LAKEPORT, Calif. – Three years after the Board of Supervisors voted to create a separate Water Resources Department it has decided to reconsolidate the department with Public Works, a decision that county leaders said is meant to improve oversight and leadership.
The board’s decision on Tuesday followed a recommendation from an ad hoc committee – formed at the direction of Board Chair Tina Scott – that included Supervisor Rob Brown, Supervisor EJ Crandell, interim Water Resources Director Scott De Leon and County Administrative Office staff.
County Administrative Office Carol Huchingson told the board on Tuesday that the group reviewed past research conducted by the Public Works Department, surveyed the functions aligned under public works agencies in neighboring and comparable California counties.
She said more than half of the neighboring counties reviewed aligned water resources and/or Flood Control functions under their public works department.
The ad hoc committee’s report said the board acted on July 19, 2016, to separate the Public Works and Water Resources departments. The board also approved revisions to the Water Resources director classification description, “emphasizing the technical demands of the role, in recognition of the unique nature of Clear Lake as a large, species-dense and biologically diverse body of water.”
Huchingson said that move was encouraged by a former board member who had a vision of there being more scientific research. However, she said the former Water Resource director said there is less science and more compliance involved.
The ad hoc committee’s report said that, since 2016, “it has become clear that a stronger administrative and personnel and project management focus is needed to support the diverse demands of the Water Resources function in Lake County.”
In June, the board approved classification changes for the department, and the committee credited De Leon with offering “insight that many of the scientific functions are conducted by partner entities, such as the Blue Ribbon Committee for the Rehabilitation of Clear Lake, local Tribal Nations, State agencies, and contractors.”
The report continued, “With Clear Lake as our defining feature, it is essential Lake County appropriately attends to scientific and other discipline-specific responsibilities when managing our Water Resources. Because this work is actually performed by numerous entities, administrative functions must be efficiently completed to ensure this important work can be appropriately prioritized and undertaken. Consolidation of Public Works and Water Resources historically brought efficiencies and opportunities for cross-training. Given the import of the functions of both departments, continuity and the capacity to respond to normal events, such as staff vacancies, is essential.”
As a result, the group recommended reconsolidating Water Resources and Public Works, but leaving the position structure as it is now, with Huchingson adding that Public Works will work on the candidate pool for a new deputy director to oversee Water Resources.
Crandell credited De Leon with guiding the two Water Resources directors that have served since 2016 – Phil Moy and David Cowan – and mentoring them.
“I really think you have the skills to take this on and the abilities to take this on,” Supervisor Bruno Sabatier told De Leon.
However, Sabatier questioned if De Leon had a succession plan in which deputy directors would be cross-trained to handle the department’s different functions.
De Leon said succession planning is on the forefront of his mind. His assistant Public Works director position has been vacant for a few years and it’s been difficult to recruit people.
“I’m hoping that as we move forward with class and compensation studies that our positions will be more attractive and we’ll be able to recruit some qualified folks,” De Leon said.
He said he wants to see the assistant Public Works director position filled as part of the succession planning.
That position also will oversee Water Resources, which de Leon said will continue to be its own department, not a division, as he said there is a lot of pride in the department’s staff and organization. “I don’t intend to change that.”
De Leon said bringing Water Resources into the Public Works Department is meant to help with fiscal and administrative functions, and to provide additional oversight and leadership.
Crandell moved to approve the consolidation of the Water Resources Department and Public Works, with Supervisor Moke Simon seconding and the board approving the motion 5-0.
De Leon told Lake County News on Wednesday that the process to proceed with the reconsolidation isn’t too involved, since he’s been the interim Water Resources director for a month.
“We’ll continue with the recruitment for a director for Water Resources using the candidates we have from the recent advertisement and hopefully we can find a good person to handle the day to day operations of the staff and programs,” he said.
The process, he said, is “basically immediate, and since we’ve already functioned with this structure, it doesn’t require any major changes in Public Works.”
Prior to taking on Water Resources, De Leon said his annual salary was $120,600. The board has since given him a 25-percent increase. “As far as I know, the increase will continue,” he said.
De Leon’s updated salary makes him one of the county’s highest-paid department heads.
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