Help Wanted (again)

I wonder which one of Elaines friends will be lured into this:



DEVELOPMENT SERVICES DIRECTOR
$73,270 - $91,578 annually (DOQ)
Application Deadline: Open until filled

Position
The City of Sierra Madre is seeking an experienced and committed city planning professional to lead the planning, building and redevelopment functions of the City. The Development Services Director is one of seven department heads and a member the executive management team. The position is also the Assistant Executive Director of the Redevelopment Agency. In a strong teamwork-oriented environment, the Director provides expert professional and highly responsible and complex administrative support concerning planning related matters to the City Manager, Planning Commission and City Council. This position is responsible for coordinating activities with other City Departments and external agencies.

It is interesting this job is not posted on the City Website (yet). Following a copy of the text on the job flyer, that's a boat load of work, especially with all the Measure V implications (oh, God, did I say V?).

etc. etc. etc.

"I didn't get the job because" Or "Lame Excuses"

I wonder why the PSN fet compelled to write a story called Tenacious veteran city manager likes challenge of job. Here is the whole PSN story about the losing contender for City Manager.

Perhaps the sources they interviewed that were not completely reliable made them feel a bit guilty about all the bad press Mr. Baxter ultimately received.

Brad Baxter claims he didn't get the job because...

Baxter admits that, because of his demeanor, he quickly makes both fans and adversaries in the cities where he works.

"My career reputation has always been as a change agent and a person who has been able to tackle hard things," he said.

That reputation, along with reports of his short stays in certain cities, may have cost him the city manager position in Sierra Madre, he believes

WIth that attitude he probably would not have lasted long before he started pissing off Council and Staff. Now he reins over beautiful Beaumont. Wonder how they like him there?

Taco Tuesday

All has been quiet here, other than the bear that has been hanging out in the canyon. I forgot to mention the "Neighborhood Watch" meeting for the Marlborough Terrace Canyonites that was last Tuesday at Mary's Market. OOPS.

Anyhow, if you have not yet been to Taco Tuesdays at Mary's Market, you really should give it a try. Its nice to see everyone, and support the small local establishment.

More SM Dirt

An inside source tells me that the Planning/Development Services Director has resigned. I tried to call City Hall this morning to confirm, how ever it was closed. Didn't realize it was a holiday. Oh and according to my friend Ed over at Inside SoCal the Police Chief is not resigning.

Los Angeles County's first-ever female police chief vehemently denies rumors that she is planning to take her leave of the city of 11,000.
"I don't know how that (rumor) got started," said Marilyn Diaz Diaz, who resides in Sierra Madre, on Tuesday afternoon. "I have not applied elsewhere, and I have no plans to. I love working and serving in Sierra Madre. I think it's the perfect place to be a police chief."
She said she was surprised to hear from officers in other police departments who heard she had applied to work for their department.

So lets see what gives here, and what staff is left for Elaine to supervise.

You're IT!

I've been tagged. Yep, first time in years of blogging. And by no other than the next Mayor of Pasadena!

So here is the deal:

If you could go back to any time in history (for a visit, or you can stay if you really want to), what time would you go back to?

Make a list of four. Name the place, year(s), and event and/or person you’d like to see first hand. In the fifth item (optional) you can put your four honorable mentions. Then tag four people, and send them an e-mail to let them know you’ve tagged them. That’s it!

That's it? That's it. OK, this is gonna take some effort.

1. December 1, 1955 Montgomery, Alabama. I would have liked to have been on the Bus when Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat and began the Montgomery bus boycott.

2. California, Owens Valley and Mono Lake before the turn of the century. I would have loved to see this part of California before the water wars started. Also a bit later to have been among some of the Artists that captured that beauty, Ansel Adams.

3. About 2,550 B.C., Ancient Egypt. I want to see how those pyramids were really built.

4. Diagon Alley Village of Hogsmeade, England, present day. Just because.

Ok I am tagging! Jill at eyelevel Pasadena, Ed (or Kate) at Editors corner (maybe he will come out to blog this), Claremont Insider and Daisy the dog. Ok also tagging Amanda Living in Monrovia!

