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City insurer and fired city manager agree to settlement Wednesday Apr 18, 2018 at 4:32 PM Apr 18, 2018 at 5:15 PM By Tony Boom for the Mail Tribune Fired Talent City Manager Tom Corrigan reached an agreement with the city’s insurer, which resulted in a “substantial” payment, Corrigan’s attorney reported. Mayor Darby Ayers-Flood said the agreement was reached between Corrigan and CityCounty Insurance Services. She added that the city did not have to pay from its funds. “It was a substantial settlement. It actually works out to where he gets the rest of his contract,” said Ryan Vanderhoof of Hornecker Cowling, Hansen LLP. Corrigan was budgeted for an annual salary of $108,558 during the current fiscal year. He was terminated Jan. 30 but had been on paid administrate leave from Nov. 2. Vanderhoof had been negotiating with the city, which stated it wanted to reach a settlement with Corrigan to prevent any future claims. CityCounty Insurance Service did not return phone calls seeking comment on the settlement. Corrigan was terminated for cause Jan. 30 after the city conducted an investigation into allegations of poor management practices and illegal actions. In November 2011 the city reached a $100,000 settlement with former City Manager Jay Henry, who was terminated by the Talent City Council in June of that year. Henry filed a tort claim against the city to preserve his rights to sue over what he claimed was wrongful termination. Delays in completing a franchise agreement with Pacific Power during Corrigan’s tenure resulted in the loss of about $47,000 in revenue to the city for the current fiscal year. Pacific Power and the city were negotiating over a franchise agreement that included a fee increase from 5 to 7 percent. The current fiscal year budget was put together with calculations that the utility would make payments throughout the 12-month period. An agreement was signed last month with PacifiCorp. “Our attorney was working with their attorney on the agreement. It never got finished,” said Interim City Manager Ryan Martin, who is also city finance director. “It was a slow-moving process.” After Martin was appointed interim manager Nov. 16, he pursued completion of the agreement. “It was one of our top priorities,” Martin said. Savings that more than equal the lost revenue by not paying salaries for several unfilled positions will be realized, said Martin. “We have savings from the city manager position. We have had (personnel) shortages in the police department,” said Martin. A report prepared for the City Council while Corrigan was on leave determined that Corrigan had shouted at an employee and exhibited behavior that was substandard for a supervisor, according to a memo that summarizes the investigation of interactions with employees and officials. But the conduct was not deemed to have violated the city code of conduct, the report concluded. Corrigan also allegedly made two illegal recordings of individuals. Under Oregon law it is not legal to record a conversation between two or more people in person unless all parties have been informed it is being recorded. Illegally recording an in-person conversation is a misdemeanor offense. Department of Justice investigators interviewed her about the alleged recordings, said Ayers-Flood. An ethics complaint was filed against Corrigan by Ayers-Flood March 31 with the Oregon Government Ethics Commission. The city had planned to file the complaint but was advised by the commission staff that it must be filed by an individual. The Ethics Commission is now in an initial 30-day period during which they will determine whether the complaint warrants an investigation. A staff recommendation will be made to the commission, which will decide whether to move forward. The staff then would have 180 days to examine the case. Tony Boom is an Ashland freelance writer. Reach him at [email protected].