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Santa Paula, population 29,725, is the geographical center of Ventura County, situated in the rich agricultural Santa Clara River Valley. The City is surrounded by rolling hills and rugged mountain peaks in addition to orange, lemon and avocado groves; in fact, Santa Paula is referred to as the "Citrus Capital of the World." The City is a full service City with an operating budget of $33 million ($10.7 general fund) and 155 FTE’s. City Departments include Police, Fire, Public Works, Administration, Finance, Planning, and Community Services. The City Council is looking for a competent professional with solid local government experience to lead this dynamic organization.
Santa Paula, population 29,725, is the geographical center of Ventura County, situated in the rich agricultural Santa Clara River Valley. The City is surrounded by rolling hills and rugged mountain peaks in addition to orange, lemon and avocado groves; in fact, Santa Paula is referred to as the “Citrus Capital of the World.”
The City of Santa Paula was incorporated on April 22, 1902. In the early 1900’s Santa Paula was considered the pre Hollywood film capital, the Queen of the Silver Screen. Even today, Santa Paula is noted for its movie personalities (silent and sound) who resided in and adjacent to the city and a TV or movie crew is not an unusual sight in the community. The City is a major distribution point for citrus fruit in the United States and is also noted for its avocado production and processing. The community has a quaint, small town image, ideal climate and reasonably priced housing, which is why Santa Paulans refer to their community as “Hometown USA”. Santa Paula maintains its own identity and is in close proximity to the many tourist, recreational, and cultural activities that abound in Southern California.
With an exceptional combination of climate, location, and charm, Santa Paula is a favorite destination for visitors all year! Rich in history and culture, there are perennial attractions and annual events for every interest and all ages. Pleasant sunny days are the rule year-round, moderated by nearby coastal waters but without the fog common at the beach. The community is conveniently located in southern California along the 126 Freeway, less than an hour from Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, and Santa Clarita. With a population of nearly 30,000, Santa Paula is a thriving mix of tourism, agriculture, and Main Street business, with plenty of warmth and welcome for visitors!
Santa Paula remains the heart of the Ventura County agricultural industry. Automotive products and supply businesses also call Santa Paula home. In addition, retail businesses thrive in Santa Paula with many located on our historic Main Street.
The City has many historic attractions for young and old alike. The California Oil Museum, located in the historic Union Oil Building on the corner of 10th and Main Streets, houses an outstanding permanent collection tracing the history of oil exploration and production in California. The Aviation Museum of Santa Paula honors Santa Paula’s history as the “Antique Airplane Capital of the World”. The Santa Paula Airport is the home of many experimental and antique craft, many of which are used in movie and TV productions. Many visitors come to Santa Paula aboard the Fillmore and Western Railroad, a historic train that runs between Fillmore and Santa Paula.
Santa Paula loves its special events each year where locals and visitors alike get to sample a taste of the good living in Santa Paula. These events include the “First Sunday” events at the Santa Paula Airport throughout the year, the Mexican-American Chamber of Commerce Carnival and “Cruise Nights” on Main Street each first Friday night on Main Street April – October, featuring pre-1975 classic cars, the Santa Paula Citrus Festival each July, the annual “Hot Summer and Jazz” in July, the summertime “Citrus Classic Balloon Festival”, “Moonlight at the Ranch” fundraiser in August, “Ghost Walks” reliving spooky parts of Santa Paula’s past each October weekend, the Children’s Halloween Parade down Main Street, the Santa Paula Christmas Parade the Saturday after Thanksgiving and Christmas events every Thursday evening on Main Street between Thanksgiving and Christmas.
The City is a full service City with an operating budget of $33 million ($10.7 million general fund) and 155 FTE’s. The City Council is made up of five members, elected at-large, serving four year terms. The Mayor is selected for a one-year term from among the members of the City Council. The City operates under a council-manager form of government. The City Council appoints the City Manager and City Attorney. The City Clerk and City Treasurer are elected and serve four year terms.
The City of Santa Paula delivers municipal services through the following departments: Administration (City Council, City Manager, City Attorney, City Clerk, Human Resources, Risk Management), Community Services (recreation, senior services, cable television, filming, California Oil Museum, tourism), Economic Development (redevelopment, housing), Finance (City Treasurer, Utility Billing and Payments, Accounting, Payroll, Purchasing), Fire (fire protection, building and code enforcement), Planning (land use/Development Code), Police, Public Works (streets, parks, water, wastewater, refuse). Library services in Santa Paula are provided by the Blanchard/Santa Paula Library District and public transit services are provided by the Ventura County Transportation Commission.
Gas service in Santa Paula is provided by the Southern California Gas Company, electric service by Southern California Edison, telephone services by Verizon, and cable television services by Time Warner Cable.
