AGOURA HILLS : City to Ignore Hiring Freeze, Seek Director

City officials say they will ignore a hiring freeze and replace the public works director who resigned last month.

“Something that is as critical as this job needs to be looked at a little differently than like, say, somebody at the clerical level,” said Agoura Hills City Councilman Denis Weber. “I personally have no problems with a search.”

Vince Mastrosimone resigned Oct. 6 as public works director to take a similar job in Covina, near his home in San Dimas.

The hiring freeze is one of the ways the city is trying to cope with a projected $700,000 deficit--the worst shortfall in the city’s 12-year history. The City Council voted in July to lay off two full-time employees and five part-time workers.

To pick up the slack until a new public works director can be found, the city will increase the number of hours it contracts City Engineer Elroy Kiepke, said City Manager Terry Matz.

“Right now, (Kiepke) operates one day a week,” said Matz.

“We’re probably going to use him for some additional time to assist us in some other areas. He probably would be in the office as many as three days a week.”

The city needs a full-time public works director to oversee numerous ongoing projects, said Matz, including the widening of Kanan Road and the construction of a new park to replace Old Agoura Park.