Wrongmont - Public Works

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Public Works Issues

There sure are some strange things going on at the City's Public Works building near the airport. From re-routed trash trucks, to covered up lights, to peculiar signage, to lawsuits from employees. Here we'll delve a little deeper into these issues.

Pictured at left is the view walking out of the Public Works building at night. Almost tripped over a curb trying to get to my car. Advise you bring flashlights with you if you plan on coming out after sunset. Don't believe it? Go see for yourself, right off Airport Road next of the dog park. Why would it be in such darkness, you ask? Ask Public Works.

Public Works is a division of the Community Development Department. The Public Works Director was/is Barb Huner, but as you'll see in a recent Times-Call article, she's apparently been suspended. The Community Development Director is Phil DelVecchio. Read on and we'll try to sort out what's going on there.

NEW If you read the articles below and/or know about the situation with former Public Works Director Barb Huner, and why she was fired, you may be interested in the following article that ran in the Times-Call "Johnnie St. Vrain" section. It basically asks why she got fired for what another director is doing now. It includes a response from the City Managers office.

To Johnnie St. Vrain: I am in a tough situation and am confused as to why what caused one employee to be fired is OK for another. Another employee told me they had written Johnnie about special requests made for family members working in the city. Johnnie said tell the city manager.

Now, there is a sign-up sheet for employees to "volunteer" to move the same director's home. Employees will be paid and receive a meal. Supervisors are asking employees to sign up. Several employees say they're going to help and not take payment. This puts me in an awkward situation. If I "volunteer" and take payment and the others don't, or if I don't volunteer...

This kind of stuff is happening more and more. How is this different than another former division head asking employees to hang a banner? Mtn Love

Deat Mtn Love: When questions concerning city personnel matters come in, I refer them to the city manager's office for explanation and clarification. When the city manager's office responds, the response is published in this column, as follows:

"My understanding of the information you sent is: 1. Your Division Head made an offer to pay $10/hour plus buy dinner for any employee who wished to make extra money by assisting in a move of furniture. 2. The move was during nonworking hours. 3. Payment was to be with private, NOT public resources. 4. No city resources or time were involved. 5. You feel awkward because some employees have indicated a willingness to volunteer to move furniture and some plan to accept the $10/hour payment.

"I cannot tell from your email if you believe supervisors are pressuring employees to help with the furniture move. It would be inappropriate for any supervisor or the division head to pressure employees in any way.

"I would encourage you to contact Phil DelVecchio, Ann Everhart or me regarding your discomfort about this matter. With the information provided, it does not appear to be an employer issue, unless you or others are pressured by supervisors to take part in any off-duty activities."

(End of statement by City manager Gordon Pedrow) Johnnie

I don't read the "Johnnie" section very often, I guess "he" doesn't do any comments on things like this. So I will.

There obviously are differences in this issue versus the one that got Barb Huner fired. It appears the director asking to have things moved is Phil DelVecchio by the tone of both letters. He being the one that worked so hard to have Ms. Huner fired. He's trying to cover all the bases by making it "voluntary" and/or paying with money and food. But apparently one employee, and I bet a lot more, are uncomfortable with their supervisors asking them to sign up, and some may fear repercussions down the line. Or at least a less positive standing with your first line and second line supervisors in the future. I think this is inappropriate for a division head to do this. What was your second choice, look for migrant workers on the corner in the morning? Are you that cheap to not hire movers? They (over)pay you enough, do like the rest of us and do it yourself or pay for it. This is a slight abuse of position in my opinion. The only time I ever hear of employees helping others move is with friends, and usually not for money. Running short of either?

Ex-public works director to be demoted, still suing

By Pierrette J. Shields
The Daily Times-Call

(originally ran Thursday, October 3, 2002)

LONGMONT - City manager Gordon Pedrow has issued a decision stating that Barb Huner, the city's former public works director, should be demoted, not fired, over allegations that her volunteer work interfered with and profited from city employees and money.

However, Huner's attorney David Fine, said a lawsuit she filed last month against the city will still move forward.

