HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes 1995-09-20 Mayor Robert Yee
Council:
Jack Drago
Joseph A. Fernekes
--John R. Perma
Roberta Cerri Teglia
MINUTES
City Council
Municipal Services Building
Community Room
September 20, 1995
SPECIAL MEETING
CITY COUNCIL
OF THE
CITY OF SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO
SEPTEMBER 20, 1995
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN, pursuant to Section 54956 of the Government Code of the State of California, that
the City Council of the City of South San Francisco will hold a Special Meeting on Wednesday, the 20th day of
September 1995, at 7:00 p.m. in the City Council Conference Room, City Hall, 400 Grand Avenue, South San Francisco,
California.
Purpose of the meeting:
1. Study Session - Building Division Reorganization.
Study Session - Reclassification of Engineering Draftsperson, Personnel Assistant, Librarian II and
Superintendent of Recreation & Community Services.
Closed Session pursuant to Government Code Section 54957, public employee performance evaluation,
title: City Attorney.
Dated:
CALL TO ORDER:
ROLL CALL:
September 14, 1995
AGENDA
(Cassette No. 1)
1. Building Division Reorganization.
City Clerk
City of South San Francisco
ACI!QN TAKEN
7:08 p.m. Mayor Yee presiding.
Council Present: Drago, Fernekes, Teglia and Yee.
Council Absent: Penna.
Fire Chief Stark related the specifics of the Building
Division reorganization: Building and Enforcement
have been relocated since last June; we have been
operating as a single unit; minor changes have
been made for enhancement in services which he
feels are important; wants Council to authorize
9/20/95
Page 1
A~ENDA ACTION TAKEN
1..__. Building Division Reorganization - Continued.
9/20/95
Page 2
staff to proceed with the job specs discussed in the
study; he was asked last spring to take a look at
enforcement positions by Council to see if staff can
provide more cost effectiveness and a higher level of
customer service by streamlining the process with
cost reductions; they spent quite a bit of time in the
Division and met with the individual employees,
looked through the files and records, checked other
cities with definitions in place and tried to get the
best of each of those; looked at moving the Division
to the Fire Department; looked at the recommenda-
tion of the Arroyo Study; evaluated the Permit
Coordinator's position; certain positions have to be
eliminated, others created, and certain ones reclassi-
fied; there will be a net savings of $40,000; move
the clerical support; sets up a system of internal
equity; new duties of the Fire Marshal go from
being a part of the wheel to the hub of the wheel to
that of high authority; he will deal with high levels
of policy decision that will affect the City for years;
the enhancement is the attrition of the position of
Chief Building Inspector with cost savings of
$46,000; spoke of the new and outgoing titles;
Senior Typist Clerk to Secretary I with new des-
cretionary duties and provide a speedier response to
the public; Assistant Fire Marshal from Deputy Fire
Marshal, Assistant Building Official from Senior
Building Inspector; Senior Building Inspector from
Building Technician; Code Enforcement will be
cross trained as Building Inspectors; etc.
City Manager Wilson stated there was a question
about looking at the Fire Marshal becoming non-
sworn when the vacancy occurs.
Discussion followed: bringing the two Senior Typist
Clerks up to Secretary I positions; Councilwoman
Teglia will not participate in the Typist Clerk
upgrade because one is her tenant and is a conflict
of interest for her to participate; the action could be
bifurcated and handled as two separate items where-
in there would not be a conflict of interest for
Councilwoman Teglia; the Senior Typist in question
currently has a Y rating in the Fire Department and
the other is Carolee Gibson in Building; Mayor Yee
thought it hard for him to realize that Building
Senior Typist Clerk has enough time to do the Fire
Prevention part because she has a difficult time to
keep up with the building part and if away half of
the time, he did not think it would happen; the
Fire Department wants the two upgraded Secretary
~ENDA ACTION TAKEN
,_~.1. Building Division Reorganization - Continued.
Councilman Penna left the meeting at 7:50 p.m.
