Some Latrobe officials question recommendation for city to add more staff

A consultant hired to assess government operations in Latrobe has recommended two new supervisory positions and a more focused role for the finance director. City council members questioned the potential impact of the suggestions on the budget.

Dormont-based Grass Root Solutions is expected to complete a five-year strategic management plan for the city before the end of the year. Meeting with council this week, it suggested the city hire an assistant for the city manager and another for the public works director.

Deborah Grass, project manager for the consultant, recommended creation of an assistant position because of the multiple duties that fall to the city manager.

“This is a complex operation,” Grass said of the city government. “It’s really hard for one person to stay on top of everything. An assistant manager can take on some of the duties.”

She cited human resources and information technology among areas that might be delegated to an assistant manager. Having an assistant in place helps when there is a transition in the city manager post, she said.

Grass also recommended streamlining the city’s director of finance position, which currently is combined with that of director of administration, city secretary and records clerk.

“A lot is assigned to that position that doesn’t have to do with financial management,” Grass said, noting the city’s annual budget exceeds $7 million. “That position has become a catch-all for everything. To me, it’s the most important position next to the city manager.”

The consultant’s preliminary report recommends that duties related to tasks including records management and council support be reassigned from the finance director to other staff.

Outsourcing suggested

Councilman Jim Kelley suggested the city might consider outsourcing financial management to a consultant rather than hiring a staff member to focus solely on city finances.

“It would take a lot of convincing for me to hire a financial manager,” he said. “That’s going to be a very costly position.”

Grass argued it would cost more to pay hourly fees to a consultant than to pay the salary of a staff member.

“It will save you money. It will be the best investment you ever make,” she said of a dedicated finance director, whom she said could best keep on top of grant funding, internal financial controls and fraud prevention.

Grass Root team member Jason Dailey said the public works department also could use an additional supervisor to take some of the burden off the public works director, who oversees the street department as well as the city’s solid waste transfer station.

“A supervisory position could be considered to help (the director) focus on where he needs to focus,” Dailey said. “It really does require another body.”

“To add all of the people that we’re talking about is going to be a really difficult financial issue,” said council member and deputy mayor Ralph Jenko. “We have to come up with priorities, and there might be timing involved.”

Of the transfer station, Dailey said, “What you have up there is working. It’s not broken, but it could be more efficient.”

Public works director Scott Wajdic said the flow of traffic through the transfer station could be improved. “We have people trying to come and go at the same time,” he said.

Dailey seconded a recommendation from a past consultant that Latrobe consider reducing the number of stations operated by the community’s mostly volunteer fire department. The fire chief and duty drivers receive some compensation for their services.

Grass Root suggested the number of stations could be pared from five to three — reducing maintenance costs and duplication of equipment, while still exceeding the firefighting resources required for the department’s 2.3-square-mile first response service area.

City officials noted steps to reduce police overtime hours and to target blight, also recommended by the consultant, already are underway.

Grass Root reported overtime hours for officers had been on the rise for four years, costing the city more than $119,000 in 2023, but have since decreased.

“We substantially cut back on overtime,” police Chief Richard Bosco said, with the recent hiring of two officers and the planned addition of another officer to the roster.

Council on Oct. 15 is expected to consider adopting a registration program to keep track of and hold responsible owners of properties that are vacant and considered abandoned.

Charter changes

Grass additionally suggested it’s time to update the city’s 1995 home rule charter, which she said should be reviewed every 10 years. Some provisions of the charter are outdated, she said, pointing out that some items — including the annual city budget — could be passed by a council resolution, instead of a more costly and time-consuming ordinance process.

Revising the charter would require a voter referendum.

The city received high marks from the consultant for its successful relationship with the nonprofit Latrobe Community Revitalization Program and the parks and recreation system it operates in partnership with Unity Township and Greater Latrobe School District.

Mayor Eric Bartels said the consultant’s study provides “another set of eyes looking at what we’re doing well and what needs to be fixed. It’s another example that we’re making efforts to move forward.”

The city’s next task is working with the consultant to prioritize potential action items in the plan. City manager Terry Carcella said he intends to present recommendations to council based on the plan.

Latrobe is paying $25,000 toward the consultant’s fee, with state funding covering a matching amount.