Huner was placed on paid administrative leave on May 8 - and unpaid leave beginning May 24 - while city officials considered her fate.

According to her lawsuit, Huner's supervisor, Community Development director Phil DelVecchio, suspended Huner with a recommendation for termination after a series of infractions, including insubordination, intimidating employees, using an official position for personal profit or advantage, misusing city resources and violating an administrative regulation.

Through Fine, Huner declined to comment.

In August, as part of the city's appeal process for personnel issues, an independent hearing officer determined that the city failed to prove all but one of its allegations, and that the one proven was not severe. The hearing officer did not uphold DelVecchio's decision.

DelVecchio then appealed to Pedrow, who received the file on Aug. 14 and rendered his official decision last week.

"He reviewed all of the transcripts from the appeal hearing," said city clerk Valeria Skitt. "He spent the time he felt was necessary to be fair and objective in his decision."

Pedrow recommended that Huner be brought back onto city payrolls as the public works operations manager and receive back pay to July 5 under the new position's salary.

As public works director she made $98,632 a year; the new position comes with a salary of $79,928 a year.

Fine said Huner has seen Pedrow's decision and is considering it. He also said he is considering any amendments that need to be added to the lawsuit.

Huner is suing the city of Longmont for the reinstatement of her original job, back pay and damages. Part of the lawsuit was based on allegations that Pedrow was taking too long to decide her fate and that it was unreasonable to wait so long for a decision.

Assistant city attorney Ed Yosses said the city hasn't crafted its response to the Huner suit yet and that with Pedrow's decision, he expected some amendment if not withdrawal.

"I have it literally here on my desk and I have to put together responses to the allegations," he said, promising that the city would fight the suit.

"We don't agree," Yosses said. "A good part of it addresses the lack of a decision from Gordon Pedrow ... and we've taken care of that."

According to the lawsuit, the problem stems from a March incident during the Girl Scouts' Camp Faux benefit at the Boulder County Fairgrounds. Huner, who is highly involved with scout activities, asked an employee to help her hang a banner for the event. The employee used a Longmont Public Works truck and enlisted the help of two other city employees, who charged the city for their time.

Initial estimates from the city indicated that the banner hanging cost the city $863, but testimony revealed that the first employee volunteered her time for the activity and made up the work-hours later. That adjusted the fiscal note to $363.

The hearing officer determined that Huner did not force employees to help her with her volunteer activities and that she did not direct them to charge the city for their time. They instead chose to charge the city without Huner's knowledge.

Suspended public works official suing Longmont

By Pierrette J. Shields

The Daily Times Call
(originally ran Tuesday, September 24, 2002)

