract es- tablishing a partner- ship be- tween Falls City and Southwest re g a rd i n g fire servic- Ungricht es expired in September and had been extended until the end of November. The Southwest board ex- tended it again until the first of the year after no p r o g re s s w a s m a d e a t Thursday’s meeting. Board members said mat- ters were complicated by Falls City seeking a third- party, instead of Southwest, to offer training to the city’s firefighters. Falls City Acting City Manager Terry Ungricht said the city has a contract with Target Solutions to provide training and ensure that the fire department complies with regulations. The city will pay $3,065 for the con- tract. “From what I under- stood, the board was con- cerned about us being a li- ability,” Ungricht said. “We’ve taken care or that. We’v e g o t t e n t ra i n i n g . We’ve got outside assess- ment of the station.” He added that if South- west Polk has additional pro- cedures for response to inci- dents in its district, it would need to provide additional training. Southwest Chief Fred Her- tel said while Target Solu- tions provides training, it doesn’t solve other concerns the district has. See CONTRACT, Page 5A THE NEXT 7 DAYS PLANNING FOR YOUR WEEK city and is a “no cause” ter- mination. Along with Garus, coun- cilors Terry Crawford, Bill Hahn, Jackie Lawson and Paul Trahan voted for the termination. Councilors Jim Fairchild, Kelly Gabliks, Jen- n i e Ru m m e l l a n d Ke n Woods Jr. voted no. When asked the reason behind letting Foggin go, Garus said the city is “mov- ing forward and is hopeful for future opportunities.” He said the majority of the council wants to move in a different direction with the city manager role. “This was just a really dif- ficult decision for all of us,” Garus said. “It wasn’t made lighthearted, (but) under a lot of thoughtful delibera- tion. But we’re confident in the future of Dallas and looking forward to the op- portunities that are yet to come.” The vote took place in open session following more than three hours of discus- sion in executive session. Following the vote to end Foggin’s employment with the city, the council turned to appointing an acting city manager to fill duties until an interim city manager could be put in place. Lawson recommended Ted Cuno, the city’s building official, to serve in the role until an interim city manag- er is appointed. See FOGGIN, Page 6A IN YOUR TOWN DALLAS Christina Smith re- ceives a new-to-her ve- hicle. »Page 11A INDEPENDENCE The YMCA auction will bring people back to the Roaring ’20s. »Page 2A LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer The Dallas City Council voted to terminate Ron Foggin. MONMOUTH Brendon Gallant is living his dream at the Bicycle Shop. A helping hand »Page 10A SPORTS Jolene Guzman Western Oregon ath- letics is raising money to help coach’s daughter. The Itemizer-Observer FALLS CITY — Mike Mc- Connell’s philosophy on giving his time is “if some- body doesn’t do it, it doesn’t get done.” McConnell gets a lot done. He can be found teaching classes for Falls City’s after- school program, assisting sports programs and the ath- letics booster club, serving on city committees and being there to help fellow residents in need. “Some of it is in the early days, I found myself com- plaining,” McConnell said. He decided instead of pointing fingers, he would try to help find solutions. He joined the city’s pub- lic works committee, and later the historic landmarks commission. “Now, I’m not a hyp- ocrite,” he said, laughing, “I’m part of the problem.” McConnell said he found the work fascinating once he jumped into it — even the details about the city’s water and sewer sys- tems and the laws that govern how they are main- tained. “It didn’t sound that in- teresting, but it was some- thing that really gained my interest,” McConnell said. Guy Mack has served with McConnell on the public works and historic landmarks commissions for about 18 years. “I’ve known Mike since he started coming up here from California as a teenager,” Mack said. “He’s just volunteered a huge amount of time to the schools, to the city. We could use quite a few more Mikes around.” Ten years ago, when the Family Academic Commu- nity and Enrichment for Success (FACES) after- school program began, Mc- Connell started teaching classes. He hasn’t stopped. McConnell’s business, Luckiamute Auto Body, is a partner with FACES. He is paid a small amount to »Page 13A Items sought for packages Itemizer-Observer staff report DALLAS — Jackson’s Boxes will collect items for holiday-themed care packages for children at Doernbecher Children’s Hospital and their families. This is the 15th year of the collection, which ends on Dec. 15. Each box will have a small artificial Christmas tree, decorations, room décor, light set, Christmas head bands (reindeer antlers, Santa hats), prepackaged treats, craft kits, coloring books, toi- letry items, Starbucks gift cards and notes of encour- agement. For a complete list of needed items, to make a financial donation or sponsor a box, call 503- 871-5929 or 503-551- 9194. Collection locations are World Gym in Dallas, Mon- mouth Fitness Club and Independence Public Li- brary. Huizar to graduate JOLENE GUZMAN/Itemizer-Observer Mike McConnell leads the restoration old Falls City jail building. teach classes, and in ex- change, has been one of the program’s avid supporters. He strongly believes that high schools should be of- fering more industrial arts classes, and that is what he focuses on when teaching for FACES. “Since the 1970s it’s been going downhill in industrial arts,” McConnell said. “It’s going to come back and bite us in the butt. … Kids don’t know how to change a tire or find the dipstick.” He said his classes provide students with practical knowledge and skills. Instead of working on projects like building a tool box or bird- house, he’s teaching how to repair small engines or build- ing maintenance work. “I wanted to do some- thing a little bit different, to do what was needed around the schools,” he said. FACES Director Amy Houghtaling said he’s been a reliable contributor to the program, and a fun teacher for the students. See MIKE, Page 3A SALEM — Monmouth Police Officer Jose Orozco Huizar will graduate from the Basic Police Class at Oregon Department of Public Safety Standards and Training at 11 a.m. on Fri- day. The Basic Police Class is 16 weeks long and in- cludes dozens of training areas including survival skills, firearms, emergency vehicle operations, ethics, cultural diversity, problem solving, community polic- ing, elder abuse and drug recognition. Chief Kathy McAlpine, of the Tigard Police Department, will be the guest speaker. A reception will follow the graduation ceremony. wed thu fri sat sun mon tue Show off your vo- cabulary skills and play Scrabble with Betty at the Inde- pendence Public Li- brary. 1 p.m. Free. Dallas Public Library will host “Beyond Fake News: How We Find Accurate Infor- mation in the World.” 6:30 p.m. Free. Dallas High School’s boys basketball team will entertain fans during a non- league matchup against Churchill. 7 p.m. $6. Children and par- ents can create holi- day ornaments at the Ash Creek Arts Center’s Second Sat- urday Art Class. 2 p.m. Free. The Salem Commu- nity Chorus will per- form a Christmas Concert at Christ’s Church, 412 Clay St., Monmouth. 2:30 p.m. Free. Want to learn more about the Central Lions Club? Check out the club’s meet- ing at the Independ- ence Elks Lodge. Noon. Free If you’re looking to improve your public speaking skills, check out the Toast- masters Club at Dal- las Church. 6 to 7 p.m. Mostly sunny Hi: 48 Lo: 30 Sunny Hi: 46 Lo: 28 Partly sunny Hi: 45 Lo: 30 Partly sunny Hi: 46 Lo: 31 Mostly sunny Hi: 47 Lo: 34 Sunny Hi: 46 Lo: 35 Sunny Hi: 49 Lo: 36
