ORFORDVILLE - The Orfordville Village Board will review the job descriptions of the police chief and deputy clerk to see if any changes need to be made to avoid a conflict of interest after the two village employees recently married.
Village labor attorney Alan Levy announced that decision after nearly an hour-long closed session during Monday night's board meeting.
The board plans to spend the next month re-evaluating the job descriptions and making changes, if any are needed, Levy said. Police Chief Dave Wickstrum and Deputy Clerk Laura Wickstrum will then work under the revisions for about six months, or until July, to see if the revisions satisfy all the concerns or need to be tweaked, he said.
"And if there is no problem, things will go on the way they are," he said.
The action comes after the couple received letters from Levy last month, stating one or both of them could resign or face a village board decision on "whether one of you should be dismissed and, if so, which one."
Monday marked the date the board's amendment to the hiring code went into effect.
The chief has said it's the latest ploy for the board to get rid of him. Board members say the relationship created a conflict of interest.
After the meeting, Laura Wickstrum said the board's plan is what it should have started with from the beginning. She has worked for the village for 19 years, her husband, 12.
"I think we've proven ourselves to the village without having to go through attorneys and all the hoopla," she said.
When board members learned of their marriage, they amended the village code that addressed hiring relatives. The change was made to include situations where current employees become immediate family members. The change would apply to two employees when one is "directly supervising or being directly supervised by his or her spouse."
The chief previously told The Gazette he has never supervised his wife, who has always reported to the clerk. His wife does some clerical work for the police department, but the chief has never sought or approved pay raises, time off or other supervisory duties for her, he said.
Village board members told The Gazette last month it would be easier if one of the employees quits so they wouldn't be forced to make a decision on their fate.
But Laura Wickstrum said their relationship wasn't a problem before village officials learned of the marriage, "and there's not going to be a problem afterward."
She said the couple have received "tremendous support" from the community, and just about everyone they see has been supportive and commented how "ridiculous" the situation was.
During the meeting's public comment period, two residents urged caution in light of the board's ousting of its last police chief and costing taxpayers more money.
"A lot of people are watching," Rollie Scott told the board, and not just in Orfordville.
People are wondering what's going on in Orfordville, he said, and the board can turn the situation around. He said the board has to solve problems, and the chief has a job to do, as does the board.
Village President David Olsen said after the meeting, "Nobody's out to get anybody.
"But we've got jobs to do. We're representing the village, and we got to make sure we're representing them fairly and right."
When asked if the public comments played into the board's decision, he said, "I can't say it didn't."
While a handful of residents showed up and waited through the closed session to hear the outcome, the agenda didn't specify the topic of
discussion. The closed session agenda item only used
wording from state statute to justify a closed session: "to confer with legal counsel ... concerning strategy to be adopted by the body with respect to litigation in which it is or is likely to become involved."
Village labor attorney Alan Levy announced that decision after nearly an hour-long closed session during Monday night's board meeting.
The board plans to spend the next month re-evaluating the job descriptions and making changes, if any are needed, Levy said. Police Chief Dave Wickstrum and Deputy Clerk Laura Wickstrum will then work under the revisions for about six months, or until July, to see if the revisions satisfy all the concerns or need to be tweaked, he said.
"And if there is no problem, things will go on the way they are," he said.
The action comes after the couple received letters from Levy last month, stating one or both of them could resign or face a village board decision on "whether one of you should be dismissed and, if so, which one."
Monday marked the date the board's amendment to the hiring code went into effect.
The chief has said it's the latest ploy for the board to get rid of him. Board members say the relationship created a conflict of interest.
After the meeting, Laura Wickstrum said the board's plan is what it should have started with from the beginning. She has worked for the village for 19 years, her husband, 12.
"I think we've proven ourselves to the village without having to go through attorneys and all the hoopla," she said.
When board members learned of their marriage, they amended the village code that addressed hiring relatives. The change was made to include situations where current employees become immediate family members. The change would apply to two employees when one is "directly supervising or being directly supervised by his or her spouse."
The chief previously told The Gazette he has never supervised his wife, who has always reported to the clerk. His wife does some clerical work for the police department, but the chief has never sought or approved pay raises, time off or other supervisory duties for her, he said.
Village board members told The Gazette last month it would be easier if one of the employees quits so they wouldn't be forced to make a decision on their fate.
But Laura Wickstrum said their relationship wasn't a problem before village officials learned of the marriage, "and there's not going to be a problem afterward."
She said the couple have received "tremendous support" from the community, and just about everyone they see has been supportive and commented how "ridiculous" the situation was.
During the meeting's public comment period, two residents urged caution in light of the board's ousting of its last police chief and costing taxpayers more money.
"A lot of people are watching," Rollie Scott told the board, and not just in Orfordville.
People are wondering what's going on in Orfordville, he said, and the board can turn the situation around. He said the board has to solve problems, and the chief has a job to do, as does the board.
Village President David Olsen said after the meeting, "Nobody's out to get anybody.
"But we've got jobs to do. We're representing the village, and we got to make sure we're representing them fairly and right."
When asked if the public comments played into the board's decision, he said, "I can't say it didn't."
While a handful of residents showed up and waited through the closed session to hear the outcome, the agenda didn't specify the topic of
discussion. The closed session agenda item only used
wording from state statute to justify a closed session: "to confer with legal counsel ... concerning strategy to be adopted by the body with respect to litigation in which it is or is likely to become involved."