The Weekly Newspaper of El Segundo Herald Publications - El Segundo, Torrance, Manhattan Beach, Hawthorne, Lawndale, & Inglewood Community Newspapers Since 1911 - (310) 322-1830 - Vol. 106, No. 8 - February 23, 2017 Inside This Issue Best of the Best.............. 3-6 Certified & Licensed Professionals.....................16 Classifieds..........................18 Crossword/Sudoku...........18 Entertainment......................8 Legals............................ 14,15 Obituaries.............................7 Pets......................................16 Real Estate..............10-13,20 Sports.............................. 9,17 Weekend Forecast 9-1-1 for Education! Battle of the Badges is Big Win for Ed! Police and fire personnel displayed their basketball skills at the Toyota Sports Center on February 12 in the first annual 9-1-1 for Education! Battle of the Badges event. While the El Segundo Police Officers’ Association defeated the El Segundo Firefighters’ Association by the score of 44-32 to claim local bragging rights, all agreed that the true winner was the community itself. In this photo, Police and Fire representatives present a donation of over $4,000 to the Ed! Foundation during halftime. Photo courtesy of the D-Fenders. Split City Council Approves Labor Agreement with Police Officers Association By Brian Simon Finally wrapping up negotiations that initially Ask Around Before Hiring Rainy-Day Repairs By Rob McCarthy Everybody talks about the weather but nobody seems to do anything about it, Mark Twain famously said. The deluge of rain this season is the exception. It came a year later than anybody expected, and California residents and their water agencies to the north are working against the clock trying to avert major disaster in the town of Orville. All of this wet stuff was a no-show last year after meteorologists warned of a powerful El Nino, which turned into a dud. South Bay cities reached their normal yearly rainfall amounts by Valentine’s Day, and that was before last weekend’s storms rolled through and dumped up to four more inches. Rolling Hills had almost 17 inches before the weekend, while El Segundo, Manhattan Beach and Redondo measured 12 to 13 inches, according to Los Angeles County Department of Water and Power. The arrival of the rain this season is a welcome relief for our parched state. However, it also exposes the effects of sun and the elements on buildings and roofs, windows and doors, and delayed maintenance and repairs to them. Rain damage to homes and commercial buildings worsens with every storm, especially back-to-back systems that don’t allow time for standing water to dry. It’s dangerous See Rainy-Day, page 8 started back in 2014, the El Segundo City Council on Tuesday night approved a new labor contract with the El Segundo Police Officers Association (POA). The decision was a split vote, with Mayor Suzanne Fuentes and Councilmember Mike Dugan opposed to the deal. The agreement takes effect as of March 4 and will run through September 30, 2018. Under the terms of the memorandum of understanding (MOU), the POA employees- -currently 54 sergeants and officers--will now pay the full nine percent of their PERS retirement member (employee) share—applicable to both salaries and special compensation. To offset this concession, base salaries will go up 13.5 percent. The MOU also modifies special compensation parameters by reducing the number of education incentive levels as well as the amount of tiers for longevity pay (from five down to three) for future hires. City Manager Greg Carpenter noted that these moves will result in long-term savings. Additionally, vacation payouts will be calculated at the base salary only rather than the regular rate of pay—thereby eliminating the nine percent employee pension contribution portion from the total equation. Sick leave will see a reduced hours cap and will also no longer be counted into overtime hours worked (unless it is forced overtime). Ten employees who already accumulated excess hours will get a one-time sick leave payout at the regular rate. The health insurance monthly contribution will max out at $1,425 a month (up from $1,334.91) and employees will be responsible for any further increases. The agreement also eliminates the annual $750 uniform allowance, saving the City $60,000 a year. Carpenter pointed out that though the salary increase will cost the City an additional $1.1 million-plus a year, the $900,000 savings on the pension side erases most of it. The total additional hit to the City for 2016/17 is just under $250,000 with the vast majority of that due to one-time payouts. Next year’s impact will be $128,000. Carpenter opined that the agreement puts the City in a better long-term position dealing with future costs while also helping its recruitment prospects by offering more competitive salaries. In voting against the deal, both Fuentes and Dugan spoke of their desire for consistency with all the bargaining units. The Mayor also stated that the POA “interjected itself in the last election” and “dragged out negotiations until it had a sympathetic Council.” Dugan added that “several items agreed on early were reversed” and felt that the entire process was “not our City’s finest hour.” In supporting the MOU, Mayor Pro Tem Drew Boyles said the terms are more transparent, simplify various issues and reduce long-term pension costs. Councilmember Carol Pirsztuk agreed, calling this a streamlined contract with simpler language for implementation. Councilmember Don Brann pointed out that the dragged-out negotiations hurt employee morale. He criticized the Council’s previous attempt “to solve all the issues in one fell swoop.” He added, “It’s all about trust and relationships and that’s how we got to tonight finally—and that’s how we’ll make progress and build hope in the future.” Also on Tuesday, the Council adopted by a 3-2 vote (with Fuentes and Brann dissenting) the revised development standards for regulating two-story homes and second story additions in the R-1 single family residential area. As covered at the last meeting, the code does away with modulation (previously required indentations along interiors) that was viewed as confusing and prohibitive for architects and contractors. In its Friday See City Council, page 15 Partly Cloudy 58˚/44˚ Saturday Partly Cloudy 60˚/49˚ Sunday Showers 55˚/52˚
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