Board member named to manage Columbia Irrigation District

The Columbia Irrigation District Board has named board member Howard Ellison as acting manager of the district.

The assignment creates a temporary vacancy on the board, with Ellison expected to resume his board duties once a permanent manager is named.

The board plans to make final arrangements to advertise the manager vacancy at its next board meeting.

The board says Joel Teeley resigned as general manager of the district around the first of December. Teeley says he did not resign.

Vincent Shawver, newly named president of the board, said Teeley was not showing up for work and was told that if he did not, the board would consider that a resignation.

Teeley said he had four years left on his contract for the job that paid $78,000 a year and that he has not violated that contract.

The contract does not specify that he keep office hours, but does require him to be available every day around the clock during the irrigation season from April 15 to October 15, he said. He was available during those hours of the irrigation season, he said.

This story was originally published February 17, 2016 at 6:20 PM with the headline "Board member named to manage Columbia Irrigation District."