The turnover of senior City of Park Ridge Staff moved closer to completion last Thursday (August 7) when Fire Chief Ed Dubowski announced that he will retire from the Department on Sept. 2 after 30 years of service.
Chief Dubowski worked his way up the ranks of the Department and distinguished himself in every position he held. He has won a number of awards and commendations.
No doubt he has earned his right to retire, but we still find his departure disturbing because it follows on the heels of the early retirements Police Chief Jeff Caudill, City Manager Tim Schuenke, and Community Development Director Randy Derifield, along with the resignations of Public Works Director Joe Saccomanno and Human Resources director Mike Crotty. That's the largest exodus of senior people from the City in memory.
The table was set for these departures by the previous city council's early-retirement incentive (ERI) program, which actually made it attractive for Caudill, Schuenke and Derifield to leave city employment earlier than expected. We don't like ERIs because they tend to strip local governments of their most experienced employees on the promise - usually a false one - of cost reductions resulting by the hiring of less-experienced replacements at lower compensation.
We haven't seen any of those savings yet. In fact, from what we've heard and read on the topic, new City Mgr. Jim Hock will be costing the city a lot more than his predecessor, Schuenke - although we can't imagine Hock not being worth it compared to a guy (Schuenke) who seemed to cause more problems than he solved.
August 12, 2008
Another one bites the dust
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38 comments:
The math is inescapable. Derifield was making $120K and his pension is 75% or $90K. The minimum salary is $90K. So now instead of paying $120K we pay $90k in pension and $90 minimum to a replacement. Who pays? We do!!
The public safety people then also go out and work 10 years someplace else and get another immediate pension which we pay for out of the state pension fund.
If they leave the first job after 20 years they still have time to work security jobs to get another pension and social security. Tax payers pay for the social security.
There should never be an ERI and we should not elect people who authorize them
when I saw this in the Herald-Advocate online the other day, I got the feeling that it was already in the works for a while.
I'm not sure that this is the work of the new city manager.
Congrats to Chief Dubowski on his 30yrs of service. He's a well-liked and much respected member of our community.
Yes.
Congrats to Chief Dubowski. He is one of the good ones.
Any chance he'd want to run for Mayor in his retirement?
Dear Mr. Complain:
Chief Ed and all those who protect us have earned that pension.
Yes - if not too banged up and they leave at the right time - they can move on and do something else.
That is what it takes and we salute them all!
The problem with the bean counters is.......just that stick to counting beans!
Leave the life saving to the professionals!
Maybe your thong is a little too tight !!
Thank you!
Think about it folks. How many of you in private industry still have a pension program? How many can work 30 years and get 75% or more of pay at 55?
When do we start to make government employess have a 401k program for retirement just like the rest of us?
AJ
Anonymous at 6:19:
How many lives did Randy Derifield save? Or "Tiny Tim" Scheunke?
Not all the folks pulling these pensions were police and fire.
Correct me if I am wong but if there are negotiations that take place that drastically change or eliminate our contribution to the various pension funds, aren't they going to want a representative amount paid to them in salary instead.
I am all for the 401K model but it isn't going to any money.
This is truly classic Allegretti. I know he is an attorney but perhaps he needs to review the RULES OF THE ROAD again about the "turn on red" law. You have to STOP before you turn on red!
from the online Herald Advocate today:
"Fourth Ward Alderman Jim Allegretti said he did not want drivers who come close to a complete stop before turning right on a red light to be ticketed.
'We are going to have a lot of angry citizens,' he said, adding that vehicles driving straight through red lights, not '1 mph stops,' are the problematic violations the city wants to stop.'"
This is a perfect example of who is running the city.
My dad was a harding working, ETHICAL Chicago Police Captain for 35 years....retired at the required age of 63 and received a whopping pension of $36,000 a year which he thought was great. I look at what all the "hard working, crime fighting (what crime?) Park Ridge coppers get and I am appalled but I guess they earned it....right....
JR
sorry I went off topic...
‘Mouse,
Don’t apologize. Your comments are well warranted.
