Town hires new officer; goes over apps for clerk position

Uniontown is rebuilding its city staff following the resignations of several city employees last month in the midst of a heated budget struggle.

Casey Green of Moscow was hired as the town’s new police officer at the Tuesday night’s council meeting. He will now patrol the town of 330 part-time as the only Uniontown officer.

The town is also looking to hire a part-time clerk treasurer. A hiring committee has received 25 applications which they will narrow down to 10 qualified candidates by the end of this week.

In the midst of a heated struggle over balancing the 2011 budget, city clerk/treasurer Cheryl Waller and temporary deputy clerk Patty Kelly both resigned in December.

Uniontown police officer David Lehmitz, who served the town for more than 15 years, resigned Nov. 30.

The town’s other part-time police officer could no longer serve after failing a test for the Police Academy. Kelly later returned to work again for the city at the invitation of the council, but does not plan on working there long-term.

The 2011 budget slashed staff hours to balance the budget. The town’s two part-time police officer positions were cut down to one part-time position, for which Green has now been hired. The town’s clerk treasurer position has been cut from full-time to a part-time position, which the council will soon pick out of the 25 applicants.

The town also created a deputy clerk position of six hours a week to assist in the office.

The cuts to staff hours were factored into the 2011 budget after the staff had already left.

Also at the Jan. 4 meeting, Mayor Joyce Mayer told the council she had checked into having a state audit done on the town’s finances. In the wake of the budget troubles the city experienced, the city council at its last meeting had agreed the town needed a comprehensive, outside look at its finances.

Mayer announced the city will opt for a special audit in addition to the mandatory state audits normally conducted by the state.

“People need to know our town is doing better,” Mayer said.

Green has served as a full-time police officer for the city of Moscow since 1995 and will continue to work there full-time in addition to his new job in Uniontown.

Green lives in Moscow and graduated from the University of Idaho in the early 1990s. Green said Lehmitz told him about the opening in Uniontown. Lehmitz also works for the Moscow police department. Green said he was looking forward to patrolling in a small-town setting.

“He’s a family man and we’re a family town,” Mayer told the council and audience at the Jan. 4 meeting.