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HomeMy WebLinkAbout9H - PW Coordinator Position CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT June 17, 2002 9H Frank Boyles, City Manager AGENDA ITEM: CONSIDER APPROVAL OF A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE ADDITION OF THE POSITION OF PUBLIC WORKS COORDINATOR TO THE 2002 SEWER AND WATER BUDGET. DISCUSSION: History: The City Council will recall that earlier this year, you received a memorandum from Public Works Director Bud Osmundson which detailed numerous Public Works projects which are underway or contemplated (attached). Earlier this month, the City Council adopted the 2003-2007 Capital Improvement Program which further refined the number and types of projects the Public Works department will be engaged in during 2003 and beyond, The City Council is also aware that through a reorganization two years ago, the park maintenance division has reported to the Public Works Director. Current Circumstances: Our experience has shown that the amalgamation of the maintenance divisions (street, sewer, water and parks) into the Public Works department has been very beneficial in the sharing of equipment and resources to get work done. Ryan Park is an excellent example where crews from each maintenance division have worked to complete this project. Equipment sharing has also been more frequent and the cooperation between Maintenance Supervisors AI Friedges and Craig Eldred has been on-going. What was not anticipated is the additional amount of administrative responsibility that the Park Maintenance Supervisor would take on. Administrative responsibilities have taken much of the time originally devoted to completing projects. The Public Works Director has not been able to provide significant contribution in this area since the Public Works project schedule has also been heavy, including such projects as the new Well, Ring Road, Commerce/Boudin Intersection, and the water meter replacement project. Numerous projects are expected to be undertaken but are not yet underway including storm water management planning, well head protection program, water tower maintenance and Downtown streetscape improvements. Over the next five to seven years, I expect our Capital Improvement activity to continue to increase, The Public Works Director, City Engineer and Asst. City Engineer will continue to be called upon heavily to complete these projects, Conclusion: It appears that the City will not have adequate personnel to complete the current menu of projects at the level of detail required, let alone 16200 Eagle Creek Ave. S,E" Prior Lake, Minnesota 55372-1714 / Ph. (952) 447-4230 / Fax (952) 447-4245 1:\COUNCIL\AGNRPTS\2002\PW COORDINAJ:~1!ilQGpPORTUNITY EMPLOYER ISSUES: ALTERNATIVES: RECOMMENDED MOTION: those which are in our future. For this reason, I am recommending the addition of a full-time Public Works Coordinator, The proposed position would be financed from the sewer and water operating budgets since many of the major projects of the position will benefit these activity areas. (See attached job description), We are finalizing our survey of salaries for comparable responsibilities. I expect that the salary range for the position will be in the vicinity of $44,000 - $58,000 which is equivalent to the Planning Coordinator and Recreation Supervisor, I expect that we would retain this position as long as the backlog of Public Works projects exists and until the workload is reduced either by the economy or because development in Prior Lake begins to ebb, The addition of this position is responsive to the City Council's goal of addressing the Public Works issues which we previously identified for the Council. (1) Motion and Second to adopt a Resolution authorizing the addition of a full- time Public Works Coordinator position to be funded from sewer and water operating funds. (2) Take no action and direct the staff to provide additional information. Alternative No. (1). I :\COUNCIL\AGNRPTS\2002\PW COORDINA TOR.DOC RESOLUTION A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE ADDITION OF A FULL-TIME PUBLIC WORKS COORDINATOR POSITION IN THE 2002 SEWER AND WATER OPERATING BUDGETS Motion By: \)r Second By: ~1: WHEREAS, several significant sewer and water projects and contemplated or underway; and WHEREAS, examples of such projects include water meter change out, water tower painting, lift station maintenance, well development, water treatment plant, lift station SCADA, and well head protection program; and WHEREAS, the City Manager has indicated that administrative help is also needed in the development of parks, wetland projects and safety policies; and WHEREAS, in a report dated June 17, 2002, the City Manager recommended the addition of the full- time position of Public Works Coordinator, funded from the sewer and water operating budgets. NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF PRIOR LAKE, MINNESOTA that: 1, The recitals set forth above are incorporated herein. 2. The City Manager is authorized to recruit and hire one full-time Public Works Coordinator position, the costs of which are to be drawn from the Sewer and Water Operating budgets. PASSED AND ADOPTED THIS 17th DAY OF JUNE, 2002. YES NO Haugen 1\ Haugen Gundlach \ Gundlach LeMair \ LeMair Petersen \ Petersen Zieska \ Zieska \ City Manager, City of Prior Lake 16200 Eagle Creek Ave, S,E" Prior Lake, Minnesota 55372-1714 / Ph, (952) 447-4230 / Fax (952) 447-4245 AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER MEMORANDUM To: Frank Boyles, City Manager From: Bud Osmundson, Public Works Director Sue McDermott, City Engineer Date: January 13, 2002 Re: Workload / Projects Situation Our current workload and recent additions to it, have caused us to review and analyze our staffing needs and the prioritization and timing of some projects. We realize the entire city staff is busy, but