John Scarffe, Gilpin County. The Gilpin County Board of County Commissioners opened their September 24 meeting at 8 a.m. at the Gilpin County Courthouse with a reception for Colorado State University extension agent, Irene Shonle, who is leaving her position with the county. During the regular meeting, the board approved rescinding Stage One Fire Restrictions, approved an emergency management grant, a variance for an Onsite Waste Water Treatment System and heard requests for Sheriff’s Office pay increases and an Assessor’s Office full-time position.

Gilpin County Sheriff Kevin Armstrong requested that the Stage One Fire Restrictions imposed on August 20 be rescinded. Clear Creek County and the U.S. Forest Service have rescinded theirs and they are no longer necessary in the county.

Armstrong said he will re-evaluate this and wait until Friday, September 27, to lift the restrictions. The board approved rescinding the fire restrictions. 

The board recognized CSU Extension Agent Irene Shonle for 17 years of service with the county. Board Chair Linda Isenhart said thank you so much for everything you’ve done and the programs you got started. “You will be very much missed.”

Commissioner Gail Watson said that in 2003 she enrolled in a class with Shonle and spent Saturdays hiking in Golden Gate State Park and identifying plants. It was a great way to meet people. Shonle told them, “Bring your eyes to the flowers.” 

Shonle organized fantastic fire safety meetings about taking personal responsibility for our space, Watson said. She wrote grants that helped the county, and the commissioners presented her with an award for being the CSU extensions director since 2002.

Shonle said she will miss this county and the people here. “I wish the county all the best for the future. It’s been a true pleasure and on to a new chapter.” She will be moving to the Colorado Springs area to care for family.

The board accepted a grant from the Colorado Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management for $60,000. Emergency Manager Nathan Wittington received a letter on August 28 stating that the county had received the 2019 Emergency Management Program Performance Fund Grant. The grant requires that Gilpin County work diligently to complete the tasks in its annual work plan.

Wittington told the board that previously this grant was split with Black Hawk. He talked to Black Hawk about the grant, and Black Hawk said they didn’t need the funds. He asked that the funds be merged into Gilpin County accounts. He is working in coordination with Black Hawk, and that agreement has been set forth. 

Wittington had a meeting on Thursday, September 26, 2019, to see what that does to emergency management. The match is already covered, so they can put $30,000 into the emergency preparedness budget. “We will support Black Hawk in an emergency management situation.”

Ginger Deray, at 306 Harris Detour, requested a variance from the Onsite Wastewater Treatment System. Office Manager Tami Archer presented the request because Deray does not have enough room for a full-blown system. 

Deray is requesting conditional approval for a vault installation. Mike Ikeler, a longtime local engineer, provided the analysis and engineering report. The house is situated on a small lot in Russell Gulch, which is bordered on the north and west by Alps Hill Road and Harris Detour. The size of the lot does not allow for the placement of a soil treatment area meeting setback requirements. 

The single dwelling on the house was first constructed in 1890, according to Gilpin County assessor’s estimate. The one-story frame building has a basic rectangular plan with a historic shed-roof addition, according to the property description. 

The vault would be to the east of the house. The board approved the variance and approved a Boundary Line Elimination creating a two-acre lot at 592 Morning Star Circle, Mountain Meadows Subdivision.

Sheriff Armstrong, Undersheriff Tonya Kapke and Human Resources Director Susie Allen requested a new pay proposal for law enforcement staff. Law enforcement is at critical staffing levels and salaries are not competitive with market data to attract new employees or retain current ones, according to the request. 

“Gilpin County Sheriff’s Office is critically understaffed and unable to attract and retain employees,” states the request. “The Detentions Division has not been fully staffed for the last 10 years except for three months during mid-2014. If additional law personnel leave, there will be no choice but to require all enforcement personnel to work for five 10-hour shifts and no suspended vacations.”

The Sheriff’s Office requested approving a market adjustment based on a years-of-service grid and update to the compensation guidelines to allow for lateral hires for necessary positions. In 2019, it would cost the county $32,000 starting October 18.

In 2020, it would cost $195,000 including benefits. New law enforcement would be hired into pay ranges based on years of service. 

Current law enforcement will receive a market adjustment based on the years of service. Supervisory staff receive 50 percent of the market adjustment and non-supervisory staff will receive the full market adjustment. This allows new hires with experience to be hired in and not make more than current employees with the same experience.

Chair Isenhart said this is something they’ve been talking about and had a work session.

Armstrong said they are looking at the cost-saving aspect because it costs $31,000 to recruit, hire and do background testing. By bringing in a hybrid step program, it would cost $32,000. 

They need to find ways to retain employees that have already been trained and are an asset to the community, Armstrong said. Susie Allen said that according to exit interviews with deputies, the majority left for better pay and closer to home and that’s true across the board.

Kapke said it would give employees a good reason not to go. A lot of them don’t want to go but that’s what they are looking at doing. 

Commissioner Ron Engels said they need more of an interim plan until they have a county-wide salary survey, at which point they may have some tweaks to this program. Isenhart said a detention officer couldn’t support a family on that salary, so they should increase it.

The board agreed to the proposal with a $5,000 cap per year and an adjustment to the lateral starting pay, effective October 19. 

The board denied a request from County Assessor Anne Schafer to turn a part-time position into full-time. Shafer said she feels a sense of urgency because she needs her part-time office assistant to become full-time. It will be a cost saver. It’s a position that has so many pieces. 

The office assistant would be a full-time employee to coordinate and successfully complete required tasks including assisting with Timberline Fire Department taxes, real property accounts and mining claims. The position would become effective on October 5.

The board questioned whether this need could be met with temporary help.  Commissioner Watson said she has heard no complaints, so she needs further understanding. “I’d like to address this without increasing FTEs.” 

(Originally published in the October 3, 2019, print edition of The Mountain-Ear.)