Salida City Council members voted in favor of appointing Monika Griesenbeck as city clerk and Carol Johnson as city treasurer at the Jan. 16 council meeting.
Since adoption of a resolution ratifying the appointments was not listed on the meeting agenda, the appointments cannot be made official until the next regular meeting, Feb. 6.
Council voted 4-2 in favor of Griesenbeck with Harald Kasper and Cheryl Brown-Kovacik voting for Alisa Pappenfort. Council voted unanimously in favor of Johnson.
Griesenbeck originally submitted her name for both positions but withdrew from consideration for treasurer, leaving Johnson as the only person to express interest in the position.
During the public comment portion of the meeting, Louise Fish, Salida, urged council not to appoint Griesenbeck, noting, she “recently lost an election for council and only received about 26 percent of the votes.”
Prior to voting on the appointment, Councilman Dan Shore, Griesenbeck’s opponent in the last city council election, endorsed Griesenbeck.
“I campaigned on inclusiveness and bridging divides, mending fences,” Shore said. “I feel like if we’re going to heal as a community, we’ve got to be willing to step a little bit outside of our comfort zones and be open-minded.”
Prior to the vote, Griesenbeck said her qualifications included serving on city council approximately 18 years ago, and running a local public transportation business for 10 years.
When asked if she would run for re-election, Griesenbeck said, “No.” She also acknowledged that, as city clerk she realizes she would not be able to take part in the public comment portion of meetings.
Johnson said she works as a physician assistant and has an interest in finance. She said she has 10-11 years of treasurer experience through volunteer positions with community organizations, including the Parent Teacher Organization, a booster club and a mountain bike club.
Council later adjourned to executive session to review City Administrator Larry Lorentzen’s job performance during the 6-month trial period of his employment.
After the meeting reconvened, council indicated Lorentzen would be retained and discussed setting his next employment review in 6 months, which would coincide with one year of service.
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