the proj ects that involve engineering and public works usually take a minimum of two years from initiation to completion. Most other departments have projects that only take a few months to review and have the city council act on, and they are done with them. Our projects include those same projects; we review the submittals simultaneously as other departments, but then we have to get even more involved through construction. Then even after construction, we are involved in following up with new residents questions about construction details. We believe that the current situation requires some major changes. Currently the major projects get a quick review or have significant time lapses between periods of staff action. The results can cost the city financially through project change orders, and can also affect our relationships with developers due to changes being required after construction has begun. These issues not only may make the staff look confused and bewildered, but they also are a reflection on our city in general. We want the staff and city council to work as a team, with positive results down the road. The projects that have been started and are of the highest priority include: . CSAH 42 and CSAH 83 · Well No, 7 - FJG · Well No, 8 - Jordan . Ring Road Phase I & 2 . Pavement Management System (PMS) . PLSL Outlet Channel . Meter Replacement / Radio Read This list does not include the Well Head Protection Plan, required by law, which is a huge undertaking requiring significant public involvement and numerous meetings. It does not include the completion of a DN"R Appropriation Permit for Well No, 6, required now that 17073 Adelmann S1. S.E" Prior Lake, Minnesota 55372 / Ph, (952) 440-9675 / Fax (952) 440-9678 AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER \ , .5 N A e f\ ?.., \)fv IL):oJ< - t O""~A. \3; El'....).,\ ,\-" ' "'- Jj t..~,-, r"" . c, c.L., \- .~.... it is on-line, It does not include any of the developer initiated projects, There are 13 development projects in various stages in 2001 and will not be completed until 2002. There are at least 4 "in-fill" projects in the planning stage for 2002, which require more staff time than development proj ects on bare agricultural land. The following list of projects should be done in 2002 for various reasons, all of which will require significant engineering and public works staff time: · Pixie Point reconstruction project · Stormwater and Wetland Management Plan · Water, Sanitary Sewer, and Storm Water Utility Rate Study · Tower Street Water Tower Repairs ~ '?... ~h. bf'r?'. ) 'I Y, Due to all the aforementioned projects, we are not spending enough time on day-to-day operations in running our department. Weare not spending enough time on the following list of duties including: Capital Improvement Plan analysis, Municipal State Aid System, as-builts, lift station renovations, mapping, review and analysis of the purchasing of equipment, budget review, and space needs. We have not included any of the Parks CIP projects, which Al is doing a great job with, but do require Bud's time to review and many of which require Engineering department time to construct. Sue has an exceptional group of employees in the engineering area; however they are relatively inexperienced and require more supervision and oversight than we are currently providing. We have applied for funding from MnDOT for the TH 13 / Commerce-Boudins intersection and the TH 13 / CSAH 23 - Five Hawks intersection projects which has taken up many hours of staff time in the past month. Each of these projects are two million dollar projects which will take significant staff time to manage when they are funded by MnDOT, and there is a good possibility that the Commerce-Boudins project will be funded in 2002 or 2003. We also have the Main Street / Lakefront Plaza project on the horizon which will take significant staff time in 2002, whether it is constructed in 2002 or 2003, On the 2003 - 2006 horizon we have another group of huge projects in the CIP including: the County Road 12 reconstruction project; the Crest water tower repainting; the TH 13 / 1 50th Street intersection improvements; the TH 13 / CSAH 44 / Main Street intersection improvements; the CSAH 21 extension to the north of CSAH 42; the CSAH 82 reconstruction project; plus annual city street reconstruction projects. Prooosed Solutions The following is a list of proposed solutions which we put together in a brainstorming session and which require some serious discussions with you at your earliest convemence, 1. With current staffing levels, all of us including staff and the city council, have to be careful in not promising residents and developers projects that satisfy their 'T ~7';;i' '~, '..'.,.\.,:.,,',..,," \ 1, ' :' ') concems or issues, but which cannot be delivered without sacrificing the quality of work, We should consider pushing back to 2003 the Pixie Point Reconstruction proj ect - ,: 0 scheduled to completed by the city engineering department in 2002, We should consider pushing back the Main Street reconstmction project to 2003, - c) k- which is associated with the Lakefront Plaza project. We should promote Sue to Assistant Public Works Director / City Engineer and _ ~ 0 ~ I Y &Nt>j hire an Assistant City Engineer with enough experience and in a salary range of approximately $60,000 who can manage major projects. Hire fim1(s) immediately to perfom1land acquisition negotiations for projects -) f v!' ;' ( :'; / including the Ring Road, the TH 13 / CSAH 23 - Five Hawks intersection ..::r 5tH-. /, I h (NAP A building), the TH 13 / Commerce-Boudins intersection (Assembly of God Church), Hire an experienced technician from a consulting firm to assist in the engineering - ti 1,/0/; /"('1 department for two to four months to assist in catching up in mapping, asbuilts, etc. Hire a consultant to complete feasibility report and design of the Pixie Point _ va l/\J- reconstruction project for 2002. Hire a pool (2 to 4) of engineering finns to work off a nationally accepted standard sliding scale, and signed to the city's standard professional services contract, so that we do not have to spend significant time in writing request for proposals and council agenda items each time we want to hire a consultant for a project. .., .:1. 