Feeling flush, council approves city manager raise

Laguna Beach City Manager John Pietig should receive a 5% pay raise, the City Council decided Tuesday night in voting to amend Pietig’s employment contract.

A second council vote will be needed to finalize the agreement.

Mayor Bob Whalen and Mayor Pro Tem Steve Dicterow were part of a subcommittee that evaluated Pietig’s performance and recommended the salary increase, in part to bring his pay in line with that of other city managers in Orange County.

Pietig’s salary was $216,342 as of July 1, according to the city’s website. The 5% raise would go into effect Jan. 1.

At the suggestion of Councilman Robert Zur Schmiede, council members shortened the length of Pietig’s contract extension by two years. It is now set to expire June 30, 2018.

The city’s financial standing was one factor in proposing the pay raise, Dicterow said.

The city recently learned that it had $4.3 million more than expected for fiscal year 2013-14 and an additional windfall of $2.2 million from hotel bed taxes from April through June that came in after the close of the fiscal year.

The city also learned that property tax revenue for 2014-15 would be $750,000 more than the original budget estimate.

“We were happy and supportive of [Pietig] and want him to stay,” Dicterow said. “How is the city doing? I think most of us feel the city is running really well. Financially, it’s hard to imagine how we could be doing better, though certainly there are areas where we can do better.”

Dicterow added that the city is embarking on several major projects — including efforts to beautify the village entrance, improve traffic and safety on Laguna Canyon Road and update the Downtown Specific Plan — and that a change in leadership would be detrimental.

“Now is not the time I want the city manager looking around [for another job],” Dicterow said.

But Pietig’s raise was not well received by all, including Laguna Beach Police Employees Assn. President Larry Bammer.

The salary increase comes at a time when the Police Department is losing officers to other cities, Bammer said. In the last six months, Laguna has seen one officer leave for Seal Beach and another for Anaheim, he added.

Some law enforcement agencies offer pay for working graveyard shifts or for longevity, but not Laguna, Bammer said Wednesday.

“We have three vacancies and we can’t fill them, and a normal shift has four officers,” Bammer said. “It’s no wonder we are not able to patrol residential areas.”

Councilman Kelly Boyd said Pietig has forgone pay raises since becoming city manager in December 2010.

“For three years John did not take a dime,” Boyd said. “He sat back and said, ‘I don’t think I should get [a pay raise].’”

The council authorized cost-of-living increases of 1% and 2% effective July 2013 and 2014, respectively, for Pietig to coincide with other management employees, the city’s website says.

In 2013, Pietig’s total compensation, which includes salary and benefits, ranked 12th of 17 city managers in Orange County, according to the State Controller’s Office. Pietig’s compensation was $220,441, while Tustin’s city manager was the highest at $289,361.

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Using the UNEXPECTED REVENUE

With the additional millions, council members decided to spend $400,000 on paying down the city’s unfunded pension liability, $500,000 on removing and disposing of incinerated waste near the Sun Valley residential neighborhood and Laguna Canyon Creek, and $400,000 on stabilizing a section of Laguna Canyon Creek in front of the Laguna Beach Animal Shelter.

The creek’s banks in that area tend to erode during flooding, Pietig said.

They also agreed to put $2 million into general fund reserves.

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CLEANER SIDEWALKS

Also Tuesday, citing the unexpected budget increase, the council voted to spend $20,000 to clean sidewalks throughout the city and allot $200,000 to design sidewalk sections along Coast Highway in hopes of improving pedestrian safety on the busy state roadway.

City staff suggested adding sidewalks along Coast Highway from Arch Street south to Alta Vista Way and Victoria Place.

Councilwoman Toni Iseman said adding sidewalks in certain areas is crucial to boosting public safety. She said she often notices people walking along city streets during the summer when trolleys operate.

“If a shuttle goes by, they don’t stand there and wait. They walk,” Iseman said. “I’d like us to have the capacity to clean the sidewalks in commercial areas, not just in downtown but along Coast Highway.”

Public Works Director Steve May cautioned that there could be challenges with securing right-of-way access for new sidewalks.