9/20/95
Page 3
31 3
I positions to be able to shift responsibilities
and do each other's work; the one does fire pre-
vention work at the 'MSB and that will continue for
some time; that does not show in the Fire Depart-
ment's documentation according to the Mayor;
Mayor Yee felt the individuals will still be
doing their old work and all of a sudden they get a
promotion, but they are not doing any more work;
he does not know why those duties warrant a 20%
raise; Arroyo Assoc. recommended the raise and
Fire felt it should be focussed on the clerical and
administrative responsibility of duties which are
outside of the duties of a Senior Typist Clerk; the
Mayor wanted to know how the Fire Chief knows
how these people will be able to perform; the raises
do not click in until the training is completed;
Mayor Yee wanted to wait until the training is eom-
pleted; the need to change the job specs for various
positions; the Mayor's problem is that the Fire Chief
is using existing personnel to operate the reorganiza-
tion; there is a person acting as the Chief Building
Inspector now and that person may or may not get
the job depending on the performance; there is a
vacant position and possibly a second vacant build-
ing inspector; City Attorney Mattas stated the dis-
cussion should be limited to the duties and not the
persons in there, the discussion must be depersonal-
ized; why is staff creating a new senior building
official, the Mayor needs to know the intent for if it
is to take the existing building official, he needs to
know; it is not in Council's purview to ask, are you
taking the incumbent, because the Council delegated
that responsibility to the City Manager; Vice Mayor
Drago is interested in the Assistant Fire Marshal -
the scope and qualifications of the job, because the
qualifications of the new are identical to the existing
position and have the same educational require-
ments; he does not like the terms equivalent and
preferred; are we putting people in there that cannot
fill the position; the positions are vacant now and
the Vice Mayor would like to see it go out to the
public; the position is not different than a indus-
trial level paradmedic; both positions will be filled
in-house; the title of the Chief Building Official was
being changed for equal status with the Fire Depart-
ment position so both positions will be at the same
level and can act in each other's capacity; that
proves the Vice Mayor's point, these people should
be well qualified to fill the position; the Vice
Mayor will support 2 and the 5 %, but feels the other
positions should be considered after a minimum of
AQ~NDA A~I!Q~ TAKEN
1. Building Division Reorganization - Continued.
2. Study Session - Reclassification of Engineering
Draftsperson, Personnel Assistant, Librarian II and
Superintendent of Recreation & Community Services.
Closed Session pursuant to Government Code Section
564957, public employee performance evaluation,
title: City Attorney.
RECALL TO ORDER:
314
six months; Councilwoman Teglia agreed; the Assis-
tant Fire Marshal position is currently vacant and
will be recruited; a 15% increase for a management
position; the number 1 goal is improved customer
service; the current person filling the building offi-
cial position is on probation and if she completes
probation she will move into that posiition; Vice
Mayor Drago felt the person has no right to that
position because it is a new title; must allow the
person to compete and then go through the probation
period; Mayor Yee stated if the City was going to
pay this kind of money the qualifications should be
beefed up; we are taking the current senior inspector
position and downgrading the requirement; the fire
positions carry shift benefits; public industry is
down sizing and is not offering raises or perks; City
Manager will come back to Council in six months
after reexamining the reorganization and make rec-
ommendations and findings; etc.
City Manager Wilson spoke of the changes he was
recommending: the Superintendent of Recreation is
the subject of a two part review - how it compared
with the Supt. of Public Works in salary, as well as
in the market place; the duties are equal in areas of
responsibility and duties and should be paid the
same; the recommendation is to put the 24% into a
two year time frame; this is a classic example of
gender discrimination; withdraw the last item of
reclassification on the Personnel Assistant; etc.
Council adjourned to a Closed Session at 8:37 p.m.,
to discuss the item noticed.
Mayor Yee recalled the meeting to order at 9:00
p.m., all Council was present, the evaluation of the
City Attorney was completed and no action was
taken.
City Manager Wilson stated a renewal or modifica-
tion of the City Attorney's contract will be on the
next agenda. He will make a recommendation for a
year's time and he feels the rate is equitable and will
keep the entire package in line for the services
rendered.
He stated that the next meeting, subject to
Councilman Penna's attendance, is scheduled for
Tuesday, 10/3/95 and there are three planning items
he would like to address as a joint session with the
9/20/95
Page 4
AGENDA
ADJOURNMENT:
ESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED,
Barbara A. Battaya, City Clerk ff./
City of South San Francisco
ACTION TAKEN
Planning Commission: 1) East of 101 shoreline
policy (refers to a letter from Haskins saying Avis is
leaving the City, since then has been in contact with
two developers that would like to develop that site,
but found the East of 101 language difficult to ad-
minister. 2) He would like to bring back to Council
the interim zoning concept; 3) the McLellan Nursery
property for he had been approached by Greystone
Builders, as well as the McLellan Trust representa-
tives and revisit the subject. In the interim he would
try to get some assurance from BART.
Mayor Yee asked that the meeting be held at the
MSB because of the number of people involved.
City Manager Wilson will contact Councilman
Penna for his availability for the 10/3/95 meeting.
M/S Drago/Teglia - To adjourn the meeting.
Carried by unanimous voice vote.
Time of adjournment was 9:I0 p.m.
APPROVED.
City of South San Francisco
The entries of this Council meeting show the action taken by the City Council ~o dispose of an item. Oral communica-
tions, arguments and comments are recorded on tape. The tape and documents related to the items are on file in the
Office of the City Clerk and are available for inspection, review and copying.
9/20/95
Page 5