Minutes - Council - 05/29/2012 - Special

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basis. If so, does the Council support the City Engineer position to be a department head position, including a salary increase. If the split is desired, staff suggests a recruitment for a Public Works Superintended position to oversee the Public Works Operations Division that includes the functions of Building Maintenance, Parks, Streets, and Utilities; this position is proposed to report to the City Administrator as a division manager /non department head. Depending on the outcome of the aforementioned considerations, some back - filling or position adjustments may be necessary. Mr. Ulrich proceeded with pros and cons for each scenario. Scenario A: Separating Engineering from Public Works Operations: Pros: 1) Allows Engineering to be more focused on new projects /development; 2) Allows Public Works operations to be more focused on the day -to -day "routine" maintenance functions; 3) Increased accountability and ownership on Public Works (PW) side; 4) Increased employee development on the PW side and greater sharing of knowledge; reduces risk of talent loss in the event of a resignation; 5) Engineering and PW Operations would function more as a self - managed team with Tim Himmer serving as the primary team -lead for Department Head meetings; 6) Less layers of management on both sides; creating an environment for more innovation and employee empowerment; and 7) Budget savings would be possible if activity was low. Staff sees the Cons as follows: 1) Potential for lack of oversight; who was /is responsible for a given task; 2) Lack of overall Public Works expertise overseeing the entire process; 3) Need for structured communication between Engineering and Public Works; 4) More potential "team" conflicts that bubble to the top. Team members may need additional training on team conflict resolution; 5) Additional workload for others, with potential for time delays, decreased proactive work (especially on lower priorities), missed opportunities for grants, special awards, etc.; 6) Increased potential for errors and/or omissions; 7) Budget savings may be non - existent if consultant labor had to be used, especially with road reconstruction efforts pending; and 8) It is recommended that an additional technical (Drafts Person/Inspector) be hired. City Administrator Ulrich listed the pros and cons as follows for Scenario B which is Keep Public Works Director Position as is. Pros: 1) More oversight over total operation; 2) the City can hire an experienced Public Works Director; 3) Communication between Engineering and Public Works would be enhanced; 4) Conflicts between division managers could be resolved at the department level relatively quickly; 5) More staff resource to devote to grants, legislation, special projects and road reconstruction effort; 6) Improved review and inspection of work product; and 7) Additional staff time to charge back to projects. He noted the cons as follows: 1) an external recruitment for Public Works Director is recommended. Applicant pool may be shallow, given recent hiring by other cities; 2) an additional staff person would be involved with most development related work and more time would be spent on internal communication; 3) Less opportunities will be available for existing staff; 4) The organization would retain an additional layer of management that would be less flexible; and 5) Base budget costs for Engineering/Public Works would remain at current levels. City Administrator Ulrich stated those are the pros and cons as he sees them. He presented the organizational charts for the Public Works Department with the first page showing the separation. He noted there are two potential candidates. Tim Himmer was temporarily appointed for three months and he also expressed that he would be a candidate for the position of Director of Public Works. One scenario shows nine direct reports to the City Administrator which is manageable. Mr. Ulrich stated he supports having the department separate. It worked fine together but he feels we could be just as effective having separate divisions and a little bit of backfill with supervisors and IT people. Special City Council/May 29, 2012 Page 3 of 8