By Dave Fidlin
Correspondent
Whitewater Police Chief Lisa Otterbacher will continue shepherding the city’s law enforcement agency for the next three years as part of a plan backed recently by the elected officials.
City Manager Cameron Clapper and City Attorney Wally McDonell presented the Common Council with a 3-year contract extension to Otterbacher’s employment agreement with the city. The sun will set on the extension Oct. 31, 2018.
The council voted unanimously in favor of the extension Oct. 7.
Clapper said there have not been many changes to Otterbacher’s prior contract, though some language has been stricken to sync up with state statutes. For example, the city’s one-time residency requirement has been removed since the state no longer permits municipalities to make these types of provisions.
McDonell, who played a pivotal role in drafting the amended contract, said there have been a few other tweaks to the agreement as well, including a provision concerning use of a city squad car. Otterbacher is allowed to drive the squad car to her home for business-related matters.
Amended language also addresses the city’s issuance of a cell phone and related data plan to Otterbacher with the understanding the majority of the phone’s usage will be for police-related matters.
Another notable change, Clapper said, is a reduction in the timeframe for a so-called notice of termination. Either side — Otterbacher or the city — have a 30-day window to terminate the agreement. That timeframe was whittled down from 60 days in the prior document.
Otterbacher, who has drawn an annual salary in the ballpark of $87,000, is one of three city employees who hold employee agreements. Clapper and McDonell are the other two.
