The Reporter newspaper, Camdenton Missouri

The Reporter covers Miller, Morgan and Camden County in Central Missouri's Lake of the Ozarks and is published once per week on Wednesdays.

Published July 22, 2015

Lake Ozark approves policies for city employees

By Jeff Thompson
LAKE OZARK - Personnel policies and responsibilities for city employees were formalized at last Tuesday’s Board of Aldermen meeting.

City Administrator Dave Van Dee had been trying for months to update the job descriptions of the city clerk, city treasurer and accounting clerk as part of a proposed administrative operations action plan.

The board approved a resolution that redefined and clarified the three job descriptions, including accounting clerk which will be a new position for city staff.

The road to the job descriptions has not been an easy one for the city administrator.

At the board’s May 12 meeting Van Dee announced an upcoming workshop to address the proposed administrative operations action plan.

“Due to the growth we have experienced in the community we need to give consideration to changing the manner in which we have been operating,” Van Dee had stated in a report to the board. The action plan “is an opportunity that I feel strongly we should take advantage of in regard to the administrative operations of our city,” Van Dee added.

However, that plan met some opposition from Alderman Judith Neels at the June 9 meeting, opposition that Van Dee had referred to as frustrating.

“The expectation of this body is managers manage,” Van Dee had said to the board on June 9. “I would like to get moving on it and stop flying by the seat of our pants.”

Neels had said there were “some discrepancies” in the recommended list of responsibilities for each position and wanted City Attorney Christopher Rohrer (who was not present at the meeting) to review the administrative plan.

Alderman Larry Buschjost had disagreed, saying the proposal was not the finished product.

The city administrator agreed with Buschjost.

“You’ve seen concepts, you’ve seen drafts, you haven’t seen the final product,” Van Dee said. “I guess I’m a little frustrated.”

He further explained that any finalized job description would ultimately be up to the board to approve.

“I will recommend, (but) this body will make the final decision,” Van Dee had said.

Although Mayor Johnnie Franzeskos had agreed with Neels and had advised the aldermen to postpone the plan’s initial approval, Buschjost had suggested accepting Van Dee’s plan.

The mayor then said the original motion to postpone needed to be withdrawn; Neels did so and a new motion was made and approved.

In addition to the administrative operations action plan, the board approved an ordinance that amends the city’s personnel and procedure policy.

According to Van Dee, the amendment addresses a number of issues:
* It clarifies which employees are eligible for a contract “which are essentially the police chief and city administrator” set at Grade 10;
* Reclassified the city treasurer position as “Grade Nine”;
* Adds the accounting clerk position and updates the employee census in regards to how many employees are in a particular position (or grade) and the number of approved positions.

The city’s employee organizational chart was also amended by resolution to include the new accounting clerk position.