Kenner Fire Chief In Hot Water Over Supplemental Educational Pay

Kenner Fire Chief John Hellmers, who has made a series of controversial decisions including purchasing expensive fire trucks from a politically connected vendor, is in hot water over a decision that he made which effects himself.

ClickJefferson has learned that an internal audit of the Kenner Fire Department’s Supplemental Educational Compensation will show that for several years Chief Hellmers has claimed educational compensation that he was not entitled to receive.

The Kenner Fire Departments has three levels of Supplemental Educational Compensation that each pay $600 annually to those who qualify.  Chief Hellmers has filed, and received, 2 of the 3 levels of compensation for several years although he only qualified for 1 supplemental payment.

Acting upon information received from multiple sources, ClickJefferson filed a Public Records Request to view Chief Hellmers’ payroll stubs for recent years. We then followed up with the Kenner Civil Service Department and the Kenner Fire Department to get a specific explanation as to the different levels of compensation and what qualifications were required to receive each level of compensation. The Kenner Civil Service Department was unaware of the supplemental compensation and the Kenner Fire Department failed to respond to multiple requests.

ClickJefferson then attempted to contact Chief Hellmers directly via telephone and email to ask the Chief to explain the Supplemental Compensation requirements and to show proof that he was entitled to receive the extra compensation that he claimed. Chief Hellmers did not respond to our requests.

According to sources close to the Kenner Fire Department, Chief Hellmers has been given an ultimatum: prove you meet the requirements for the additional compensation before Friday, 5/25/2012, or the Yenni Administration will take further personnel action.

ClickJefferson has also learned that a personnel complaint was filed against Chief Hellmers by a KFD applicant who was denied the opportunity to join the KFD. The applicant was told by Chief Hellmers that the applicant had failed a pre-employment medical test. The applicant discussed the test results with the Doctor who administered the test and was told that the applicant had passed the test and that Chief Hellmers was mistaken.

ClickJefferson will keep you posted on the continuing drama surrounding Kenner Fire Chief John Hellmers.

Citizens For A Better Kenner Statement On Kenner Budget

The following statement was read at the Kenner City Council meeting on Thursday, 5/17/2012

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Citizens For A Better Kenner has reviewed the 2012/13 proposed budget submitted by Mayor Yenni. While time constraints do not allow us the opportunity to fully discuss our issues with the budget, there are several items that Citizens For A Better Kenner has significant issues with.

Employee perks including car allowances and professional development fees for politically-appointed Directors and Assistant Directors are included in the 2012/13 budget. Last year, Louisiana State Attorney General Buddy Caldwell issued an opinion that the car allowances being paid to some Kenner employees are illegal.

In April, several tv stations reported on the continuation of the illegal car allowances. In one report, the Mayor stated that he would take action on the car allowances upon his return from military reserve training. The fact that Mayor Yenni did not take action last year, and still has not taken action to abolish the illegal car allowances is an affront to every Kenner taxpayer.

Citizens For A Better Kenner respectfully asks that the Council take immediate action to eliminate all unnecessary car allowances and any professional development fees that are not directly related to an employee’s continued responsibilities with the City of Kenner. This will save Kenner taxpayers over $100,000 annually.

While agreeing with the Council and the Mayor that salary increases for City of Kenner employees are long overdue, CFABK believes that the increases should be limited to the rank-and-file employees and not include Kenner’s highly paid, politically appointed Directors and Assistant Directors.

The 3% proposed salary increase will amount to thousands of dollars for each politically-appointed Director, the average City of Kenner employee’s salary will only increase by less than $15 per week. While Directors receive thousands in additional salary, car allowances and other benefits, the average Kenner employee won’t be able to afford a tank of gas with their salary increase.

CFABK respectfully asks that the Council use the funds budgeted for employee raises exclusively for non-political employees.

CFABK is also disappointed that the City of Kenner is continuing to participate in a Cooperative Endeavor Agreement with JEDCO which costs Kenner taxpayers $75,000.

Since JEDCO is primarily funded by Jefferson Parish, and, as such, should represent all of Jefferson Parish, we question why Kenner needs to make an additional payment for representation that it already pays for.

