Public Works Commission Approves New Chairman

Steven Weinglass, who spent the last year as vice chairman of the Public Works Commission, moved up one spot when he was unanimously approved as the commission's new chairman on Thursday. Weinglass replaces outgoing Chairman Farshid Joe Shooshani.

"It's been a great pleasure being chairman. I have all the confidence in Steve," said Shooshani, who was given a plaque to commemorate the past year. It read "Business is a combination of war and sport."

Commissioner Joseph Stabler, who was absent from the meeting, will replace Weinglass as vice chairman.

Besides electing a new chairman and vice chair, the four members of the commission who attended the meeting also got a chance to hear from Beverly Hills City Manager Jeff Kolin, who has been attending various commission meeting since accepting his position earlier this year.

"I've been here almost six months as of July 20 and I'm still learning the community," Kolin said. "I'm spending time working with and getting to know the city's staff. I'm also taking the opportunity to visit each of the commissions to get to know you, what you do and see what the major challenges are."

The former city manager of Santa Rosa, Calif., Kolin replaced former City Manager Rod Wood, who retired earlier this year.

"It's a good new regime," Weinglass said. "I was cautious of the old regime."

During the meeting, Shooshani asked Kolin if Beverly Hills had followed the lead of other cities and counties by asking vendors and consultants to take a voluntary 10 percent pay cut because of the lingering recession.

"We have talked about this, yes," Kolin said. "Many of our vendors have agreed to a cut and we have a series of contracts coming up for renewal. I think it's appropriate in this economic climate to consider it."

The volunteer vendor cut would be similar to those requested in Los Angeles.

"I received an e-mail asking for a voluntary 10 percent reduction," said Shooshani, whose company, Bobco Metals Co., has a contract with Los Angeles. "In a half hour, we decided to sign the request and then we sent it back."

In response to Shooshani's comments, Office of Public Works and Transportation Director David Gustavson noted that some vendors are already giving the city price reductions. He added that though reductions were common with long-term contracts, the city would not go back and ask for a reduction on "something that was just bid."

The Public Works Commission also heard a presentation of updates to the city's Hazardous Mitigation Plan, which must be renewed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency this year.

The plan makes Beverly Hills eligible for federal Hazard Mitigation grant funding, according to Viviana Franco, a consultant with the city's Emergency Management Office.

The plan incorporates each of the following hazards: earthquake, terrorism, fire, landslides, floods and windstorms. Franco expects the emergency management office to present a completed draft of the plan to City Council on Aug. 7.