LONGMONT - A suspended official is suing the city for reinstatement of her job, back pay and possible damages.
     Barb Huner, who served as the city's public works director for 11 1/2 years, has been on unpaid leave since May 24. She faces termination for what the city has called innappropriate use of resources to help out the Girl Scouts of America and other non-profit groups.
     She filed her lawsuit in Boulder District Court on Thursday.
     "Huner remains without a job, and without income, since May 24, despite a ruling in her favor by an unbiased decision-maker, selected by the city," the lawsuit claims. "The city made the suspension and disciplinary action public, and a story was published in late May and again in June.
     "Huner's reputation has been adversely affected by her termination and the publicity."
     In May, city officials revealed that they were investigating Huner but would not give any details on the matter. She did not return phone calls from the Times-Call requesting comment at the time.
     Huner could not be reached for comment on Monday.
     According to documents in the lawsuit, Longmont community development director Phil DelVecchio suspended Huner with a termination recommendation for, among other things, insubordination, intimidating employees, using an official position for personal profit or advantage, misusing city resources and violating an administrative regulation.
     Huner appealed the decision, and in August an independent hearing officer determined that the city failed to prove all but one of the reasons for her termination and that the one that they did prove was not severe.
     Huner's problems in the city boiled over in March during the Girl Scout's Camp Faux benefit at the Boulder County Fairgrounds. According to the lawsuit, she asked a city employee to help hang a banner at the event, for which the employee used a public works truck and got two other city employees to help out.
     The employees claimed regular and overtime pay for the task, although Huner did not direct them to charge the city, according to the court filings.
     City officials claim the banner incident cost the city $863 - although one of the employees made up the time with other work, leading the hearing officer to conclude the city was charged only $363.
     The hearing officer's decision, also included in court documents, discounts allegations that Huner intimidated employees into helping the Girl Scouts. In fact, the officer noted that city officials asked Huner to join community activities to help give Longmont a better image, making her involvement with the Girl Scouts city-related.
     The independent review also points out that Huner consistently earned top marks in job evaluations and that the city publicly lauded her for her community involvement when she won the American Public Works Association's Community Involvement Award in the fall of 2001.
     The hearing officer also determined that Huner did not force employees to help with the non-work-related activities and that the city never proved that DelVecchio told Huner to cease her extracurricular activities, so she was not insubordinate.
     Nonetheless, the city has appealed the decision to City Manager Gordon Pedrow, who has a "reasonable" amount of time to make a final decision on Huner's fate.
     City spokeswoman Kris Rose said the decision is still pending.
     "Gordon has not made a decision," she said. "He hopes to make one by the end of the week."
     Pedrow refused to comment.
     Huner's attorney, Ed Kahn, said there are no grounds for Pedrow to overturn the hearing officer's conclusions.
     He said Pedrow has had the case for too long and, as a result, he has been named in the suit.
     "It is pretty hard to make a decision when he's been made a party," Kahn said.
     Assistant city attorney Ed Yosses said that due to the severity of the potential ourcome and the amount of documentation that must be reviewed, Pedrow has spent a reasonable amount of time deliberating the decision.
     "We've only read it briefly. ...They complain about the city manager taking too long," Yosses said. "It is our position that it is well within reason to take this amount of time."
     Yosses said the city has 20 days to reply once the suit has been formally presented to the city, which he said has not yet occurred.

Public Works appeasement of it's non-Longmont resident neighbor, Mr. Tom Zweck.

Nobody is arguing the fact that the Zweck family has been here longer than the airport, the City of Longmont, even the State of Colorado. They have a long and interesting history here in the St. Vrain Valley, when Longmont was known as the "Chicago-Colorado Colony". But in the last several years relations have soured between the City and the Zwecks, with Tom Zweck being the most outspoken of the family. Over on the Airport pages you'll see the appeasement done by the Airport, which falls under Public Works. Here we'll see some of the non-airport deals cut for the Zwecks, which hopefully you'll agree are just too much. The question has been asked again and again, isn't enough enough? One good thing about budget crunches, it keeps people honest. Hopefully this nonsense will end soon.

	This is a picture of the Public Works maintenance building, facing north, towards Zwecks.
	At night it is dark, per Zwecks request...
	This is the same building facing east, lights are on as they don't "bother Zweck.
	This is one of the infamous light shields. Dozens built and installed by City employees on overtime. How much did that cost taxpayers? Yes, they divert the light downwards, but Zweck wasn't happy. So the lights were ordered turned off on Zwecks side of the building. Now City employees go to work at night in the dark. If an employee gets hurt in the dark, Workman's Comp pays, courtesy of the taxpayers. Who authorized this?
	NO DUMPING signs courtesy of Public Works, because Zweck demanded them. Keep in mind Zweck is not a City resident, the speed limit sign is a Boulder County sign, being this is Boulder County land, the NO DUMPING sign was added by the City, yet it's not annexed to the City! Also, when a storm blew a tree down on Zwecks fence, across the street from the City limits, someone authorized City employees to remove the tree AND fix his fence at the taxpayer's expense.

There's also stories about City trash trucks being re-routed around Zwecks house, costing the City countless unknown expenses in time and fuel.

With Barb Huner apparently not in charge of Public Works at this time, who are calling the shots and making these costly decisions, Phil DelVecchio? Gordon Pedrow?

Perhaps in the past the City could afford to make costly blunders like these and still have money left over, but that time has passed, one look at the current budget makes that clear. Make them be accountable for this waste. When things improve, history can't be allowed to repeat.

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