Sheboygan city council puts city administrator on leave and opens an investigation into his conduct
Editor's note: This article has been updated to more accurately describe attorney Jennifer DeMaster's comments during an interview with RT, formerly Russia Today TV.
SHEBOYGAN - The city council has placed City Administrator Todd Wolf on paid administrative leave less than a month after the Sheboygan Press reported his controversial response to a personnel issue.
The administrative leave is “for the purpose of investigating allegations and concerns regarding (Wolf’s) conduct,” city council President Barb Felde said Monday. The city attorney will hire outside counsel to conduct the investigation.
The council made the decision in an 8-2 vote, with Trey Mitchell and Joe Heidemann voting against the motion. Heidemann said he was unavailable for an interview on Tuesday. Mitchell declined to comment given his "longstanding rule" of declining to comment on personnel matters.
Mayor Ryan Sorenson said he cannot comment further on what concerns were brought to the city council’s attention because it is an ongoing investigation.
“Investigation will be fair and impartial, and the results will be presented to the Common Council for their review,” Sorenson said in a prepared statement. “Administrative leave is not disciplinary but allows the investigation to occur quickly and fully. The City will not provide further comment on what is, ultimately, a personnel matter.”
Wolf referred news reporters to his attorney, Jennifer DeMaster, for further information, according to a news release DeMaster emailed to media outlets.
“This is a political power grab by Mayor Ryan Sorenson and his political allies to have unfettered access to taxpayer money to hand out with zero oversight to whomever he wants,” DeMaster said in the release.
The release alleges Wolf refused an "extortion threat" by members of a Sheboygan community group in early October to "give the City approved diversity experts." The release alleges the group allied with elected officials to suspend Wolf "to remove the obstacle to their $70,000 demand."
The news release includes no details to support the allegation. The mayor said Wolf's statements, through his attorney, are untrue.
“My personal opinion is that the statements that the administrator made are false, and it is sad to see how this has turned out and how it is evolving," Sorenson said. "The city is committed to doing the work that our constituents expect us to do."
According to DeMaster, Wolf has been instructed not to access city facilities or communicate with city employees.
As the highest-paid city employee, Wolf earns $75.88 per hour, or approximately $13,150 per month. The city administrator is selected by and reports to the city council. The city administrator is responsible for supervising and directing day-to-day administration of city government, implementing city council policies, preparing the annual city budget and providing long-term planning and leadership for the city.
Wolf put on leave after residents raised concerns
The city council's decision to put Wolf on administrative leave follows multiple closed-session council meetings on personnel issues in the past three weeks. The public notices for those meetings do not identify Wolf as the subject of the specific issues, but they came after the Sheboygan Press on Oct. 10 reported on the city administrator’s response to city planning and development director Chad Pelishek repeating a racial slur in an internal meeting.
Wolf told the Sheboygan Press at the time that Pelishek “thought he was in a safe space” when he used the N-word in a meeting of city department heads to repeat what a resident had said at a neighborhood meeting. Wolf was instead “disappointed” in a different director who told a city council member about the incident.
In response, some residents asked council members to reevaluate Wolf’s position as city administrator and investigate sexual harassment and workplace retaliation in the city.
Sheboygan’s former human resources director, Vicky Schneider, filed a complaint with the state in February alleging Wolf organized “hostility” against her after she opposed sexual harassment of a female police officer. The state’s investigation of Schneider’s complaint was ongoing as of late last month.
More:Sheboygan council approves $15 minimum wage for city employees. Here’s what to know.
Wolf’s attorney denounces city council decision in fiery news release
In a news release, Wolf’s attorney said the council suspended Wolf "without cause, reasons, or justification and then threatened an investigation into him based on allegations that he has no knowledge of.“ DeMaster, the attorney, said the suspension "is sure to go down as one of the most politically underhanded moves the City of Sheboygan has ever seen."
The release alleges Wolf was targeted by members of a community group that works to promote diversity and inclusion, as well as a city director.
“Todd Wolf opposes and refuses to cave to bribery, corruption, threats, political favors, wasting of taxpayer dollars, and discrimination practices at City Hall; and his statements led to his immediate suspension, escorting out of the building and threats from Common Council as they handed over his power of Sheboygan taxpayer money to Mayor Ryan Sorenson,” the release stated.
“Council and their activist friends will not tolerate anyone who tries to protect the taxpayers and the City — like City Administrator Wolf has.”
DeMaster is a Grafton lawyer who was fired from her job as an assistant city attorney in Milwaukee in February after she gave an interview to RT, formerly Russia Today TV, in which she said Russian President Vladimir Putin had not violated international law by deploying troops to two breakaway regions in Ukraine. RT is a news network funded and controlled by the Russian government. Putin has since been accused of violating international law with his invasion of Ukraine.
Sorenson did not have an estimate of how long the investigation may take.
The Sheboygan Press is seeking to arrange an interview with DeMaster to ask more about Wolf's allegations.
Reach Maya Hilty at 920-400-7485 or MHilty@sheboygan.gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @maya_hilty.
This article originally appeared on Sheboygan Press: Sheboygan city administrator put on leave, conduct under investigation
