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Berlin commission sets police chief hiring timeline, will form interview panel after mayor requests observer role
Summary
At its July 1 meeting the Berlin Police & Fire Commission read a written request from the mayor asking to observe police chief interviews, approved a timeline for the search (applications due July 10), agreed to form a limited interview panel including two commissioners and a Green Lake County Sheriff's Office representative, and will solicit anonymous input from officers about desired chief qualities.
The Berlin Police & Fire Commission on July 1 read a written public comment from the mayor asking that she be allowed to sit in on police chief interviews as an observer to help ensure a smooth transition and to assess candidates' leadership styles and communication. Meeting staff read the mayor's statement aloud: "I am simply requesting the opportunity to observe a process that will directly impact one of the city's most important leadership positions and the working relationship between the city leadership and the police department."
The commission then set procedures and a timetable for the chief search. Commissioners agreed the interview panel should include two commission members (to avoid creating a quorum), a representative from the Green Lake County Sheriff's Office (the chief deputy will name a designee), and the city administrator to advise on financial matters. Commissioners discussed whether to include the mayor on the panel; multiple members emphasized preserving the commission's formal hiring authority while still allowing for input. "I'm 100% for you being involved, having input," one commissioner said, "but I don't want to blur those lines of having the mayor on the interview panel."
The commission set application and input deadlines to keep the process moving. Applications are due July 10, 2026, and commissioners asked staff to solicit anonymous written responses from patrol officers describing what they would like to see in the next police chief. The commission discussed gathering those anonymous submissions over about two weeks so the interview panel can review them; members suggested the panel meet before the commission's next regular meeting, on or before August 5, 2026, and aim to have a finalist named sometime in September depending on the applicant pool.
Commissioners also discussed logistics required by law: creating the interview panel will constitute a separate governing body that must post meetings and agendas, and the panel will report proposed dates and questions back to the full commission. The commission supported the panel compiling candidate interview questions and asked to review those questions in advance.
The meeting included related routine business: approval of the June 3, 2026 minutes and the commission's motion to approve June departmental expenses for both fire and police, and monthly reports from both departments. Police staff reported an increase in traffic stops and OWI enforcement, several drone-related investigations, multiple search warrants tied to drug cases, and ongoing work on a body-worn camera program and an open-records fee schedule for redaction time.
What happens next: the commission will create the interview panel, post its meeting(s), accept applications through July 10, collect anonymous officer input (targeting about a two-week window), and report panel dates and proposed interview questions back to the full commission at or before its August meeting. The commission did not go into closed session and adjourned at 7:17 p.m.
