Proctor council approves firefighter hire, declines bond refunding request and defers pay-study decisions

The Proctor City Council approved a recommended hire for the Proctor Fire Department and took no action on a requested bond refunding at its Oct. 6 meeting, while asking staff to schedule further study of a compensation report.

The council voted to accept the fire department’s recommendation to hire Mr. Devin Whe. Counselor Benson moved the motion; Counselor DeWalt seconded, and the motion was approved by voice vote.

A request from Friberger Law Firm asking the City to issue private activity revenue refunding bonds for the Stella Maris Academy project (listed in the packet as Resolution 34-25) failed for lack of a motion or support. Council members discussed the possibility of returning to the item later and asked staff how an administrative fee might be estimated; comments in the meeting referenced rates ranging from a half-percent to 1.5 percent, but no fee was set.

Council also considered a Baker Tilly classification and compensation study that staff had presented in earlier meetings. Several council members said they wanted more time to review the report and recommended discussing it in a dedicated budget meeting so the pay ranges can be finalized in time for Leslie’s budget planning. Administrator Rich was asked to propose several dates for a budget meeting and to return with staff recommendations; the compensation item was left as unfinished business.

During members’ concerns, Counselor DeWalt raised a request to vacate what may be an alley or a utility easement. Staff explained two state-statutory paths: a council-initiated vacate, which requires a four-fifths vote, or an adjacent landowner petition, which requires only a majority; staff said they would research historical agreements and that the city’s fee schedule lists a $400 nonrefundable processing fee.

Chief Gatus updated the council on code-enforcement outreach and public-safety trends, saying officers hand-delivered blight notices and that some residents initially reacted with, "Why are you harassing me?" before cooperating. He reported the department handled 161 calls in the third quarter and 476 calls year to date and described recent equipment replacements and training timelines.

The council approved payment of bills as presented in the packet (transcript lists the amount as "$28,24.82"), moved to adjourn and closed the meeting.

Why it matters: The hire fills a local public-safety vacancy; the council’s failure to act on the Stella Maris financing request leaves that project without a local approval step and the compensation study deferral signals an upcoming budget deliberation where employee pay ranges may shift.