Search for city engineer drags on

BARSTOW • The search for a city engineer is proving difficult for Barstow.

The city has been looking for applicants since former city engineer Michael Stewart retired in April, said city spokesman John Rader.

Jim Mitsch, contracted through the Willdan Engineering firm, has been acting as interim city engineer since late May, according to documents presented to the Barstow City Council. Mitsch retired from the city of Hawthorne as City Manager in 1994, and the terms of his CalPERS retirement only allow him to work 960 hours in a fiscal year without losing his retirement benefits.

Mitsch is expected to hit the 960-hour mark Jan. 28. The Barstow City Council voted Monday to petition CalPERS to allow an exception to the rule so that he can continue acting as interim engineer while the city continues its search for a permanent replacement.

CalPERS spokesman Edd Fong said it is not uncommon for retirees to do contract work after retirement. Although most retirees stay under the 960-hour limit, the agency will make exceptions in some cases, he said.

“In situations like this, if the city gives us a good explanation for why they want to extend the retired annuitant’s time, we will very often approve the request,” he said.

The city engineer position is particularly difficult to fill in a small city like Barstow, said Brad Merrell, co-owner of Merrell Johnson Engineering, who served as city development director from 1997 to 1998.

“It’s very difficult when you are a small city, because you’re looking for an individual that has a lot of experience in a lot of different areas,” he said. “... They’re looking for a person with a lot of experience who’s probably not getting paid the best.”

The city engineer has to run a gamut of responsibilities from applying for grants to handling the bidding process on contracts and keeping an eye on construction projects in progress. In Barstow’s case, Rader said, the city also wants someone who can handle land surveying.

Younger engineering graduates tend not to have surveying experience. Barstow is also dealing with a market where city engineers are in high demand, driving the price up, Rader said. The city hired executive recruiting firm Bob Murray & Associates to recruit and screen applicants for the position. The firm has provided five applicants to date, but none of them met the city’s requirements, Rader said.

Interim City Manager Richard Rowe said at Monday’s City Council meeting that the same firm was successful in finding the city a new finance director. The City Council approved a finance director contract with Terri Willoughby, currently controller of finance for the city of Riverside, at a special meeting Nov. 10.

The city has asked the recruiting firm to repost the position and is hoping to have it filled by spring of 2009, Rader said.

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