CONNEAUT — City Council, in looking for ways to trim the municipal budget, shouldn't scrimp on its legal service, members were told at Monday's regular meeting.
Assistant Law Director Luke Gallagher, in a lengthy report, said requiring its law director to log less than 30 hours of legal service for a city the size and scope of Conneaut is “messing with fire.” In addition to city legal matters, the law office also represents a handful of outside agencies, including the Port Authority and Conneaut Health Department, he said.
Gallagher gave a lengthy report that analyzed wages, duties and hours of law departments in other cities and villages in Ashtabula County. For the responsibilities and size of the city, compensation in Conneaut is at the “low range,” he said.
Size, in terms of square miles, is important because the bigger the community, the more land-related legal issues that can result, Gallagher said.
The report was prompted by last week's council finance/ordinance committee, where the status of the law department was discussed. Law Director Lori Lamer is resigning at the end of the month, providing an opportunity for change, members were told.
The committee has generally agreed to explore a part-time director and a part-time assistant. Lamer is a full-time employee, Gallagher part-time.
Councilman-at-Large Robert Naylor, the committee's chairman, last week asked administrators to begin preparing a job description for the position to expedite the hiring process. He was irked when the document wasn't prepared in time for Monday's meeting.
A job description spelling out duties, compensation and hours of service is a logical first step in the hiring process, Naylor said.
City Manager Robert Schaumleffel Jr. said he wasn't sure if the job would be part-time or full-time, but said he could provide a basic “framework” of a job description within 48 hours.
Gallagher, who said he is not interested in the job, said a decision on the law office “quickly,” but it shouldn't be done”rashly.” Hacking away too many hours off the schedule could create a work load that overwhelms the potential pay, scaring away potential applicants.
Anything under 30 hours a week doesn't legally protect the city, Gallagher said. “You're flirting with disaster,” he said.
In other business, council most of the legislation on the agenda to a second reading for lack of members to rescind the three-reading rule for new legislation. Ward 4 Councilman Tony Julio was present to move on a routine note issuance measure, which was put atop the agenda, but then was excused from the rest of the meeting due to illness.
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Council told: Don’t cut legal services
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