One of the finalists for Marshalltown fire chief resigned from his former city's fire department amid controversy earlier this year.
In March 2009, Watertown, Wis., Assistant Fire Chief Michael Quint sent a letter to Watertown's mayor and the president of the city council. In that letter, Quint said that he was making a formal complaint against Fire Chief Henry Butts.
"I believe Chief Butts with his comments to me in regards to termination on a weekly to almost daily basis has done nothing but create a hostile work environment for me, making working conditions virtually impossible," Quint wrote. "Since this constant barrage has started, I have found it nearly impossible to do my job without making errors due to the constant worrying of what or when he is going to make threats again or even carry it out."
Butts filed a list of charges against Quint Dec. 2, 2009, in which he accused his assistant fire chief of a number of violations, including failure to follow established protocols resulting in safety hazards, failure to complete obligations as training director, misrepresentations to cover up mistakes, and failing to respect the chain of command and confidentiality requirements of the department.
"Quint was a good employee for most of his career with the department. In the last year, however, AC Quint's performance has taken a drastic turn for the worse," the chief's complaint stated.
Quint said in his letter that Butts' language was abusive, a charge that Butts did not outrightly deny.
"Admittedly, some of these exchanges involved language that might be considered harsh, but that is not unusual in this or other firehouses," Butts said in his filing of allegations.
At the end of the filing, Butts recommended that Quint be removed from his position with the department.
In a response two days later, Quint accused the chief of misconduct.
"The nature of any fire service requires that all members of a department function as a harmonious, supportive company," Quint said in the filing through his attorneys. "Chief Butts has used demeaning, hostile, intimidating and nonprofessional language to Assistant Chief Quint, other management staff and members of the department."
Quint asked that the police and fire commission in Watertown schedule the complaint for an evidentiary hearing and suspend the chief with pay until the entire matter can be heard and a decision made.
Instead of doing that, the city and Quint reached an agreement in which Quint would resign and receive severance payments totaling $57,086 in January of this year.
Quint said the entire issue boiled down to a personality conflict on many different levels.
"There was a conflict in personalities, operational styles, managerial styles and other things," he said.
However, he said his conflicts with the chief did not permeate into other relationships at the department.
"I had the support of the union and had nine of them [union firefighters] testify for me when the police did their investigation," he said.
Nathan Stucky, human resources director for the city of Marshalltown, said the process will continue as planned.
"As for the allegations on Michael Quint, we are currently still in the selection process and Mr. Quint is still considered as a finalist," he said.
City Administrator Randy Wetmore will interview and select the candidate he finds most suitable, and then the city council will vote to approve.
If Acting Chief Steve Edwards is selected, his appointment will be effective immediately.
If Quint or the other candidate, Gerald Ezell, is selected, Stucky anticipated a start date no later than Sept. 1.
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Contact Ken Black at 641-753-6611 or kblack@timesrepublican.com