CFABK is also concerned with the annual subsidizes provided to the Pontchartrain Center and Center Manager, SMG.

CFABK appreciates that the annual subsidy is projected to be reduced to $443,900, however we fail to understand why Mayor Yenni has not been more proactive in negotiating a better deal for the city with SMG or securing another company to manage the Center. Clearly the City has more pressing needs than to spend $400-500,000 or more annually to subsidize SMG’s management.

While SMG may be filling more days at the Pontchartrain Center, Metairie Dog Shows are not the type of events that bring overnight and weekend visitors to Kenner and fulfill the mission of the Pontchartrain Center.

While unrelated to the budget, CFABK overwhelmingly supports a Charter change to eliminate all political activity for all City of Kenner employees including the Police Chief. City employees should be judged upon their performance for the residents and business owners of Kenner and not on their political views. In addition, the Kenner Police Chief should be apolitical and focus on enforcing laws not influencing those that may be elected.

Jindal, JP Delegation Approve Capella’s Money Grab

Jefferson Parish Assessor Tom Capella’s proposal to increase his budget by 58% at the expense of Jefferson Parish Schools and other government agencies, was signed into law by Governor Jindal. The entire Jefferson Parish legislative delegation except for Representative Pat Connick, who voted “NO”, and Representatives Cameron Henry and Tom Willmott, who were “Absent”, voted to approve Capella’s money grab.

The bill will increase Capella’s budget from $2.73 Million to $4.32 Million with about $500,000 of the increase coming from the Jefferson Parish Public School System.

Capella maintains that he needs a larger budget to add staff to handle the 2012 property reassessment. Every four years, each property in Jefferson Parish is reassessed. Capella has not said why the budget increase should continue in the 3 years after the property reassessment or why the bill says that the increase will be used for for "clerical and other expenses."

State Senator John Alario sponsored Senate Bill 140 and State Representative Robert Billiot handled the bill on the House side.

The increase in the Assessor’s budget will continue until the Legislature changes it.

Capella was elected in 2011 after longtime Assessor Lawrence Chehardy announced his retirement.

Coconut VooDoo?

4/26/2012

Earlier today, I read a Facebook post from a friend of mine. She “Shared” a message from Kenner Mayor Mike Yenni regarding how Kenner was “moving forward” since the city had attracted the Coconut Beach volleyball group and the New Orleans VooDoo’s indoor practice facility to Kenner.

I had to read this information because, Mayor Yenni and I aren’t friends – Facebook or otherwise.

While it may seem to some (including Hizzoner) that I always disagree with Mayor Yenni (see: http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2011/08/legislative_auditor_will_inves.html), I need to give him a modicum of credit here: Coconut Beach was extremely successful in New Orleans and can hopefully continue their success in Laketown.

If Coconut Beach can migrate their existing player base to Kenner and, in the process, offer another recreational outlet for Kenner residents and jumpstart Laketown, it will truly be a coup for Kenner. The indirect economic impact to Kenner from players purchasing gas, meals, snacks and more, while not quantified, could be considerable.

Migrating their player base is a big “IF” however and the jury is still out on whether there is support for the venture among Kenner residents.

The other issue that I have with Coconut Beach is the relatively meager direct economic impact that they’ll have on Kenner.

It’s been reported that Kenner will receive $20 per volleyball team competing at Coconut Beach. This equates to roughly $40,000 - $50,000 annually. For the city to receive such a tiny amount for the prime real estate that is Laketown is a concern.

Hopefully, Mayor Yenni and his crack administrative team have produced data on the economic impact of Coconut Beach that they just haven’t shared with the lowly people that they represent (the residents of Kenner).

So, for the moment, we’ll give Mayor Yenni the benefit of the doubt and hope that Coconut Beach will be more than some boxes of sand at Laketown and actually benefit the city both economically and our quality of life.

The practice facility for the VooDoo is an entirely different story.

While I enjoy indoor football, I can’t conceive of actually going to a VooDoo practice. Maybe people really do that (maybe really bored people).

While it may be nice to say that Kenner is the “Home of VooDoo’s Indoor Practice Facility”, try as I might I can’t find any tangible benefit to the city.

