Monona loses police officer, but plans to hire new chief
By Audrey Posten | Times-Register
Just two weeks after accepting the resignation of Monona Police Chief Austin Wille, the Monona City Council last week accepted the resignation of police officer Jacob Dougherty.
Dougherty was hired earlier this year and, after attending the law enforcement academy, has been certified since early this fall. Speaking at the Nov. 17 council meeting, city administrator Barb Collins said Dougherty, who plans to take another job in Allamakee County, will have to pay back his contract as a result.
“When you go to the academy to become a police officer, for most cities you sign a contract that you will stay for four years. During those years, so much is coming off your contract every anniversary date. If you leave before then, you either have to pay it all up front or do a payment plan. Sometimes the place you go pays it,” she explained.
According to Collins, the cost to attend the academy for three months was $22,000, including officer wages.
Frustrated with the loss of an officer so soon, mayor Grant Langhus proposed pursuing a non-compete clause or similar agreement for future hires. He suggested it could force the agency where the officer goes to pay the contract amount back, plus a percentage of the officer’s salary.
“We haven’t even had Jacob for a year, and now we’re back to square one. It just makes it sting a little bit harder so we’re not losing people,” Langhus said. “You hate to do that, but the city, and especially Austin, put a tremendous amount of time and effort into developing this officer and now he’s gone. [Previous chief] Jo [Amsden] did the same thing, training a lot of officers.”
The council approved advertising for the position, in addition to offering the chief position to a candidate interviewed that day. The individual, whose name was not disclosed at the meeting, boasted good qualifications and a lot of experience, said council member Preston Landt.
“He’s not currently a chief, but was able to address what resources he would use to learn how to be a chief as effectively and as fast as possible,” he said.
The council wanted to act on the applicant quickly, as the Monona Police Department would be without a certified officer as of Nov. 24 due to the recent resignations.
Library report shared
Also at the meeting, Murphy Helwig Library Director Heidi Landt reviewed the library’s past year and looked ahead to the budget for the upcoming fiscal year.
Landt said the mission of Murphy Helwig Library “is to provide services and programs to meet the needs of the community and to encourage lifelong learning and be a welcoming place where people and resources can be brought together all year long.”
“We are lucky to have a great library board and staff who always keep the best interests of the library and patrons at heart. We’ve also been lucky enough to have a city council that recognizes the work we do,” she added.
Monona is the second largest city in Clayton County population-wise, and according to Landt, Murphy Helwig Library had the second largest fiscal year 2024 visitation at 10,397. Only Elkader had more visits, at 11,171.
With 106, Murphy Helwig Library did not have the highest number of programs among Clayton County libraries—McGregor topped the list at 397—but had the highest number of program attendance.
The total of 5,373 beat out “even people who had three times as many programs as we did,” Landt said.
“It’s also noteworthy to see we have the highest physical and total circulation of items,” Landt continued. “So when people ask if people even read books anymore, we can tell you, ‘Yes. Yes, they do.’”
According to data from Landt, Murphy Helwig Library had 19,760 total transactions in fiscal year 2024. That included 15,990 total physical transactions and 3,770 digital. The Elkader Public Library had the next closest total transactions at 18,253.