Santa Paula faces financial challenges as do all California cities. The City is poised for two residential developments and one industrial commercial development, (East Area II) which will create positive financial outcomes for the City. Residential developments include:
Adams Canyon – Voters recently approved changes to the general plan that will permit, upon annexation, the development of 500 high end residences on approximately 2,500 acres.
East Area 1 – The City has approved the construction of approximately 1,500 homes priced to attract middle income residents.
The City is encouraging economic development to increase its ability to provide a range of services to the community. The community supports balanced growth that provides for quality development in the community. Ultimately, the City Council and residents of Santa Paula wish to maintain the small town character and charm that is Santa Paula.
The new City Manager should be both an effective leader and skilled manager. A person who thinks outside the box, is creative and innovative, will be a good fit for the position. The City Council is looking for an individual who will keep Council Members equally well informed and avoid surprises. The ideal candidate will be a positive individual who is capable of motivating and developing staff.
The new City Manager should have a track record of effective relations with representatives of State and Federal government. Knowledge of effective intergovernmental relations and track record of effectiveness in this arena is sought.
The City Manager should be a results oriented person. The new City Manager should be visible in the community, approachable, personable with strong interpersonal skills. The new City Manager will bring a sense of fairness to the job and his/her dealings with residents of the community. The City Council is looking for an individual who can work well with the existing staff.
The salary for the City Manager is open dependent upon qualifications. The City also offers an attractive benefits package including:
Cafeteria Benefit – The City provides a Cafeteria Benefit of $978.11 per month, to be used towards Health/Dental premiums for the employee and his/her eligible dependents. Any remaining balance of the benefit package is paid to the employee as taxable earnings.
Medical – The City offers a comprehensive medical package. Employees have the option to choose individual and dependent coverage from Aetna HealthWorks HMO, CalPERS Blue Shield, CalPERS Blue Shield Net Value, CalPERS Kaiser, Cal PERS Select PPO, CalPERS PPO Choice, and CalPERS Care PPO.
Dental – The City offers Dental Coverage to employees and their dependents through two carriers, Principal Dental (PPO) and Safeguard Dental (HMO).
Vision – The City offers Vision coverage through Principal Insurance. The plan offers a discount towards eye exams, eyeglass frames and eyeglass lenses.
Supplemental Insurance – Employees have the opportunity to purchase extra Insurance coverage through Colonial Insurance. Supplemental coverage includes Cancer, Life, Disability, Critical Illness, Accident and Hospital Confinement for employees as well as their dependents. Premiums are deducted on either a pre or post tax basis depending on coverage. The City also offers optional Accidental Death and Dismemberment coverage, deducted from the employee’s salary.
Flexible Spending Account – The City offers a Flexible Spending Account (FSA) for employees to cover any additional out of pocket costs for premium conversion, dependent care and health care. Employees can set aside up to $5,000 from their paycheck on a pre-tax basis to offset additional costs for any qualified, medically necessary medical, dental or optical expenses that are not covered by any of the employee’s insurance plans. In addition, an employee may also use the FSA to offset daycare expenses for eligible children or elderly dependents.
Long Term Disability – The City offers a Long Term Disability Insurance Program to each Executive Management employee at City expense.
CalPERS Retirement – CalPERS Retirement (2.0% at age 55); the City will pay the employee’s portion of PERS.
Deferred Compensation – The City also offers to Full-Time employees the option to participate in a deferred compensation plan through ICMA 457 Retirement or Hartford. Employees may opt to have a flat rate or percentage deducted from their salary on a bi-weekly basis to be contributed to their 457 Retirement Plan.
Employee Assistance Program – The City offers an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) with a wide range of programs to assist employees to manage life’s challenges such as mental health services, child and elder care, financial services, legal services and daily living services.
Car Allowance – Executive Management employees are provided an allowance of $350.00 per month.
Bilingual Pay – A bilingual program provides those employees who are able to communicate effectively in Spanish with a compensation of $650.00 annually ($25.00 per pay period).
Vacation – Vacation accrues at the rate of 12 to 25 days per year depending upon length of service.
Sick Leave – Employees start with a bank of forty (40) hours and accrue sick leave at the rate of one day per month.
Administrative Leave – Executive Management accrues administrative leave on a bi-weekly basis at the rate of ninety (90) hours per year.
Leave Buyback – Employees may sell forty (40) hours of vacation or administrative leave in December of each year.
Holidays – Twelve (12) paid holidays each calendar year.
Following the closing date, resumes will be screened according to the qualifications outlined above. The most qualified candidates will be invited to personal interviews with Bob Murray and Associates. A select group of candidates will be asked to provide references once it is anticipated that they may be recommended as finalists. The City Council will select finalists on October 1, 2009. References will be contacted only following candidate approval. Finalist interviews will be held with the City Council on October 9, 2009. Candidates will be advised of the status of the recruitment following selection of the City Manager.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to call Bob Murray or Amanda Urrutia-Sanders at: (916) 784-9080
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