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Public Works pushes back on proposed cuts to vehicles and manager roles; presents modest fee updates
Summary
Public Works told the committee that proposed deletions of vehicle replacements and several vacant manager positions would weaken project delivery and operations; the department also presented a fee study to update subdivision, excavation and right-of-way fees and proposed temporary waivers for small-business table-and-chair permits.
Public Works Director Carla Short told the Budget and Appropriations Committee on June 18 that proposed reductions — including delaying replacement of four aging vehicles and removing several vacant manager-level positions — would impede the department’s ability to deliver capital projects and maintain city facilities.
The Budget and Legislative Analyst recommended treating the vehicle replacements and multiple vacant managerial positions (including an operations manager for a corridor-cleaning workforce program, a policy and communications manager, a procurement/contracts manager, and an assistant superintendent for landscaping) as policy matters for the Board of Supervisors. The BLA argued some vacancies have lasted several years and that the city must consider the board’s budget priorities before filling manager-level authority.
Why it matters: Public Works said the four vehicles proposed for replacement are in frequent use by construction management staff, have high maintenance costs and are needed to reach job sites quickly. The department also said its reorganization and service expansions — adding responsibilities for medians, street trees and other landscape areas — require additional management oversight and cited a small share of management positions relative to staff citywide.
Short described the corridors program as a workforce-development pipeline that currently includes roughly 150 public-service aides and that the program has produced apprentices who moved into trade positions. She proposed a downward substitution (manager 5→manager 4) as a possible compromise for the corridors role but argued other positions should be retained due to span-of-control and contract volume. “Public works issues over $1,000,000,000 in contracts,” Short said, noting the procurement office also manages contracts on behalf of other departments and oversees complex delivery methods.
On fees, Public Works finance manager Jennifer Marquez presented an independent fee study and proposed modest updates, generally capped at CPI+15%, to subdivision, excavation and right-of-way fees; she also described a proposed waiver for tables-and-chairs and display-permits to support small businesses and permitSF goals. Those fee changes would flow into self-appropriating special revenue funds for excavation and subdivision work and the general fund for select right-of-way services.
The committee did not act on the fee ordinance or the policy recommendations at the hearing; both remain subject to later committee consideration and potential revision.