Will people travel to Laketown from New Orleans, the West Bank, Biloxi or even from the Treasure Chest to watch the VooDoo practice? I think not. Is there any economic benefit to the city? Other than VooDoo players and staff gassing up their vehicles, I don’t think so.

So, what do we get with the VooDoo practice facility? Not a whole lot. But, according to Mayor Yenni, Kenner is “moving forward”.

Moving forward?

Well, maybe baby steps.

Walt Bennetti

We're Back - Well, Kinda

4/24/2012

A lot can happen in 3 months. Did you miss us?

After 42 days in three different hospitals, 5 days in Intensive Care, and 2 weeks at home doing the outpatient treatment thing 3 times a week, I think that I'm ready to spend some time writing and commentating. While I still don't have the time to support a full-fledged ClickJefferson.com at the moment, I still can use this platform to discuss issues, thoughts and ideas.

ClickJefferson.com will be back at some point in the near future, but, for now, I need to spend the bulk of my time getting healthy. Maintaining the site, selling advertising, writing, managing, and everything else are all too time consuming now. So, for the moment, writing only will have to do.

First, I need to thank the great men and women that work at Ochsner in Kenner and on Jefferson Highway, at Chabert Hospital in Houma, and those that work at the LSU Clinic on Poydras. The Doctors, Nurses, Nurse's Assistants, Housekeepers, Dietitians and staff were all incredibly patient with me. Their hard work and service made my hospital stay bearable. I'm sure if you asked them they would say that they were "just doing their job". But, trust me, these are some dedicated people, many of whom go unnoticed (unless you are a patient).

When I was admitted to the hospital, I thought that I would be in and out in about a week. Little did I know that I would have 9 surgeries and, hopefully, another one in the near future. I thought that I knew my body. Boy, was I mistaken.

42 days is a long time to lay in a hospital bed. You have, literally, nothing but time on your hands because you don't go to the hospital to rest or relax. It's not a vacation. For me, living on "Hospital Time" meant getting your blood pressure checked every 3 hours; getting your IV replaced at 4am; having an equipment alarm beeping at 2:48am. But you deal with it because you know that when you arrived at the hospital, you were so out of it that you don't even remember your first two days there. When your girlfriend tells you (days later) that a Doctor told her that you could be dead, you're happy to wake up at 4am. You're thankful to eat cold grits for breakfast.

You're thankful to be alive.

The good thing about being in the hospital, if there was a "good thing", is that you have that time on your hands. Time to read. Time to watch TV (who knew that I would get hooked on "Storage Wars"?). But, for me, the most important thing was time to think and reflect. Time to assess and reassess.

Last August, I turned 50. I used to joke that I would never see 50 years old (I won't be joking about that again).

Like most people, I've done somethings that I am proud of and somethings that I am not proud of. I have always tried to not dwell on negative things. The things that I've done that I am not proud of, I did and they can't be changed. I can only look at the here and now, and look to the future.

During my reflections in the hospital, I started to really look deep into myself. What do I really want to do with the rest of my life? What really makes me happy?

More about that later.

For now, I need to keep getting stronger so I can get on with the rest of my life; so I can bring back ClickJefferson.com; so I can continue being a watchdog in Jefferson Parish and Kenner (sorry Mike but, I'm not going anywhere); so I can continue living.

So, for the moment, this shell of ClickJefferson.com will have to do. Stay tuned though, we've got some great stuff coming.

Before I close the first edition of the "new" ClickJefferson.com, I want to thank my friends who have helped me get through this. Your calls, emails, texts, cards, visits, etc., have all helped immensely. I appreciate your thoughts and support more than I can say.

While "Thank You" isn't nearly enough, I need to thank Mignon. I doubt that I would have been able to get through this thus far without her being by my side. It surely hasn't been easy for her and, I'm sure, that there were many places she would have rather been than in a hospital room with me. She has sacrificed a lot and it's not over yet. But, together, I think we'll make it and, hopefully, this will have made us stronger.

More about that later too.

I still have a long road ahead of me and I'm not giving up. Like I said, stay tuned. There's a lot more to come.

Walt Bennetti
Publisher
ClickJefferson.com