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City tightens reins on watershed management By Cat Neushul
The City of Carpinteria is one step closer to a watershed management ordinance that establishes legal authority for implementation of storm water control measures, water quality monitoring and the institution of penalties for policy violations. On June 24, the city council approved the first reading of the ordinance. Increased attention on storm water control by the city is a response to State Water Resources Control Board regulations that went into effect last July. The state now mandates that cities such as Carpinteria, which are designated as small municipal separate storm sewer systems, are required to provide updates to municipal code to enforce watershed management regulations. Erin Maker, the environmental coordinator for the Public Works Department, said that runoff containing pollutants is a major threat to water quality. She added, “It is the largest contributor to water quality issues on the planet.” The program is estimated to cost $140,000, most of which will support staff time implementing, monitoring and enforcing the municipal code. Maker said that the cost of implementation could rise by approximately $20,000 as the details are worked out. The city council will consider the ordinance for final approval during its July 14 meeting.
Study finds most city salaries on par
The council also discussed an analysis of Carpinteria’s salary and benefit programs for employees that found the city, on average, to be 1.41 percent behind market for base salary, 1.65 percent ahead for total cash, which includes retirement pay, and 3.54 percent ahead for total compensation, which includes health and welfare benefits. The compensation programs of 14 cities of similar size, geographic location and budget were compared to Carpinteria’s for the study. Shellie Anderson of Bryce Consulting, the company that conducted the study, said that the city council had a variety of ways to combat compensation disparities that came up in the comparison. The city could adjust salaries to make them commensurate with the market using an immediate or phase in method, or Carpinteria could focus on increasing salaries for employees in classifications that are more than 5 percent below the market. The city council may use the analysis to guide future salary and benefit decisions. Compensation studies were conducted in 2000 and 2006, but staff members emphasized the importance of conducting such a study regularly. “Having a competitive compensation package is critical,” said Arlene
CITY COUNCIL continued on page 5
Ride the wave Photos By Joel CoNroy
Artist John Wullbrandt leads local teens in a mural painting project that transformed a massive blank canvas over the course of one day. The workshop was one of several free art offerings for Teen ArtFest on June 24. An exhibit of art produced in Teen ArtFest will be held on Saturday, June 28 from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at Carpinteria Arts Center, 855 Linden Ave. Carpinteria Cares for Youth funds Teen Artfest. To view a time lapse video of mural painting, visit YouTube.com and search for “Kanagawa/Carpinteria.”