For City Council consideration is a resolution authorizing the creation of a new Building Official position to provide services under the Community Development Department. Under administrative direction from the Community Development Director, this position will be responsible for planning, organizing, overseeing and coordinating the technical staff and operations of the Building & Safety Division within the Community Development Department. It will involve interpreting building codes, plan review, inspection, and code compliance. This is an advanced journey-level classification and is distinguished from the Plan Checker and/or the Senior Building Inspector in that it is responsible for the administration and interpretation of the Municipal Code as it relates to this position.
The Community Development Department identified a need to add the job description of Building Official within its structure to respond to current operational changes. Recently, the department encountered vacancies in multiple positions and would like to seize this unique opportunity to strengthen the department’s organizational structure to enhance services to the community. Currently, the Building and Safety Division has the following vacancies: Building and Safety Manager, Senior Building Inspector, and Building Inspector. Given these vacancies, the Community Development Director is serving temporarily as the City’s Building Official, and inspections are conducted utilizing contract staff. The Building Official is a critical and necessary technical role for the City. Given the need for the Building Official position, the Department is seeking to reclassify the vacant Senior Building Inspector position to Building Official.
Historically, the Senior Building Inspector has served as a combination inspector overseeing building inspections and Code Enforcement and acting as the Building Official on an as needed basis. With the recent onboarding of a part-time Code Enforcement Officer, the Department has reevaluated the Senior Building Inspector position within the Building and Safety Division framework. The Building Official, assigned to the Building and Safety Division, would be responsible for planning, organizing, reviewing, and evaluating the Division's staff, operations, and activities. The Building Official would oversee code interpretation, plan review, inspection, and compliance; coordinate the Division’s emergency disaster response and investigations; oversee the effective use of Division resources to improve organizational productivity and customer service; provide complex and responsible support to the Community Development Director in areas of expertise.
A labor market analysis was conducted to determine compensation levels for this proposed classification. We were unable to find sufficient comparable positions within Brea's ten-city labor market at this time. However, we found several positions in our market requiring knowledge, skills and abilities that would fall slightly "above" and slightly “below” what we are looking for in a civilian position for Brea. These salaries are in a range that could be used to set our position "in-between". This fits well with what was anticipated for a position of this advanced specialization and is consistent with our compensation practices. Therefore, based on available data, we recommend setting the salary range of $8,622.35 – $11,037.34 per month for the Building Official.
Based on the nature of duties outlined in the job description, it is proposed that the City Council assign this position to be included within the Administrative and Professional Employees’ Association for representation purposes and approve the recommended compensation plan. The City has consulted with the Association, and they agree with the proposed assignment to their unit. Lastly, the City's Master Salary Schedule will also be updated to add this change and comply with CalPERS regulations.
In order to implement the proposed changes, it is also required that the Position Allocation List, which authorizes staffing levels, be amended to include the new Building Official position in the Community Development Department. |
The recommended salary range and benefits for the Building Official position would result in approximately $183,937.04 annual cost to the General Fund based upon the top step. There will be no fiscal impact on the General Fund to add the classification of Building Official to the allocation list and to hire a Building Official. One-time and ongoing operating costs for this position are already budgeted within the Building and Safety Division’s operating budget for FY 2022-23.
No additional funding is needed for the current fiscal year as the department has realized salary savings due to vacancies for the Building and Safety Manager, Senior Building Inspector, and Building Inspector positions. The ongoing salary and benefit costs associated with the Building Official position will need to be programmed in future General Fund budget cycles. Moreover, the creation of a new Building Official position will not create an increase in Full-Time Employees (FTEs) for the Community Development Department, given that the Building Official would be a reclassification of the existing vacant Senior Building Inspector position.
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