By Charlene Sims, info@linncountyjournal.com
MOUND CITY – With just two Linn County Commission meetings left in his term in office, Commission Chair Danny McCullough continued his focus on management of Linn County Park. McCullough has been pushing to make changes at the park, in particular his desire to see the rustic rental cabins at the park being offered on Airbnb.
But his refusal during the meeting on Monday, Dec. 30, to vote to hire a full-time marina clerk for $17.59 an hour morphed into a side debate on wages for other county employees.
McCullough said, “That’s more than most of our road guys make. We have operators making less than that pushing snow at five in the morning.”
McCullough asked for the job description of the marina clerk.
Public Works Director Shaun West explained the marina clerk not only runs the marina, but sets prices on items, deals with customers, sells fishing and state licenses, places orders, helps with cleaning of the cabins when necessary, deals with unhappy customers, resolves fee issues and other problems in the park, and puts in requests for service and maintenance around the park.
McCullough said that his concern was that the county has operators making less than that and he doesn’t think that’s right.
West said that the operators pay needs to be evaluated but that the marina clerk also works a revolving schedule versus spring and summer and works most of the holidays because that is when the park is busy. They give up their time when most people are enjoying their time off, they’re needed to be working, he explained.
McCullough shifted his focus and asked if the staff of the park had gotten anywhere with the reservation software.
West answered that the CivicPlus system and the other one they were looking into both would charge extra fees for people who were just parking or fishing. This would make a $5 fee an $8.50 fee.
McCullough asked what the other commissioner thought. He said, “You guys know where I am at. I want to do a reservation. I want to do the Airbnb on the cabins.”
“We are waiting on to see what the Airbnb costs,” Commissioner Jim Johnson said. He wanted to know whether it was going to take more help.
“I don’t see how it’s going to take more help,” McCullough said. “I mean if we have a marina clerk that’s full-time.”
McCullough asked if all the cabins were rented out at one time.
“During the summer and the peak holidays, I would imagine they’re rented out pretty consistently," said West.
Commissioner Jason Hightower asked how much more McCullough thought the park could make with Airbnb.
McCullough answered, “Probably a lot. I know the cabins in Pleasanton after my expenses in deer season alone, I made $30,000.”
Hightower suggested putting three cabins on Airbnb to see what it looks like and to see if it is working.
“That would be a start,” said McCullough.
Johnson said he would be good with that.
Hightower said that he would like to know what Linn County Park Manager Sheri Loveland thought the added costs would be.
County Clerk David Lamb reminded the commissioners that the expenses that Loveland was talking about earlier were additional laundry and cleaning, because the county doesn’t provide the bedding for the others now so that was where she was talking about more expense.
West added that there was no room at the shop or the marina to keep extra bedding so it would probably need to be kept in cabinetry in the cabins. West said the initial cost and the loss of items was going to be a cost as well.
McCullough said that was no problem because Airbnb takes care of all lost items.
“I did it when I ran Mid-States Restoration, KC Prime, and I was a full-time dad, and I ran the cabins all at once,” he said. “I know you can do it. You can do it.”
The laundry is done at the shop not at the marina so the marina may need to be closed so staff can go up to the shop and do laundry, said West. The details are a hair more complicated than just doing it at the marina, he added.
“I know you can do it,” said McCullough. “I lived outside in the country. I lived seven miles away and I would drive into town with four different bedding to do it every day.
“It can be done and I don’t know why everybody’s pushing back on it because I’ve done this for three years. It’s irritating. Every time we talk about it there’s so much push back.”
Johnson said he was okay with putting electronic locks on the doors and part of the cabins on Airbnb.
Hightower said that was fine.
West asked what the commissioners would like to do about the campsite rental with the parking issue.
Johnson asked how much was made on parking every year.
West said that fishing and tournaments and yearly daily passes brought in a substantial amount.
Johnson said he would like to go back and see how many dollars they were giving up.
The commissioners broke for an executive session with attorneys.
When they came back, they approved a motion to accept the resolution setting Linn County Park fees for 2025.
“As far as the $17.59 per hour for the employee, I don’t think I can be for that. Our road guys, I don’t think it would be fair to them,” said McCullough.
West suggested that if that was the starting for the clerk, he would like to keep that where that’s at and then address the road guys and change them and get them where they need to be that way we are not starting out in violation of what we’ve already agreed to on our pay scale. He said that it could be adjusted before they hire the next Road I operator.
“I would like to stick to the fee schedule we already have for those positions and fix the others,” said West.
“So this is the actual starting rate for the marina clerk?” asked McCullough.
Lamb answered it was one step into that range and that is what the last marina clerk working there was making. The first step would be $17.47 – a 12-cent difference basically.
McCullough asked for the job description again, and West repeated what he said earlier.
“And Sheri’s job description is the same thing?” asked McCullough, referring to park manager Sheri Loveland.
“Sheri would be managing budgets, managing people, managing projects and scheduling larger maintenance projects like bathhouses and getting bids for those items that are needed for projects in the park,” West said. “And then making contacts with the companies that you are talking about for Airbnb or other things to bring you contracts.
“And she’s also the one that made the resolution or typed up the resolution that you signed today for fees and schedules. So, can she and has she cleaned cabins, yes. It’s a small operation and it goes all the way down to that, but generally we like to keep her busy doing work that produces more outcome than that.”
West told the commissioners that no one was in the marina clerk position right now that the former employee had resigned a month ago.
Hightower made the motion to hire LeeAnn Palumbo for the job of marina clerk at $17.59 per hour. Johnson seconded. The vote was two to one with McCullough voting no.
Comments