The Pella City Council will consider adopting a change to the City’s Personnel Policy Manual to account for organizational structure revisions within the Pella Police Department at their meeting Tuesday.

Pella Police Chief Shane McSheehy says he presented a proposal to council during the Policy and Planning meeting on September 15th, which if approved, would form the following positions through a promotional process: Captain, Sergeant, Senior Police Officer, and Lead Communications Specialist. The department would remain at its current staffing levels with no additions to staff.

McSheehy says the revised organizational structure design would provide for a supervisor to be present at all times, across all shifts. It would also help retain officers, which he says is vital to the health of the Pella Police Department, and establishing a senior officer rank system and incorporating a first line supervisor within shifts creates opportunity for new officers to develop and train in order to seek advancement and promotion.

Officer vacancies and salary adjustments from February 2020 through September 2020 resulted in a salary savings of approximately $69,000. The proposed revised organizational structure process, if approved, would present a cost of between $30,000 and $42,000. This cost is derived from increased salaries due to promotions and reclassification.

The Pella City Council meeting begins at 7 p.m. Tuesday in the Pella Public Safety Complex. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this meeting will also be available electronically:
1. To access screen sharing and audio, visit https://join.me/CityofPella
2. To listen to audio only, call 720.650.5050 and enter access code 962-389-622 #