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Serving Northern St. Louis County, Minnesota

Investigation showed negligence, favoritism, financial mismanagement

Marshall Helmberger
Posted 3/12/20

TOWER— The former fire chief and ambulance director here showed favoritism towards male members of his staff, made inaccurate claims to public officials, and appears to have put the city of …

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Investigation showed negligence, favoritism, financial mismanagement

Posted

TOWER— The former fire chief and ambulance director here showed favoritism towards male members of his staff, made inaccurate claims to public officials, and appears to have put the city of Tower in financial jeopardy as a result of his actions. Those are just some of the findings from an investigation into Steve Altenburg that was made available to the Timberjay at the newspaper’s request following Altenburg’s dismissal from city employment on Monday.
Under Minnesota’s public records law, known as the Government Data Practices Act, that report became public once the Tower City Council took action based on its findings. The city provided a copy with redactions to protect patient information.
Much of the report summarizes the testimony of the 21 witnesses that attorney Nancy Roe interviewed during the course of the two-week investigation, along with dozens of related documents.
The interviews included several members of the ambulance and fire services, local elected and appointed city and township officials, area residents, and this reporter and editor. Altenburg was interviewed for a total of nearly six hours and was allowed to provide documentation to support his position. Roe also interviewed several current and former fire or ambulance staff at Altenburg’s suggestion who lauded his abilities and commitment to patient care.
Based on those interviews and her review of records, Roe assembled her factual findings in several categories, including:
Gross negligence
One of the most troubling findings in the report is that Mr. Altenburg repeatedly showed favoritism toward Josh Villebrun, whose complicated medical condition, which includes a leg amputation, appears to have left him disqualified for employment from the ambulance service. Yet, Altenburg allowed Villebrun to continue to drive the ambulance, despite his physical limitations and the fact that he occasionally passes out due to his medical condition. “Mr. Altenburg’s decision to allow Mr. Villebrun to drive an ambulance in his condition is gross negligence,” wrote Roe. Had Mr. Villebrun passed out or caused an accident due to other medical limitations, “the resulting accident and in all likelihood more than one death would be devastating for the city from a liability standpoint,” wrote Roe.
Roe also cited the fact that Altenburg allowed members of the fire department to take their children on rides on department snowmobiles as gross negligence.
Financial
mismanagement
Roe concluded that Altenburg’s failure to recognize the true costs associated with the ambulance service and the paid on-call service may have placed the city in financial jeopardy. At the same time, Roe concluded that Altenburg “inadvertently created a situation of excessive unpaid overtime,” which remains an unfunded liability to the city. “It is difficult to judge the extent of the financial burden created by Mr. Altenburg because he refuses to provide the necessary information,” wrote Roe. “After speaking with Mr. Altenburg, I have come to the conclusion that he does not have the educational background, expertise or knowledge on how to gather the necessary documents and data to provide this information. Mr. Altenburg does not grasp the concept of depreciation and its impact on actual expenses and costs of running the ambulance service and the paid-on-call service.”
False/reckless claims, statements
Roe noted that the city’s code of ethics requires city employees to demonstrate integrity, honesty and ethical behavior in the conduct of city business. Yet, Roe cites statements made in 2019 at a Greenwood Town Board meeting during which Altenburg falsely stated that the city of Tower and Breitung Township had already approved the higher subsidy payment.
Roe also cited a newspaper article published in the Tower News under Altenburg’s byline, which made allegations against Mayor Orlyn Kringstad, Timberjay publisher Marshall Helmberger, and the Tower Economic Development Authority. Roe described the article as “extremely reckless,” which could have left the city liable to a defamation lawsuit.
Roe said that Altenburg defended his reporting, claiming that the state auditor had confirmed to him that the auditor’s office has an open and active investigation into his complaint. But when Roe asked Altenburg for proof, he provided an email that did not support his claim. “It is clearly evident from the email in question the State [Auditor] did not confirm any such thing,” Roe wrote.
Misuse of
public funds
The report also cited the fact that Altenburg has been receiving extra pay for ambulance runs even though the job description for the ambulance director clearly states that serving as an EMT and doing ambulance runs are part of his duties, for which he is paid a salary. While Altenburg claimed the additional pay was past practice, and Roe did confirm that the previous ambulance director was paid additionally for ambulance runs, Roe concluded that “Mr. Altenburg should not be billing the city separately for his EMT runs when they are included in his salary.”
Questionable
hiring practices
Roe found that Altenburg had improperly fired a female member of the ambulance service, allegedly for failing to make 18 EMT runs during 2017, when the member was pregnant.
Roe concluded this may have violated the federal Family and Medical Leave Act. At the same time, she noted that Altenburg has treated male members of the staff differently. She stated that Villebrun has continued to be an ambulance staff member, and is paid a regular salary, despite having attended no EMT runs since September of 2018. “It should be noted that no written policy could be located about a minimum of 18 EMT runs per year to maintain your employment status,” wrote Roe. “It is clear, however, that Mr. Altenburg applied a different standard to Mr. Villebrun that he did to [the female member].”
In addition, Roe found that shortly after Altenburg took over as ambulance director, he demoted Dena Suikhonen, who had been the first assistant director, and promoted Villebrun to the position. While Altenburg claimed Suikhonen lacked supervisory skills, Roe wrote that Altenburg appeared to have no documentation to suggest that Villebrun had superior supervisory experience. “On its face, this particular action by Mr. Altenburg appears to be gender discrimination,” Roe concluded.
Insubordination
Roe cites several instances where Mr. Altenburg has failed to provide financial documents requested by the city council. Altenburg also attended a recent ambulance commission meeting after he had been expressly told not to attend by Clerk-Treasurer Victoria Ranua.
Failure to
perform duties
Roe cited two instances where Altenburg appeared to lack a basic understanding of laws and rules pertaining to the ambulance service. That includes comments he made at a Vermilion Lake Town Board meeting during which he suggested that the ambulance service could discontinue service to the township’s residents if township officials did not approve a higher contribution to the ambulance replacement fund. More recently, Altenburg insisted that Ranua conduct an investigation into an incident with an EMT who had responded to a snowmobile accident. Ranua initially agreed to investigate the procedures for such a review and subsequently found clear guidance that indicated the investigation must be handled by the service’s medical director and that, as clerk-treasurer, she had no role to play in that investigation. “Not only does this incident demonstrate that Mr. Altenburg lacked the required knowledge for the position of ambulance director, it calls into question what has happened in the past,” Roe concluded.
Among those advocating for Altenburg’s qualities were former Tower Mayor Josh Carlson, former deputy clerk-treasurer Stephanie Carlson, and EMTs Steven Freshour, Hunter Gilbert, Lance Dougherty, and Kim Mattila. All rated Altenburg highly for his leadership skills, knowledge, and training ability, although some did note that he has a “strong personality.” While Josh Carlson rated Altenburg a “ten” for his leadership ability, he described him “as subtle as a slap in the face.”