Altenberg considered for Director of Tower Ambulance Service
MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2016 — Steve Altenberg wants to update the Tower Ambulance Service and as the only applicant to fill the upcoming Director vacancy, created by the forthcoming November 2016 resignation of Matt Tuchel, he has announced his proposals for change. “Call volume has doubled in the last seven years,” Altenberg wrote as an introduction to a list of changes he would like to see Tower adopt for the ambulance service. He outlined his suggested changes to the committee established to interview candidates and recommend a new director to the Tower City Council and indicated that he would only be interested in accepting the directorship if the city agreed with his ideas for the ambulance service’s future.
Altenberg noted that the new state park is anticipating 250,000 annual visitors and will increase the demand on ambulance services. He would like to see the service add a third ambulance as well as a complete redesign of the existing ambulances to better serve future needs. Tower ambulance is centrally located between three hospitals and has a minimum thirty minute travel time to get to any one of the three. The service needs to expand to include paramedics on staff so that better care is available to patients during the time expended to get to a hospital, Altenberg wrote in his statement. He looks forward to expanding the services offered, increasing efficiency, organization and revenue generation should he be offered, and accept, the director position. It is also no longer possible for the director to hold a full time job, be a top ambulance run responder and maintain family and personal life, Altenberg wrote.
The committee recommended Altenberg as the new Ambulance Director, and Alderman Lance Dougherty moved to have the city hire him. Alderman Joan Broten provided support for the motion. Discussing the motion, Alderman William Hiltunen reminded the city council that Altenberg said the city would need to implement a plan to achieve his suggested changes, before he would accept the position. Mayor Josh Carlson suggested that the council table the issue and return to the next city meeting prepared to consider the proposed changes. Dougherty withdrew his motion and Broten withdrew her support and the issue was tabled.
In considering other city personnel issues, a discussion was held on the need for a new Safety Director. Stephanie Carlson, who recently resigned from her job as deputy clerk, also had served as the city’s safety director. Both Dan Nylund and Randy Johnson expressed interest in the position, according to City Clerk-Treasurer Linda Keith. Alderman Dougherty suggested that the city could add the safety director responsibilities to the maintenance director’s job description. Mayor Carlson disagreed, however, “They already have enough to do,” Carlson said suggesting that the city council add the safety director responsibilities to the deputy clerk’s job description instead. He put his suggestion in the form of a motion. Alderman Broten supported the motion which passed with a unanimous vote.
The council voted to accept Richard “Dick” Larmouth‘s application to serve on the Main Street Revitalization committee. Larmouth moved to Tower from Belleville, Michigan one year ago and is retired from a career in corporate finance at Ford Motor Company. Larmouth will serve on the committee with the unanimous approval of the council.
Approved the final $5,000 payment to Marine Tech, LLC, Duluth, for the work it completed constructing the Tower Harbor and East Two River channel dredging. The $5,000 final payment completes the city’s obligation on the 1.35 million dollar project.
In other action, the Tower City Council:
• Accepted a discounted price offer of $ 1.199 for propane from Como Oil and Propane. Karel Winkelaar, representing Como, made the offer noting that Tower was currently contracted at $1.20 through March, 2017, but that the company was now offering this discounted price
• Discussed the proposed All Terrain Vehicle (ATV) ordinance and reviewed a letter the council received from Dan Broten. Because there is no language in the proposed, or existing ordinance on golf cart policies the council will look into adding specifics on golf carts before it adopts a new ATV ordinance
• Approved entering into an agreement with Minnesota Pump Works to conduct the city’s pump inspections at a cost of $455 per inspection.
• Approved allowing the Tower Ambulance to write off bad debts it has incurred from accounts which have been deemed uncollectible
• Voted to take appropriate steps to advertise for bids on repairing the front steps of city hall. The original request for bids brought no response from area contractors
• Approved extending the rubber mats in place on the city’s seaplane base up, out of the water and onto the landing, as a safety precaution
• Approved allowing Tekstar Communication to install conduit infrastructure from its terminal on Highway 169 to the T-mobile cell phone tower on Tower’s North Hill
• Discussed the possibility of generating more interest in a community garden
• Authorized allowing the Tower-Soudan Historical Society, Jeff Hill and Doug Workman to drive the city’s GEM car
• Discussed investigation into what the city would need to do to have the Civic Center kitchen obtain a St. Louis County Health Department license
• Approved sending a formal request to open the AFSCME Local Union 1490 contract to negotiations for procedure and payment amounts relating to employment settlement with the former deputy clerk, following her resignation