On Tuesday, October 12, 2010, Cook County Highway Engineer David Betts and Maintenance Supervisor Russell Klegstad made a request to county commissioners for something already in their proposed 2011 budget, but the request raised bigger issues for the board. In order to stay ahead of school buses on snowy days, the men asked for authorization to hire another Maintenance Worker II.
Klegstad said hiring another worker would allow him to alter plowing routes so roads are clear for school buses, but that worker would also help with a lot of other things that need to be done. After a snowstorm, he said, a lot of cleanup is required even after the roads are cleared. Drifts are removed, slippery areas are sanded, banks are winged back, and intersections are cleared.
“There’s no problem at all being busy,” Klegstad said. “It’s a great crew. Theywork really hard. I don’t think it’s an extra position. It’s a position that’s been needed for awhile.” People have been complaining to him about intersections and roadsides that have not been mowed or brushed this season. In the summertime, he said, they have idle equipment that could be kept busy if they had enough personnel.
Klegstad would like to hire someone who has the ability to operate the many different kinds of equipment they use for various jobs throughout the year and said he believes they have people within the department who could be trained for this.
Commissioner Bruce Martinson said rather than create a new county job, he would prefer to hire a contractor to help plow during snowstorms. That would mean giving a contractor a road, Klegstad said, but what they need is flexibility to send people to various places to do various things. Snow doesn’t always fall in the same places around the county, he said. He figured hiring a contractor for four big storms could pay a year’s wages for a county worker.
Thecost of a Maintenance Worker II, including pay and benefits, would be about $57,500. Klegstad said he foresees some retirements coming up within the department, and an alternative could be to hire a worker now and then not fill a position when the next person retires.
Commissioner Jim Johnson saw the value of having another worker in the department so that they could stay on top of maintenance. “If you don’t maintain something,” he said, “it’s going to cost you a lot more money in the long run.”
Commissioner Bob Fenwick said this is just one of many requests to increase the county budget for next year. They don’t know how much funding they will get from the state. He said he thinks the services are important but felt it was their responsibility to look at this request in light of all other budget needs.
Fenwick asked Klegstad to look at budget options that would reduce the impact of hiring. He said the fact that they have decided to build up their sinking fund in order to make up for lack of attention to depreciation is putting a crimp in the department’s budget. If they do hire, he said, they should be prepared to cut the position if necessary.
“The chances are slim we’d end up pulling back,” said Commissioner Martinson. He thought the likelihood that they would get a lot of community pressure not
to let someone go after they hired him or her would be great.
“We have a lot of families here that need work and depend on it,” said Commissioner Jan Hall.
David Betts said they made the request now hoping that they could hire someone by December so they could be in place for the entire snow season.
County Attorney Tim Scannell pointed out that other additions to county staff have been suggested, including a law enforcement investigator and a part-time communications tower coordinator. He said he thinks the Sheriff ’s Office was discouraged from asking for the addition to their department. “I think it’s a viable need,” he said.
A week later, on October 19, the county board made its decision, but not before more discussion regarding its effect on the department’s budget.
Betts said next year’s budget has several big-ticket items – two dump trucks at about $200,000 apiece and two pickups at about $30,000 apiece. The pickups would replace vehicles that are 12 and 16 years old. They could do without one of the pickups, Betts said, but they couldn’t trim enough from other parts of the budget to total $57,500.
The county was not investing in a sinking fund for the Highway Department until fairly recently. The plan is to stagger purchases so replacements would be steady and gradual. The board discussed the possibility of paying cash for replacements now and then using bonds to replace the sinking fund. The 2011 budget sets aside $180,000 for the sinking fund. “It’s a good, responsible budget,” Klegstad said.
Commissioner Fritz Sobanja pointed out that now that the department has a full-time assistant mechanic, their equipment should last longer because they have the personnel to maintain it properly.
Commissioner Bruce Martinson said he would rather hire someone seasonally to help with snowplowing. A Maintenance Worker II could be kept busy all year, Betts countered. “There’s really plenty of work for an additional person,” he said adding that they currently fall behind in getting projects done.
The days when people drive by workers leaning on their shovels are gone, said Commissioner Jim Johnson. Klegstad said that he considers his crew a maintenance crew, but because of funding (which sometimes pays more for work done inhouse) they have been doing some more construction-related jobs that would otherwise be contracted out. Thisleaves less time for maintenance.
Commissioner Martinson asked if engineering staff could be reduced. The requirements for engineering designs are 10 times more complicated and specific than they were 20 years ago, Betts said, and securing funding for the projects takes time as well. “The roads are deteriorating,” Betts said. He didn’t think the traveling public would put up with the condition of the roads if they didn’t keep them in good repair.
With a vote of three ayes and one nay from Bruce Martinson, with Jan Hall absent, the board approved hiring a Maintenance Worker II. The department can hire from within or draw from a list of former applicants whose applications are still current.
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