To Alderman Allegretti – tell us how getting run over by a car at 1 mile an hour is a whole lot different than getting run over at a 5 mile a hour coast through a stop light. Maybe the 1 mile an hour guy can stop a little quicker but either way you are hit by the car... and if the dopey driver is distracted enough you might be under it, in either case!
Oh, and by the way, like the guy from RedSpeed said: it’s against the law not to stop at a stop light.
So why don’t you want tickets issued for a 1 mile an hour violation???
Mind you all, this is coming from the same guy who at the same meeting called the PADS linkage agreement “toothless”.
My ass...
Here's a simple yet productive thing the city council can do, put a cell phone law into effect for drivers. If I had 5 cents for every time i've almost been hit by a mom in the minivan on the cell phone i'd be rich. This simple law would prevent many accidents and eliminate some of the unexplainable driving that occurs in our community.
I am all for the cell phone law and the stopping a red lights before turning. I also think they will do absolutely nothing.
Look at where cell phone laws are in place and see how many people follow them. The idiots are still in the fast lane fluxuating between 40 and 70 with the phone to their ear.
Same with the speed limit. It is not just about having the law on the books - it is about enforcement. Otherwise it is just a joke.
the JOKE is that we have an alderman who thinks we don't need to stop at red lights.
Chief Dubowski was indeed an able and well respected leader of the fire department and it will be difficult to find another chief with his qualifications and abilities. He did his job well and did not put up with any bull from the politicians.
That said, his retirement is not part of the early retirement program adopted by the City in February of 2007. The incentives for police and fire personnel were limited to payment of two years of health benefits and were only available to members retiring by March of 2008. The City Council minutes of February 19, 2007 contain the resolution for the incentive program.
No crime in the Ridge some of you cry? How many of those public sfey employees make those life saving decisions when "we" call 911 becuase we cant deal with our own problems. We are the morons who get orders of protection that stipulate what room to be in at a specifc time of day and then complain to the police about it. We arethe morons who call 911 and ask the police to "just take them away but I won't testify in court". Do the Cops complain, about that to us,no. The cops take a unwaranted beating in the media becuase of some citizens and go on doing their job, answering stupid 911 calls for those of us who just banged on them. I salute the polcie for their tireless effort and putting up with our nonsense.
I know the cops will be there when I need help, the Firemen will be there to save my life and I thank them for having the balls to risk their financial stability, their life and exposure to disease.
Pensions are a thing of the past and that is tragic but lets keep a few things straight:
1 the city is not paying the pensions out of their pocket lke a payroll. Both the city and employee contribute to the fund and that fund pays its members.
2 We ask those guys and "their families" to risk alot, even in our so called "sleepy town". Its a good benift to attract solid employees.
3 Anybody here want to drive around town for 12 hours wearing about 25lbs of gear and carry a gun not because you want to hunt but becuase somebody might decide to get the drop on you? Not to mention the lows of society who carry a bunch of unknown diseases? Who here wants to do the dirty job and take the kick in the rear some of us here propose? Not I.
Plus I'd like to get the best qualified for the those jobs and we all know the beni packages are important.
from Cyberdrive Illinois:
[ATTENTION ALLEGRETTI]
Red light – Stop at the marked stop line. If there is not a marked stop line, stop before entering the crosswalk. If there is no crosswalk, stop before entering the intersection. Do not go until the light is green and the intersection is clear.
You may make a right turn at a red light or a left turn at a red light when turning from a one-way street onto another one-way street that has traffic moving to the left. In both instances, drivers must come to a complete stop and yield the right-of-way to oncoming traffic and pedestrians before turning.
The PRU didn't say that Dubowski's retirement was part of the early incentive plan but I can see where somebody not reading carefully could come away with the impression otherwise.
I think the piece was about how so many senior level people are leaving.
For former alderman Joe Baldi, did you vote for this plan? Didn't you realize the brain drain this could cause on the city departments?
A few points....
Maybe Dubowski should have screwed up a whole bunch of times during his last few years so he could get a $70,000+ check like Caudill did. In PR it seems to be better to be kicked out instead of leaving on your own.
7:57pm, it used to be that most jobs had a pension. Police and fire are about the only ones left nowadays that still do. Because you must have a certain gene to work 30 years at a job where no one appreciates you, you risk your life every day, and you'll never get rich doing it.
