Published: Tuesday, December 5, 2006
Taking home of city vehicles to be reviewed, mayor says
The 50-mile limit was added in an ordinance amendment in 2002.
By PATRICIA MEADE
VINDICATOR CRIME REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN — The Youngstown Police Department garage foreman who uses a city truck to commute 100 miles round-trip to his lake cabin in Pennsylvania is within the current policy, but the policy will be discussed next year during a full review of take-home vehicles, the mayor says.
Joe Mattern's classification in the ordinance that deals with take-home city vehicles states he is permitted personal use of the vehicle during the periods he is on 24-hour call, as defined as being accessible by cell phone, radio, beeper or other electronic device and being within a 50-mile radius of city hall. Mattern is not paid the daily on-call rate but is still considered on-call.
The ordinance, when amended in 2002, added the 50-mile limit and accessibility devices, records show.
The garage foreman is not required to live in the city because he was hired before 1988.
He has said he has a city address but resides 90 percent of the time in Jamestown, Pa., and the round trip is closer to 90 miles, not 100. He said he is within the 50-mile limit and estimated that he is called back to work four to five times a year.
Vindicator review
Mattern's commute to Pennsylvania came to light during a review by The Vindicator of take-home vehicle programs for select police and fire departments. The drive to Youngstown from his lake cabin takes roughly one hour and 15 minutes.
"As the policy stands, this individual is in compliance with the policy," Mayor Jay Williams said. "Once the policy is reviewed next year, at that point I'm not going to make a change of policy for one individual but will look at the entire policy."
Williams said the garage foreman is not called back to work for specific keys issues, as was previously mentioned by a police captain. The mayor said there is a lock box for keys.
The mayor acknowledged that someone who is more than an hour away may not be the best to respond in an emergency.
"Absolutely, that goes to the whole issue of residency and why we think residency is so important. Someone who is an hour and 15 minutes away wouldn't be in the best instance to respond to an emergency," Williams said. "So, as we update and review the policies, that will certainly be something we take into account — an individual's ability to respond in a reasonable amount of time to an emergency."
Venturing away
The mayor was asked if the 50-mile radius meant employees should not venture more than 50 miles away during those periods they're on 24-hour call, rather than set a limit on how far away they can live.
He said his interpretation is "within 50 miles of city hall" but whether or not that means residing within 50 miles is vague. He said not every policy can be specifically tailored to meet every situation.
Williams, who took office in January, said he wasn't part of the decision-making process when the policy governing take-home cars was updated.
meade@vindy.com
Tuesday, December 5, 2006
The 50-mile limit was added in an ordinance amendment in 2002.
By PATRICIA MEADE
VINDICATOR CRIME REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN — The Youngstown Police Department garage foreman who uses a city truck to commute 100 miles round-trip to his lake cabin in Pennsylvania is within the current policy, but the policy will be discussed next year during a full review of take-home vehicles, the mayor says.
Joe Mattern's classification in the ordinance that deals with take-home city vehicles states he is permitted personal use of the vehicle during the periods he is on 24-hour call, as defined as being accessible by cell phone, radio, beeper or other electronic device and being within a 50-mile radius of city hall. Mattern is not paid the daily on-call rate but is still considered on-call.
The ordinance, when amended in 2002, added the 50-mile limit and accessibility devices, records show.
The garage foreman is not required to live in the city because he was hired before 1988.
He has said he has a city address but resides 90 percent of the time in Jamestown, Pa., and the round trip is closer to 90 miles, not 100. He said he is within the 50-mile limit and estimated that he is called back to work four to five times a year.
Vindicator review
Mattern's commute to Pennsylvania came to light during a review by The Vindicator of take-home vehicle programs for select police and fire departments. The drive to Youngstown from his lake cabin takes roughly one hour and 15 minutes.
"As the policy stands, this individual is in compliance with the policy," Mayor Jay Williams said. "Once the policy is reviewed next year, at that point I'm not going to make a change of policy for one individual but will look at the entire policy."
Williams said the garage foreman is not called back to work for specific keys issues, as was previously mentioned by a police captain. The mayor said there is a lock box for keys.
The mayor acknowledged that someone who is more than an hour away may not be the best to respond in an emergency.
"Absolutely, that goes to the whole issue of residency and why we think residency is so important. Someone who is an hour and 15 minutes away wouldn't be in the best instance to respond to an emergency," Williams said. "So, as we update and review the policies, that will certainly be something we take into account — an individual's ability to respond in a reasonable amount of time to an emergency."
Venturing away
The mayor was asked if the 50-mile radius meant employees should not venture more than 50 miles away during those periods they're on 24-hour call, rather than set a limit on how far away they can live.
He said his interpretation is "within 50 miles of city hall" but whether or not that means residing within 50 miles is vague. He said not every policy can be specifically tailored to meet every situation.
Williams, who took office in January, said he wasn't part of the decision-making process when the policy governing take-home cars was updated.
meade@vindy.com
Tuesday, December 5, 2006
The Youngstown Police Department garage foreman who uses a city truck to commute 100 miles round-trip to his lake cabin...
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