Your City Council: New City Manager's Contract Approved

Richmond Economic Developer is scheduled to start in on his new role as Hercules City Manager Oct. 10. The City Council voted unanimously to approve Duran’s three-year employment agreement with the city Tuesday night.

His annual salary is set at $220,000 minus 12.5 percent, which reflects recent pay cuts taken by city staffers across the board. The full salary would be restored if the city’s finances improve and if the council votes to raise salaries for the employees affected by the pay cut, City Attorney Patrick Tang said Tuesday night.

Duran can terminate his contract at any time with three months' notice. The city can also cancel the agreement immediately for good cause, which includes insubordination, dishonesty and embezzlement. If his contract is canceled without good cause, he will be paid six months' salary and benefits, the contract shows.

Duran will be the first permanent city manager to serve since Nelson Oliva, who went on in September 2010 and in January 2011. Three interim city managers have served since October.

Liz Warmerdam, who has held the city’s interim city manager position since July, said she will continue working for the city for at least six months, as her employment agreement outlines.

Meeting Coverage:

8:05, CITY MANAGER/EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR REPORTS AND RESOLUTIONS

• Receive Presentation From Glenn Howell, Director of Contra Costa County Animal Services  And Consider Adoption Of A Resolution Authorizing The Expenditure Of An Amount Not To Exceed $65,560 For The August And October Quarterly Payments To Contra Costa Animal Services For On-Going Animal Control Services--PASSES with four "aye" votes and Councilman Dan Romero voting "nay."
  

• Adopt A Resolution Authorizing HDR Engineering To Initiate The Permitting Process With Regulatory Agencies For The Intermodal Transit Center Project Construction  Through October 26, 2011 For An Amount Not To Exceed $50,000--ADOPTED UNANIMOUSLY
  

• Receive Report On Current City And Redevelopment Agency Projects (Verbal Report)--The city's real property manager Frank Fox updated the public on some of the city's real property assets.

• Adopt A Resolution Authorizing The Interim City Manager To Execute A Grant Agreement And Accept A Grant Award Of $1,836,680 From The State Of California Natural Resources Agency For The Chelsea Wetlands Restoration Project--ADOPTED UNANIMOUSLY

8, JOINT CITY COUNCIL/REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY REPORTS AND RESOLUTIONS

• Adopt A Resolution Of The Hercules City Council And Hercules Redevelopment Agency Approving The Terms And Conditions Of Employment For City Manager And Agency Executive Director Steven Duran--APPROVED UNANIMOUSLY with an amendment that has the contract address avoiding the appearance of impropriety.
  

7:40, CONSENT CALENDAR

• Adopt A Resolution Amending Resolution 11-094, Rescinding all Health and Welfare Benefits for Members of the City Council, To Clarify The Termination Of State Of California Public Employees Retirement System (“CalPERS”) For Members Of The City Council--ADOPTED UNANIMOUSLY  

7:06, PUBLIC COMMENT

Resident and local school teacher Sarah Creeley asks that the now basically defunct Library Foundation form a new board of directors to be able to free and collect funds to go towards the Hercules Public Library.

Resident Joseph Loo speaks about the Carson Street landslide and recent fire and asks the city to deal with the ongoing landslide problem.

Resident Billy Vogele speaks about the Carson Street landslide. Says he feels like an “excluded, second-class citizen” due to the city’s lack of progress in dealing with the slide.

7:04, The Council has entered the chambers. The council has no reportable actions from closed session.

6:58 p.m., The Council is in closed session. The Council Chambers are less than half filled tonight.