Staff Cuts Hit Sustainability Commission

Benicia's Community Sustainability commissioners on Monday met Randy Russell, an intern who will help implement the city's sustainability plans until July 2011. At that same meeting, they began to worry about their own sustainability because it appears there is no funding for more support staff.

After a long series of enthusiastic reports, it became clear  the commission has 27 strategies that would require 300 tasks to complete.  Doug Vu, associate city planner, surprised commissioners by explaining that his workload made it impossible to move forward on that level without more staff support and he did not know of any viable funding sources.

Vu said he devotes 20 percent of his time to the commission, which will be Russell's primary focus, but commissioners say they still need clerical help with tasks such as coordination, research, communication and scheduling.

Part of that work has been done by Terry Baldwin, a senior administrative clerk who has been laid off and is leaving Nov. 1.  According to Vu, other  cities usually have one or two full-time staff to support a sustainability commission.

Vice chairwoman Kathy Kerridge, who ran the meeting while chairwoman Constance Burtel attended via Skype from Minnesota, repeatedly proposed the use of VIP settlement funds to fill the gap, but Commissioner Marilyn Bardet and others insisted that Vu go back to the city with a request for at least a part-time contract "consultant." There was a general consensus that VIP funds should be used for projects, not staffing.

Commissioner Rae Lynn Fiscalini pointed out that the energy savings achieved by the commission are expected to reduce city costs in the long run. "Even if this seems counterintuitive, this saves money in the long run. Not having the staff to do this is huge."

"The city created the Sustainability Commission," Commissioner John Silva remarked. "How important is it?" Silva, a former city manager, said that the work should be spread across all departments. He said he wondered why Parks and Community Services and water treatment departments no longer sent representatives to commission meetings.

 Bardet called for leadership: "This (commission) is important. It creates new channels and bridges within the community and with nonprofits." She was referring to the successful International Day of Climate Action 10-10-10 event, co-sponsored by the City of Benicia and Community Gardens, Inc.

She suggested the use of graduate school interns, noting Benicia's past success with students from the University of California, Davis, and California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, who helped create the Climate Action Plan.

 Vu responded by saying that even researching that possibility and arranging it requires more staff time.

This is a large, active commission with four work groups, each of which has established strategies and action items to support sustainability.

In the end, members agreed to prioritize and prune their immediate goals and provide city department heads with guidelines to execute changes needed for a sustainable Benicia.

Vu and Russell will return to the commission's next meeting with a recommendation of what can be accomplished based on existing staffing levels.

Every work group is looking for more public involvement. Anyone wishing to participate in the public gardens or assist in any way is encouraged to call the City of Benicia planning office, 707-746-4280 or e-mail Doug Vu at dvu@ci.ca.us.