Floyd County supervisors create dispatch administrator position, make an offer

By Bob Steenson, bsteenson@charlescitypress.com

The Floyd County Board of Supervisors offered the new job of county dispatch administrator to the current dispatch supervisor on Tuesday, the latest step in eventually moving the radio dispatchers from Charles City’s City Hall to the new county law enforcement center and making them county employees.

The physical move from City Hall to the LEC likely won’t occur for several months, but if he accepts the position, new Dispatch Administrator John Gohr will be able to help in that transition process. Gohr was not available to comment on Wednesday.

The supervisors approved a job description for the new position and formally approved a job offer letter to Gohr at their regular meeting.

Gohr is currently the dispatch supervisor, working under the management of Charles City Police Chief and Public Safety Director Hugh Anderson.

Gohr is one of a team of six who operates the communications equipment to keep in touch with the Charles City Police Department, Floyd County Sheriff’s Office, Charles City Fire Department, AMR Ambulance and other fire departments, ambulance companies and emergency responders in the county.

Although all six dispatchers are currently city employees, their wages and the other expenses of the dispatch department are reimbursed to the city by Floyd County.

Since the county is paying the dispatching tab anyway, and since limited space in City Hall has been an issue for some time, the supervisors decided to design space for a dispatch center into the law enforcement center and move the department over.

Both the county and the city approved a new agreement earlier this month changing the current Floyd County Communications Board, which has budgetary and other decision-making powers, into an advisory board.

Day-to-day management of the department including hiring, training and supervising staff would be Gohr’s responsibility, and he would report directly to the Board of Supervisors. Part of the job would also include continuing to take shifts as a dispatcher.

The county had posted the position of dispatch supervisor for 10 days, as is required, and Gohr had been the only applicant. He was interviewed for the position Friday by Supervisor Doug Kamm and Auditor Gloria Carr, and both said they came away impressed by Gohr.

Carr said the interview went very well and both she and Kamm were impressed by Gohr.

The job offer was at a salary of $56,000 per year, and officially starts Jan. 1.

As part of the motion offering the job to Gohr, the supervisors also approved giving him the authority to hire any or all of the other current dispatchers, also effective Jan. 1.

Kamm and Carr had also met with the other dispatchers recently regarding the transition, and Kamm said that while some were initially apprehensive about the move, he felt they left the meeting satisfied.

The goal since the move was first suggested has been to match as closely as possible the wages and benefits the dispatchers are currently making as city employees, said Supervisor Linda Tjaden.

Carr said the city offers some perks such as memberships at the golf course, swimming pool and YMCA that the county doesn’t offer, but the county’s medical insurance coverage is better than the city’s and overall the dispatchers left feeling it would be a good move.

The supervisors also approved job descriptions for the dispatchers and agreed to post the positions for 10 days, with applications due by Dec. 31.

Also at Tuesday’s regular meeting, the supervisors:

• Approved the job description for a county emergency management director and safety coordinator and posting to hire for that position. Those two responsibilities as well as zoning administrator had been the duties of county Emergency Management Director Lezlie Weber, who has left on long-term duty with the Army National Guard.

Under the new position, the zoning responsibilities will shift to county Sanitarian Jeff Sherman and the new hire will have 36 hours each week designated to the Emergency Management Agency, under the direction of the Emergency Management Commission, and four hours to safety coordinator reporting to the Board of Supervisors. Starting salary is $35,000 to $50,000 annually. Applications are due by Dec. 31.

• Approved rezoning 4.94 acres in the 2000 block of Old Highway Road from ag to residential and approved a minor subdivision for Mary Ayers to build a house.

• Approved rezoning of 3.05 acres from ag to industrial for Neil and Carol Leipzig along the Avenue of the Saints near Floyd for the construction of storage buildings.

• Approved a budget amendment adding $223,711 in revenue that includes $198,000 the county received from the CARES Act and $25,402 in grant revenue for the Auditor’s Office for election purposes. Additional expenditures include $12,000 for a new furnace at the Fossil and Prairie Center, $25,402 expenditures for elections, and $3.5 million that had already been received in bond proceeds but had not been budgeted yet this fiscal year to spend on the law enforcement center project.

• Approved plans and specifications for an estimated $408,000 repair project for Drainage District 1, broken into four divisions, and set the bid opening for Jan. 21 with bid consideration by the supervisors on Jan. 26. Cost of the repairs would be assessed to the property owners in the district.

• Appointed Dr. Lisa Kapler and Rosemary Tobin to additional three-year terms on the Health Board; appointed Ben Rottinghaus to a five-year term on the Zoning Commission; and approved 28 members of the Floyd County Compensation Condemnation Board, including new member Connie Parson.