Allen gets clean bill from council

PALMER — The city council made a unanimous vote of confidence in support of City Manager Bill Allen after concerns about spending and employee compensation were discussed behind closed doors Tuesday.

The concerns were raised after Councilman Richard Best went through the public credit card receipts and employee performance reports. He found what appeared to be non-city related expenses and employee raises that exceeded city guidelines.

Allen could not respond to the questions because the matter was still in executive session, he said in an interview last week.

Last on Tuesday’s agenda, the council went into executive session to review Allen’s performance.

Without giving specifics, Councilwoman Kathrine Vanover said they had a “wonderful discussion” about the concerns, and she was satisfied with the answers.

Shortly before midnight — the meeting’s required closing time — Councilman Michael Chmielewski made a motion to take a vote of confidence for the manager. The motion passed, and the council voted 7-0 in support of Allen.

“I think a vote of seven to zero is instructive,” Chmielewski said, refusing to be more specific about what was addressed in the meeting. “It does convey a sense of things.”

Allen has been out of the office the past two days and could not be reached by press time. He has indicated his willingness to answer questions upon his return.

While the city is moving forward with Allen, it is not doing so blindly, Chmielewski said. In addition to the vote of confidence, his ordinance calls for the council to look at how the city is following its code and how it communicates with the public during employee reviews.

This comes as many council members, including Chmielewski and Mayor John Combs, were irked at Best for taking his questions to the press before the matter was out of executive session.

Best said he only discussed matters that were public record and confirmed with the city attorney that he had not violated privileged discussion.

While it may have been legal, it wasn’t right, Chmielewski and Combs agreed in previous interviews. Best commented knowing Allen could not respond, they said, and that put everybody in a difficult position.

Best said he received negative comments during Tuesday’s public participation and was issued a censure by the council.

This is the type of controversy Chmielewski hopes to avoid in the future. The council, he said, has to determine “what makes for a good balance of getting things out in the public and treating people fairly during their evaluation.”

Contact Todd L. Disher at todd.disher@frontiersman.com or 352-2252.