Dakota County finalizes firing of Community Development Agency leader Mark Ulfers

Seventy days after the Dakota County Board told Community Development Agency (CDA) Director Mark Ulfers they planned to fire him, the board finalized the action Tuesday.

The county received "workplace complaints" about Ulfers, and commissioners voted March 3 to tell him he would be fired, for cause, in 60 days. The 60-day notification was part of Ulfers' contract. But as his last day approached, the board decided to keep him on the payroll until Tuesday.

After discussing the matter for more than two hours in a closed session Tuesday, the board voted to terminate Ulfers for cause. Commissioner Kathleen Gaylord was the only board member who did not support the motion.

Ulfers could not be reached for comment.

For the past two months, CDA officials would not release information related to the firing, saying it was not public until the "final disposition of any disciplinary action."

But Tuesday evening, after the firing was finalized, the county would not provide any information about the complaints or the reason for the earlier contract extension.

"We're not giving any interviews. We're just not in a position to do that," First Assistant County Attorney Karen Schaffer said. "My comment to the press has to be no comment."