Pretty Penny

Well our new CM will be making a pretty penny, $35,000 a year more than our previous CM. Maybe he might have stayed for that kind of dough. The PSN reports:

Aguilar will be receiving $137,500 annually in the job, a jump from former City Manager John Gillison's salary of $103,000 a year.

Her old boss said:

"She coordinated all agenda reports we used to put out or any analysis I needed done. She (created) an excellent work product, and she had a great rapport with community."

But can she run a City?

Lets hope shes worth it.

Finally!!!! - UPDATED

Well I just got it straight from the horses mouth at City Hall! Elaine Aguilar, former Assistant to the City Manager in Glendale, is now the City Manager of Sierra Madre. I should have the press release in my hot little hands very soon.

Oddly enough the meeting was at 8 am this morning to accomodate Enid Joffe who attended from Ireland.

Here is the press release:

Press Release
City of Sierra Madre Announces New City Manager, Elaine Aguilar
Sierra Madre, CA – After interviewing many excellent candidates, the City of Sierra Madre has hired a new City Manager. The City Council unanimously selected Elaine Aguilar, who will assume the post effective August 27, 2007. Ms. Aguilar brings more than twenty-three years of local government experience to the job, and has held the positions of Management Analyst,Administrative Services Manager, Assistant City Manager and most recently, the Assistant to the City Manager for the City of Glendale, California. Ms. Aguilar enthusiastically accepted the position, saying, “I look forward to joining the Sierra Madre staff, and working with the City Council, residents and business owners to find creative solutions to the issues facing the community. Sierra Madre is a great city, and this is a fantastic opportunity.”

Ms. Aguilar has worked in Glendale since June of 2001 as the Assistant to the City Manager where she was primarily responsible for the City’s intergovernmental and regional relations, and served as the Executive Director of the Arroyo Verdugo Cities, a sub-region of the Southern California Association of Governments. She was also involved with Glendale’s Commission on the Status of Women, the City’s nteragency Communications Interoperability System (ICIS), and she also handled a variety of special projects.

"We approached the decision of who would be our next City Manager understanding that this would be one of our most important decisions,“ stated Mayor Pro-Tem Joe Mosca, “Together, we reviewed many resumes and interviewed several outstanding candidates for the job. In the end, we felt that Elaine Aguliar stood out from the group as someone that had the personality, skills, and experience to manage our city and help us move forward. I am extremely excited that we were able to find such an amazing person and I look forward to working with Elaine to solve the challenges facing our community."

Glendale City Manager, Jim Starbird, spoke glowingly of Sierra Madre’s new hire: “Elaine Aguilar has been an important member of the Glendale management team and a key member of my staff for the past 6 years. In that time she has developed a reputation for being able to effectively handle the most difficult of situations with calm assurance. She is smart, hard working and a consummate professional; and has garnered the respect of elected officials, community members and her colleagues. Sierra Madre is getting a mature seasoned professional whose values and commitment to the community she serves are unmatched.”

Before working for the City of Glendale, Elaine was the Assistant City Manager for the City of La Puente in the San Gabriel Valley for approximately six years. While in La Puente, Elaine was responsible for the day to day activities of the city, and was the Acting City Manager, in the City Manager’s absence. Her primary duties included responsibility for the budget, financial activities, personnel, public safety, and intergovernmental relations.

Former Mayor and Sierra Madre Council Member John Buchanan said "Elaine impressed me
immediately with her problem solving reputation and breadth of experience. Add to that the high praise she received from those who have worked with her and it became clear to me Sierra Madre had found its new City Manager. I very much look forward to working with Elaine and to a bright future for the City."

Councilmember Zimmerman stated that he is given his unqualified support for Elaine as Sierra Madre’s new City Manager. Elaine Aguilar is a native Californian, and grew up in the Los Angeles suburb of El Sereno. She graduated from California State University, at Los Angeles, with a Bachelors of Science Degree in Business Administration. She is married and has two step-children and a stepgranddaughter,
and has been a West Covina resident for more than twenty-three years.
-End