4. 5. 6. 7, 8. I' \ I' . 4 Co-~'" "- L O\....... ~ \. ~. , ~-t' \-.L,( +!-.1'"'-- fe' \ ,-<' 1 In summary, we need to seriously consider a prioritization of projects, consider our staffing needs, and consider the hiring of consultants for these projects very quickly. Thank you for your consideration of these suggestions. June 11, 2002 CITY OF PRIOR LAKE JOB DESCRIPTION POSITION: DEPARTMENT: REPORTS TO: EMPLOYMENT STATUS: Public Works Coordinator Public Works Public Works Director Exempt Primary Function: This position will assist the Public Works Director with administrative duties and special projects; provide assistance in coordinating public works service delivery and assist in the preparation and monitoring of operating budget and capital improvement programs. Position will also perform research, development and analysis for special projects and/or various public works policies and operations and recommend effective operating procedures. Essential Functions: 1. Assist the Public Works Director in coordinating, preparing and assembling reports, operational expenditure and revenue budgets, long-range capital improvement programs, emergency preparedness and disaster plans, standard operations procedures manual, safety procedures, publications and newsletters. 2. Perform research on special projects, collect data and prepare reports presenting information and conclusions. Act as project manager on projects when assigned. 3. Coordinate the preparation of City Council agenda items related to public works, 4, Assist with the following administrative support services: . Review legal notices, advertisements, contracts, etc. for compliance with State laws, city policies and department procedures. . Prepare, update and monitor the implementation of the Policies and Procedures Manual for the department. . Coordinate intra-divisional and inter-department activities. . Coordinate and maintain a critical path scheduling process system. 5. Assist the Public Works Director in the preparation, implementation, and monitoring of various agreements, contracts, leases, franchises and licenses. Prepare requests for proposals, scope of services and assist in the procurement of services and equipment. 6. Provide positive public relations for the department by: . Review, record and investigate citizen complaints, evaluate needs, ensure prompt response and provide follow-up. · Coordinate preparation of public relations material, surveys, newsletter articles, etc, · Establish and maintain liaison relationship with various citizen groups. 7. Supervise the Public Works Secretary position and coordinate and manage the hiring, training, assignment and evaluation of seasonal or temporary technical employees within the department. 8. Attend meetings and serve on committees as needed. 9, Performs other duties as assigned. Work Contacts: Considerable contact with other employees, city departments, contractors, developers, outside agencies, and the general public. Contacts require tact and diplomacy. Knowledge, Skills and Abilities: 1. Knowledge of the following: · The general principles and practices of land development; street and utility construction, rehabilitation and maintenance strategies; and design, plan review and contract/construction management. . Infrastructure or pavement management systems and Geographic Information Systems. . Personal computer, word processing and spreadsheet programs. . Safety and environmental laws, procedures and reporting requirements. . Traffic control devices and management. 2. Posses skills in the following: . Organization and problem solving. . Public speaking, grammar, editing and technical writing. . Supervising, training and motivating personnel. . Delegating work responsibilities and monitoring quality control. 3. Abilities: . Communicate effectively both orally and in writing. . Be innovative, creative and a self-starter and independent worker. . Effectively manage workloads and time commitments. . Interact with the City management team and be a team player with all City employees and departments. . . Think analytically and solve complex problems in a rational and logical manner. · Perform the essential position duties and responsibilities under the working conditions described. Qualifications: 1. Four years of progressively responsible public works administrative experience, construction management experience or engineering experience in the public sector or consulting engineering firm, including (1) year supervisory experience. 2. An Associates Degree from an accredited college or university in civil engineering technology, business administration or related field, 3. Bachelor's degree in civil engineering, public works administration, business administration or related field desirable. 4, Any equivalent combination of the above experience and training which provides the knowledge, skills and abilities to perform the work. 5. Possession of or ability to obtain a valid Minnesota driver's license, ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS: . General office conditions. . Construction site visits, inspections and surveys. . Position requires driving. PHYSICAL DEMANDS: ( . Climbing or lifting may be required at construction site visits. MENTAL DEMANDS: . Occasional anxiety due to time constraints and deadlines. . May occasionally deal with upset citizens, including but not limited to developers and contractors, . May attend evening meetings and other events during hours outside office hours