1 week Ago
The Dacono City Council said it looks forward to a new chapter, after city officials recently approved a $35,500 settlement agreement with former City Manager AJ Euckert, after he was unexpectedly fired in 2023. The council unanimously approved the settlement agreement, during an April 2 meeting. Councilmember Jeff Stainbrook was not in attendance.
The money will come from the Colorado Intergovernmental Risk Sharing Agency, a municipal self-insurance pool of which Dacono is a member. In February 2023, the Dacono City Council unexpectedly fired Euckert in a 4-2 vote during a meeting. At the time, Mayor Pro Tem Kathryn Wittman and Councilmembers Jackie Thomas, Danny Long and Jim Turini voted to fire the city manager.
The council members who voted to fire Euckert no longer serve on the city council. Jennifer Krieger was named interim city manager before being officially named as city manager in December 2024. Euckert filed a lawsuit in July 2024 against the city and the four former council members who voted to fire him.
In the lawsuit, he alleged various tort claims against the city and the former council members who fired him. Later that year, he amended the lawsuit to allege a violation of the Colorado open meetings requirements. State law requires meetings where any formal business is discussed between a quorum, or three or more elected officials, to be public.
Mayor Adam Morehead said at the April 2 meeting that by entering into the settlement agreement the city does not condone any of the alleged violations of the Colorado open meetings requirements, as the city works to uphold the goals of the law. “The actions of a select few individuals that have been alleged to subvert those goals and objectives will not define the city’s overall mission,” Morehead said. City officials will continue to take actions to work openly and transparently, Morehead said.
He said that it feels like a “cloud has been lifted,” and he thanked all city staff for their hard work since the unexpected firing. Councilmember Michelle Rogers expressed her gratitude to the council, for leading the city through the turbulent time, “while wearing a flack jacket and taking lots of shots.” “The flack jackets can come off now, and the city can go where it’s destined to go, and we’ve proven it with our actions and the progress we’ve made in a short amount of time,” Rogers said.
After a Colorado Bureau of Investigation report was given to the city following the firing of Euckert, the council found that Wittman and Long violated several council rules of procedure. The council issued a formal censure against the councilmembers . The council did not censure T homas and Turini as they were no longer serving on the council after being recalled in June 2023 .
Euckert and the former councilmembers who voted to fire him have settled separately for $62,250, according to city materials..
