By Susan Redden
sredden@joplinglobe.com
CARTHAGE, Mo. — Members of the Jasper County Emergency Services Board will meet March 18 to begin narrowing the field of applicants for the post of executive director.
Aside from housekeeping matters handled Tuesday night, the meeting date was one of the few points of agreement among board members. They argued over issues relating to the former director and whether the center should try to keep dispatching for the Jasper County sheriff’s officers inside the county center.
The meeting was the first regular session since Rich Nordell was fired a month ago as executive director. He was an observer at the meeting. He has hired Joplin attorney Dan Whitworth, who he said plans to file a lawsuit to challenge the dismissal and seek Nordell’s reinstatement.
Nordell asked to appeal his dismissal before the board, a request that was turned down by Kelly Stephens, board chairman.
Disagreement
Member Bill Rowland said he thought Nordell’s request should have been taken to the full board, but Stephens said board policy doesn’t allow for such a hearing.
“Yes, but it should have come to the board,” Rowland said. “And I think he should have had an opportunity to appear.”
Carl Francis said Nordell still could address the board as a private individual.
Francis then asked Stephens, who is chief deputy with the Sheriff’s Department, about the sheriff’s plan to end the contract with the center and establish a dispatching center at another site.
Sheriff’s plan
The department for several years has been paying the county more than $110,000 per year to provide dispatching. Sheriff Archie Dunn turned down the board’s offer to allow his employees to work as dispatchers stationed at the center at no cost to the department.
Stephens said he had heard nothing different, and Francis and Jeff Merriman said they would rather keep sheriff’s dispatching inside the county center.
“It would be better for the county and the center,” said Francis. “I’m opposed to another dispatch center when we already have one here the citizens have paid for.”
“We shouldn’t allow it to get any more splintered,” added Merriman.
The center still is dispatching for the sheriff, who has said it will take him until about midyear to equip and staff a new center.
“As far as I’m concerned, he said ‘no’ and that’s it,” said Rowland. “If he wants to stay, he’ll have to come back and ask.”
Dan Stanley said he would question the sheriff changing his mind if Nordell’s departure “is the only thing that’s changed.”
Who pays?
“This center is to serve the citizens, not the sheriff, and it’s paid for by the citizens,” said Francis. “Why would we not want to dispatch as many agencies as possible?”
Larry Myers said the proposal offered by the board would save money for the center, which is paying about $60,000 more in dispatching costs than the sheriff’s contract.
“And taxpayers wouldn’t be paying for another center,” he said.
Rowland said the board would lose control of the center if sheriff’s dispatchers were allowed in, but Larry Newman said the sheriff’s office would only supervise those workers.
“We’re a dispatch center, and we pick and choose who we dispatch,” said Francis. “I still don’t understand why we charge the sheriff and we dispatch everyone else for free.”
Rowland said the sheriff’s charges are for handling non-emergency calls, and that the board decided, when it was created, to serve the smaller agencies that had no dispatching. He said larger agencies, like the Sheriff’s Department, and the Carl Junction, Carthage and Webb City police departments wanted to keep their own dispatching.
“If we can’t serve everybody, then we need to shut the door,” said Francis.
Applications
Board members said 41 applications for the director’s post have been received, and that about five finalists will be selected for interviews.