10:14am, your dad worked for "the real" police, eh? Nice how you have to point out that he was an "ethical" one. Good thing there's no crime in Park Ridge, eh? Do you ever read the police blotter in the Advocate? No crime? How about the armed bank robbery that just occurred that we all saw on the news last night? Thank goodness it didn't turn into a Lane Bryant thing....
No crime...right. If anyone thinks there's no serious crime in PR, they aren't reading their local paper.
For all of you who claim to really care about our cops (especially in this economy), you should be fighting any idea of a new police station that will suck up millions of dollars for brick and mortar that could better be spent on more/better compensation, training, equipment and benefits for people who actually do the work.
Remodel the current station for a fraction of the $15-20 million they're talking about spending on a new station, and you could give each cop a $10,000 raise and still be way ahead money-wise.
And knowing cops, while they'd like a new station, they'd much prefer the money. I know I would.
243pm
A "functional station" is in the top 5 of improtant equipment.
A few years ago when the City first heard the "old proposal" a lot of officers went to the meeting and voiced their problems with the station.
-Lack of: Training space (including a range) People, a "Failure to train" = a large sum of money paid out to bad guys.
-Property room storage: um, isn't this where evidence is kept?
-A gym: I'll give you that but I'd like my Cops in shape.
-Interview space: Anybody every been to the station and seen the cubicals the investigators work out of? Are you kidding me! H ow do they get anything done.
The front door: Nice I can go in for service and walk right past somebody who just posted their bond from being arrested.
The station is a must and an addition I can't imagine a compromise. I know it's costly but the station is a major tool in the crime fighting world. I also understand we need to pay our Cops a good dollar but if anybody has an inside track on their union business, I'd bet the city does ok.
August 15, 2008 3:01 PM:
My house is old and old-fashioned, but it still functions for its purpose and I can't afford to knock it down and build a new, bigger one. Sounds just like the cop shop to me?
We haven't had a gun range for 5 years or more, so how many "large sums" of money has the city paid out to the "bad guys" during that time?
Are our cops now, and have they always been, out of shape because they've never had an on-site gym?
How many criminals walked free because of the poor interview rooms?
Okay, so instead of walking past someone who just posted bond inside the police station, I may end up walking past him outside the station, or at the Starbucks on Prospect. Your point?
IF a new station is such a "must have," why aren't we experiencing a crime wave of epic proportions as criminals of all stripes take advantage of our department's soft underbelly of a cop shop?
I can understand if we either a new facility or need to remodel it but we do not need to include excersize facilities.
They need to do taht on their own time.
Hmmmmmmmm......The company I work for has exercise facilities on site. I will grant you it isn't the East Bank Club but there are 4 treadmills, some free weights circut machines and bikes.
I am sure that there are Fortune 500 companies who have incredible exercise facilities. There is data that regular excercise reduces health costs, sick time and increases productivity. I would be curious as to what percent of the total proposed expenses to build a new station are represented by an excercise facility.
Beyond that, doesn't it make sense that we have a police force who works out? Don't we want them in shape when they are putting their lives on the line to protect us?
I am remided of the phrase penny wise and pound foolish.
the budget of a city like Park Ridge cannot be compared to a Fortune 500 company
Of course we want officers that are fit but like I said before it should not be a priorty for us to pay extra money for something like that when it's they're own responsability to make sure they're fit.
Can't you figure that out?
Mike:
I can figure it out. I just don't agree. I look at the proposal for the new station and the cost seems high to me - on that we can agree. But having said that, I do not believe that a work out facility for these officers is unreasonable. Again I would like to see what the work out facility represents as a percentage of the entire proposed costs. What the hell can the extra square footage and machines cost? Break down that over 10 years and what does it really cost?
For that you get more of a chance that they work out, better retention/moral and ability to recruit.
I agree that our government at all levels spends too much. But that does not mean that we should pinch on things that make sense in the name of cost savings.
I have read about officers who have to have fund raisers to buy bullet proof vests.
By the way the company I work for is very, very far from fortune 500.
You cerntainly don't think very wisely.
