The former Glendale Water & Power director stayed on after current General Manager Glenn Steiger took the helm in February to facilitate the management transition and shore up ongoing projects, including the customer emergency notification project, also known as a “reverse 911” system.
Steiger said Waters had been instrumental in bringing the projects to the finish line, but Yousefian was unrelenting.
“If Mr. Waters died tomorrow, could you complete the project?” he asked.
“Yes,” Steiger replied.
With Quintero vowing to vote against the extensions altogether, city officials offered a last-minute compromise, telling the council that Waters could probably be retained long enough to see the project through with just $20,000 — half the amount originally requested.
“If this contract fails, it may be an extra burden on you,” Yousefian said, but given a slowing economy and the likelihood of additional city budget cuts next fiscal year, “I just cannot see approving another $40,000. Every dollar counts.”
Mayor John Drayman rebuffed the opposition, arguing that the contract extension was to merely see several major projects to their end after tens of thousands of already-spent dollars.
“I might agree with you if we were starting a project; however, this is a project already underway,” Drayman said.
Yousefian eventually acquiesced to the $20,000 amount, with Quintero holding firm on his dissent.
A request for an additional $26,356 to extend the length of a contract for the utility’s strategic plan consultant through the end of the year passed on a 3-1 vote, with Councilman Ara Najarian — the third incumbent up for reelection in April — absent.
