Since 2005, I’ve served under six Sun publishers, and worked with seven Seal Beach police chiefs (including a couple of interim chiefs), and three Seal Beach city managers. I find myself wondering about how the council will select the next city manager. The council can’t talk about what they discuss behind closed doors, but I can ask some questions in public.
Hire someone without a government background?
A member of the Javatinis Espresso sidewalk gang asked me if the city was going to hire a business person? Seal Beach hasn’t issued a brochure describing what the council wants, not yet, so I can’t answer that question.
The city of Avalon on Catalina Island hired Ben Harvey, to be their city manager.
Before that, he was regional manager for local public affairs with Southern California Edison. He held the Avalon city. manager job from September 2013 to November 2015. The decision to fire him wasn’t unanimous. The reason he was fired was never made public. That’s perfectly legal.
Split the job?
In 2009, Avalon’s city manager retired. His successors were a part-time city manager and a part-time chief administrative officer. Essentially, Avalon split the job between two people; the move saved Avalon additional pension costs. As I recall, both employees’ contracts had to be renewed every six months. However, California Public Employees’ Retirement System rules eventually compelled the chief administrative officer to leave the position. At length, the part-time city manager also retired.
Avalon eventually returned to one full-time city manager.
Hire a retiree?
Could Seal Beach hire a retiree to be city manager? That would depend on the California Public Employees Retirement System and the Seal Beach City Council.
“After you retire, if you would like to return to permanent, part- or full-time employment for a CalPERS employer, you must apply for Reinstatement From Retirement. CalPERS disability retirees can work in permanent, part- or full-time employment with restrictions and limitations while receiving disability retirement benefits. CalPERS’ written pre-approval for such employment is required,” according to the CalPERS website.
“CalPERS retirees can also work as a retired annuitant for a CalPERS employer without reinstating from retirement; but there are restrictions,” according to the CalPERS website.
“CalPERS retirees can work for a private industry employer (not associated with a CalPERS employer), and/or for an employer in another public pension system without reinstating from retirement. There are no restrictions on this type of employment for service retirees; however, disability retirees cannot be employed in the same position from which they retired or in a position which includes duties or activities they were restricted from performing at the time of disability retirement,” according to the CalPERS website.
“If you work for a CalPERS employer in violation of the employment after retirement restrictions, CalPERS is required by law to terminate your retirement and collect the retirement allowance you received during the period of unlawful employment,” according to the CalPERS website.
Hire local?
The City Charter doesn’t require a Seal Beach city manager to live in town. (State law requires City Council members to live in town.) The advantage of hiring a resident is that they would have an emotional investment in Seal Beach as well as a financial investment. The disadvantage is that Seal Beach housing costs are so high that requiring local residency would likely increase the pay the new city manager would ask for—unless the new city manager already lives in town.
Hire a temp?
In February 2017, the council split on a proposal to have a temp replace the director of the Community Development Department. According to Sun archives, Anderson Penna Partners offered to have a retired city manager fill the Community Development director position for three days a week at $150 an hour. If memory serves, this proposal didn’t happen.
Charles M. Kelly is associate editor of the Sun Newspaper.
