Council schedules governing-rules review and legal debrief before any permanent police chief appointment

St. Helens councilors told staff they want a focused review of the city’s governing rules, employment contracts and evaluation processes before finalizing any permanent department-head appointments.

The discussion followed concern about recent personnel events and staff morale raised in earlier sessions. Several councilors said they support the current interim police chief and praised his performance, but they also said the city has not completed a full “lessons learned” review with the city attorney and other advisors. One councilor called for a legal and governance review to identify root causes of prior problems and to recommend structural changes before hiring a permanent chief.

Councilors also discussed instituting clearer, documented evaluation processes, regular supervisory training, and a consistent method for soliciting and reviewing anonymous employee feedback as part of performance reviews. Staff noted that CIS (the city’s risk/insurance entity) and outside counsel can assist with templates and training. The group agreed to remove the governing-rules item from the next regular agenda and to schedule a separate, in-depth session with legal counsel and recommended staff training.