Riverside council votes to install panic buttons

RIVERSIDE - The Riverside City Council voted 3-2 this week to install panic buttons at City Hall offices and council chambers after an official said she received a threatening phone call.

“He started yelling and telling me that I better watch my back,” City Clerk Missy Carter said. “(He said) he's my boss and he'll decide if I have a job.”

The resident who made the phone call, Larry Simon, denied that he ever made a threat, despite Carter's allegations.

“I definitely did not threaten anyone,” Simon said Friday. “Did I curse, yes, but this has been blown out of proportion.”

Simon said he placed a call to City Hall from his office in Iowa City late last month to inquire about a recent audit. When neither Carter nor the deputy clerk could provide the information, Simon became upset, Carter said.

Riverside Mayor Bill Poch said he advised both employees to call the sheriff's office if they were concerned. Poch said after speaking with the employees and Simon, he never felt anyone was in danger.

“I happen to know (Simon) and I went up and spoke with him,” Poch said. “He concurred to me that absolutely no threat was made.”

Regardless, the city has begun exploring new security options at City Hall, which Poch said could come at a hefty cost to the taxpayers.

“I just don't think anyone should work in a city office and be afraid of someone making a threat,” council member Chris Kirkwood said.

The debate over new security measures is the latest in a string of disagreements at City Hall. Earlier this year, some council members challenged Poch after he vetoed a plan to build a new splash pad.