Burke, 41, will fill in during the coming year while City Manager Jerry Gillham is away on a deployment to Iraq with the Oregon National Guard. Gillham, 53, is due to leave late next month.
The decision followed a Tuesday night closed session of about 10 minutes in length during which the full council met with Burke, Gillham and City Attorney Steve Brookes.
When the meeting was reopened to the public, Councilman Bob Rumfelt moved to appoint Burke as interim city manager until Gillham's return, with Councilman Roy Parmentier offering a second. The vote was 5-0.
"Thanks for your confidence. I appreciate it," Burke told the council.
Having Burke fill in rather than hiring an interim manager from outside is supposed to save the city money, according to what Gillham stated in a public budget meeting last month.
While Gillham is away, the city won't be required to pay his salary and benefits, which he estimated total about $110,000. The law requires the city to hold his job for him while he's away on deployment.
It may save the city money, but it also will mean a major shifting of responsibilities among Lakeport Police staff, which already has two unfilled vacancies, putting it at 12 sworn officers.
Without Burke – who also shares in patrol duties outside of his administrative ones – the number of officers will be down to 11.
Burke is already working short-staffed. He told the council during its meeting Tuesday that a sergeant is injured. He's had to move his detective, Norm Taylor, from investigations to cover patrol.
The Board of Supervisors had asked Burke to make a presentation to them last week regarding the school resource officer Lakeport Police has in the Lakeport Unified School District.
However, Burke said Tuesday that unless he hires another police officer, his department won't be able to cover the school resource officer position, and they may have to move forward without it once school gets back in session in September.
"Patrol needs the body at this point," said Burke.
If he had an extra officer, Burke said he'd likely put his detective back into investigations.
Rumfelt asked about finding a retired officer to come on as a 900-hour employee to cover the school resource officer position. Burke said so far he's been unable to find a retiree who is interested.
A retired law enforcement officer himself, Rumfelt asked if he could come out of retirement and do the work.
However, Brookes advised against it. "It might be an incompatible office," if a councilman tries to become a city employee.
Burke told Lake County News in a previous interview that he would move forward with forming a plan for delegating responsibilities in his department once his appointment as interim city manager was certain.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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