ALAMOSA — After members of city council logged close to 30 hours in five different executive sessions and one work session to investigate claims made by former Alamosa Chief of Police Ken Anderson upon his resignation, the information gathering marathon has concluded with no significant changes to city council operations.
At the end of the day, City Manager Heather Sanchez will go forward with the council’s unanimous vote of confidence. Despite vocal, if not strong, community opposition, projects like the transitional housing development on Airport Road will continue to progress on schedule.
If Wednesday night’s work session was any indication, council meetings will continue as they have been, with the city manager doing the vast majority of the explaining while councilors listen attentively and occasionally ask questions but ultimately agree with what the city manager is proposing.
That’s not to say that there haven’t been some important changes.
In his resignation, Anderson had cited the rule prohibiting communication between members of city council and department heads as an obstacle to council getting input directly from department heads who are impacted by policy decisions. Currently, all information to the council is funneled through the city manager.
Going forward, department heads will be included in city council retreats, a practice that used to be routine until it was ended and, once in place, will allow for more interaction, team building and information sharing.
In a second change, the city council will be adopting a policy at an upcoming meeting that allows a department head to place an item on the agenda if the individual feels an issue has not been properly addressed by the city manager. This step creates an option for frustrated department heads other than resigning from their position.
In response to former Chief Anderson stating that his department’s needs weren’t being met, Sanchez and interim Police Chief Joey Spangler informed the council of some equipment purchases that have been made and also showed data that an additional full-time employee — specifically at the sergeant level — is justified, if and when funding comes available.
Another area cited by Anderson included the city attorney whose opinion Anderson felt showed a lack of understanding and experience — specifically related to excessive force. An agreement was made that Erich Schwiesow, city attorney, would meet with APD officers to seek common ground on what officers have to do in the moment and how that is congruent — or not — with city policy.
All those changes sprung directly out of Anderson’s complaints and suggest a quick commitment from the council to address problems that are readily apparent and, basically, fixable.
But the issues that are more nuanced and possibly connected to “communication breakdown”, or the significant differences in what constitutes management versus micromanagement or an individual’s feeling disenfranchised and dismissed when their input is ignored were not addressed in Wednesday night’s work session, other than the city manager saying, “I don’t do [those things].”
Although more than eight hours were spent with council members interviewing every department head about criticisms Anderson had raised regarding Sanchez. None of that real-time, front-line feedback was shared. That makes it difficult for the public to know with any certainty if some of the pervasive issues Anderson brought to light were corroborated or refuted, let alone recognized or addressed.
Meanwhile, Anderson begins working next week for the Alamosa County Sheriff’s Office.
City Council Statement
When concerns were raised regarding several City of Alamosa programs, initiatives, and work environment; Alamosa City Council set out on a path of deliberate review. The concerns have been and continue to be taken seriously. Since City Council can only meet as a group to dig into those concerns, the process has been lengthy.
As part of the process, City Council has held two executive sessions to meet with every Department Head and members of the Leadership Team to learn more about the work environment. These meetings allowed all those who participated to ask straightforward questions and communicate freely and directly on any thoughts related to the work environment. City Council then held an executive session to gather their thoughts on the information they heard and determine a path going forward. A fourth executive session was held to meet with City Manager Heather Sanchez to share those thoughts.
City Council appreciates the time that members of the Leadership Team took to meet with them and engage in very honest discussions. While no system is ever perfect and City Council and City Manager Sanchez have identified some improvements going forward, City Council remains supportive in Sanchez's leadership and looks forward to working together. These improvements were reviewed during a public work session on January 3rd.
In conclusion, City Council expresses gratitude for the collaborative efforts of the Leadership Team, the insightful discussions held during executive sessions, and the valuable input received during public work sessions. As we move forward, City Council is committed to implementing identified improvements, fostering a positive work environment, and continuing the fruitful collaboration with City Manager Sanchez to ensure the success of ongoing initiatives and programs for the betterment of the City of Alamosa.
Ty Coleman
Michael Carson
Liz Hensley
Dawn Krebs
Jackie Vigil
Jan Vigil