Do we really want to know the answer:
"How many criminals walked free because of the poor interview rooms? "
If there is an answer, I don't want to know. Knowing, makes the real extent of the poor facility known to the public, including current and future public denfenders. If this bank robbery which just occured comes up and the facilty is a "publicy known problem" the entire case may be thrown out in court. It would be over a year to gain a new station and when a major crime takes place, what do we expect our police to do?
A facility that includes a workout area which doubles as a training space,multi-purpose area seems good to me.
I'd bet there is more to the cop shop's complaint about a lack of workout facility.
There has not been a range for over 10 years and one 10 to 12 million dollar suit paid out for a "failure to train" is too much to pay some guy who commited a violent crime, this isn't the NBA or NFL!
Maybe we should all request a tour (again) to see what the issues are. You know the police have to keep certain records and evidence for a very long time even forever depending on the crime so taking that into account means a lot of space just to keep stuff which, is required by State and Federal law.
A cop told a story once of some juveniles who were in for curfew. while being "detained" for their parents to arrive, the juveniles overheard some other violent offender yelling from the cells. The cop said," it happens all the time and borders on violating multiple laws dealing with juveniles". When asked how they delt with the problem he said,"Well, we need to take another officer off the street to babysit the juveniles, that means less another officer on patrol". These staiton issues effect the number of officers on patrol obviously.
August 18, 2008 9:58 AM
"Mean Gene" Spanos, is that you? (It sure sounds like you)
If you don't want to know the answer to any question, then you simply want to remain ignorant. So if "ignorance is bliss," you are really blissful.
Knowing "the real extent" of whatever problems the current cop shop poses for actual law enforcement scares you because the answer is most likely "none" - which would ruin your panic peddling about how how entire criminal cases (including the "Pretty in Pink" transvestite bank robber) "may be thrown out in court." Want to tell us how the Dhamer killing would have been prevented or solved by now if our cops had had 40,000 square feet of cop shop to work out of? C'mon, I dare ya.
Your idea for a "multi-purpose" room is inspired. How about a combination workout room and shooting range, where our cops can practice running around and dealing with various "situations" while serving as target practice for other cops. (Using lazer tag guns, of course. Or not)
When was the last time a "10 to 12 million dollar suit" was paid out to a criminal for "failure to train" related to not enough shooting range time? Do some Googling and the answer will be "never."
About those records and evidence that has to be kept "for a very long time even forever." Can you say "off-site storage"?
Taking "another officer off the street to babysit the juveniles" once every year or two doesn't justify a $15 million expenditure ($20-25 million with interest.
But hey, Gene or Gene-ious, let's put that new cop shop to a referendum and see how persuaded all your fellow residents are about how desperately it's needed.
If you 2 feel we need a new station, fine!
I'm not saying we don't though I question it a bit for a couple of reasons which I've explained in the past and I'm not about tp repeat them.
I can understand something like a shooting range and other things but an exercise room is down right stupid.
We already pay a lot of taxes so why should the residence pay extra for such a thing when the cops can easily go to a health club, community center and work out there?
Wonder what former Public Safty Director John Bauldeck who started out as a PR Police officer or Officer Peter Disher who was the departments first Officer Friendly would of thought of this?
The guy at 9:58 am sounds like an insider.
Is anyone aware that the workout machines/treadmill/exercise equipment was all paid for by the Park Ridge Officers themselves? Their workout equipment was never provided by taxpayer money. Only the physical space (the small room) was provided. All the police officers are asking for is for the room to put their own equipment in if a new station is ever built.
The officers also have to take a mandatory physical agility test every year (bench press, sit ups, 1.5 mile run) Hence, the request for the exercise area.
Again I am in complete agreement about over spending and spending an the wrong things. But officers who patrol our streets and keep our kids safe from homeless people having to buy exercise equipment is crazy. The job requires fitness and there are moral and recruiting issues to think about. People think they are saving the qorld by not paying a couple grand for exercise equpment???
Interesting discussion, people. We've waited patiently for the obvious questions to be asked, but so far no dice. So we'll ask.
What happens when a police officer fails to meet the required level of physical fitness mandated by the job? Has an officer ever been let go from the force for failing to meet the physical fitness mandated for the job?
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