Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Parks Forestry topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Council questions plan to split parks superintendent and forester roles as DPW seeks to reduce overtime
Summary
Councilors pressed DPW leaders on a proposal to formalize a park superintendent role and to staff up forestry with a tree climber and assistant; the administration said splitting duties will reduce overtime and improve maintenance, but councilors sought clearer offsets and hiring feasibility.
Councilors spent much of the June 1 budget hearing focused on parks maintenance and forestry staffing, pressing DPW and parks staff for details about a proposal to separate a combined forester/parks-supervisor role into a distinct parks superintendent and a forestry crew.
Lede: Mike (DPW director, speaker 16) told the council the administration wants a dedicated parks superintendent so the city forester can focus on proactive tree management rather than juggling forestry emergencies and parks supervision. Councilors said the change appears to create a new funded position and asked where existing pay and accumulated overtime would be reallocated.
Nut graf: The administration presented the change as a long‑needed clarification of duties that should reduce overtime and outsourced tree work over time. Some councilors urged the city to show explicit offsets — for example, reduced contracted services or overtime reductions — before committing to a recurring personnel increase.
Key points and quotes: - Parks staffing and programming: Parks Director John Moakland (speaker 17) said seasonal staffing and programming will expand this summer with targeted park schedules and modest increases for seasonal pay; he noted nearly $200,000 in CDBG funds are allocated to planning and HVAC improvements at a waterfront facility. - New superintendent and forestry hires: DPW Director Mike laid out a ~ $76,000 personnel line for a parks-superintendent/supervisor and proposed two forestry hires (tree climber and ground person) to rebuild an in‑house crew and limit costly outsourced tree work. Mike said the superintendent would be a supervisory field presence rather than a purely office role. - Council concern on overtime and funding: Councilor Graney and Councilor McGrath Smith pressed for clarity about where the money currently paying overtime and combined duties is located and how much would shift versus being new recurring dollars. Graney noted forester base pay (~$70k) plus overtime historically has pushed total annual cost into the $100k–$120k range. - Hiring feasibility: Personnel lead Kelly Curran (on Zoom) and the mayor said recent bargaining adjustments made the municipal pay for tree-climber roles more competitive and that positions will be posted; they said the city expects to reduce some contracted work if hires are successful.
Ending: Councilors did not vote; the council asked administration to provide more detailed line-item offsets showing where overtime or contract dollars would be reduced if the new positions are approved.
