Experimental work hours for City of Wellman public works employees are ending this week.
City Administrator Kelly Litwiller says several staff members asked the city council to consider changing their workday hours from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. to a schedule of 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. weekdays. Among their reasoning, city employees argued the shift in hours would make them more available to address the needs of commuting Wellman residents. In the summer, it would also allow public works staff to start projects earlier in the day when temperatures are cooler.
Litwiller says they talked with other municipalities about the pro and cons of making the move before the city council approved the trial run for the month of January. She says they will reassess the issue during their next council meeting scheduled for Monday night.
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By John Butters
Wellman public works employees will have a shift change for the month of January, following council action on Monday, Dec. 21.
City Manager Kelly Litwiller said she had been asked by public works employees to consider changing the workday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. to 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Some council members wondered if starting the workday in darkness during the shorter days of the year would be beneficial for the city. But other council members pointed out that school children are boarding school buses shortly after 7 a.m. and said that there was sufficient light for many tasks.
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By Molly Roberts
It all started with a donation from Jessica Hochstedler Yoder and Yoder & Bigley Relators, who stepped forward to donate hot meals to area seniors every Thursday in January and February. That got the conversation going between Kalona City Administrator Ryan Schlabaugh and Wellman City Administrator Kelly Litwiller about how to best meet the needs of seniors in the community.
The Cities of Kalona and Wellman are partnering to piggy-back off that donation to provide hot meals to seniors on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, as well.
“The need for seniors was out there,” Schlabaugh said. “They weren’t necessarily using the pop-up pantries because they didn’t need the bulk food. The pop-up pantry boxes would be 40-50 pounds and a lot of seniors didn’t feel comfortable getting those because it was just too much.”
The Wellman Rotary Club is sponsoring a food drive to benefit the Wellman Food Pantry.
Donations are being accepted through December 23rd at Freeman Foods in Wellman. City Administrator and Rotary Club member Kelly Litwiller says they put the food drive together to help the food pantry while keeping club members safe amid CODIV-19 concerns, “Normally rotary takes the lead on ringing the bell outside Freeman Foods and then all the monetary donations we get we give them, donate them to the food pantry. So we wanted to make things easier for our members of rotary not to have to risk themselves healthwise being out in the community but still feel they were part of doing something (for the community.”