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HomeMy WebLinkAboutREP PWMTC 001 2021/01/05 2020-2022 PORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC WORDS AND MASS TRANSIT DATE: January 5, 2021 Re: Comm. No. 38 PLACE: Council Chambers Hilo, Hawaii TIME: 9:55 a.m. Council Chair and Members Hawaii County Council Hilo, Hawaii 96720 Your Committee on Public Works and Mass Transit, to which was referred Communication No. 38, reports as follows: Communication No. 38, dated December 8, 2020 and submitted by Mayor Mitchell D. Roth, nominates Steven L "Ikaika"Rodenhurst as director of the Department of Public Works, pursuant to Section 6-2.2 of the County Charter. The appointment became effective at noon on December 7, 2020, and if confirmed will be co-terminous with the Mayor, expiring at noon on December 2, 2024. i County Charter Article VI, Chapter 2, Section 6-2.2 establishes the qualifications for the Director of a Public Works: "The director of public works shall be appointed by the mayor, confirmed by the council and may be removed by the mayor. The director shall be a registered professional engineer. The director shall have had a minimum of five years of experience in an administrative capacity." (Emphasis added.) Your Committee, having made extensive inquiries into Mr. Rodenhurst's record, and having heard representations from Mayor Roth, Human Resources Director William V. Brilhante Jr., and former Deputy Chief Engineer Riley Smith, is satisfied that the applicant meets the qualifications of the Charter. Mayor Roth in the course of his opening remarks stated that Mr. Rodenhurst possesses an engineering license and nine years of administrative experience, satisfying both of the Charter requirements. Mr. Rodenhurst takes an active role in his community and treats people with dignity and respect, he said. Mayor Roth has discussed with Mr. Rodenhurst the need to change and fix the building permit process. The Mayor stated his belief that his administration should help people thrive and succeed, and this nomination is a step toward that. He saw no issues in meeting the requirements of the Charter, and said Mr. Rodenhurst's experience, as reviewed by the Mayor, Mr. Smith in his role as a member of the selection review committee, and Director Brilhante, far exceeds what is needed. Mayor Roth asked Director Brilhante to speak about the nominee's qualifications. Director Brilhante said he was asked to vet a few of the Mayor's appointments to meet minimum qualifications as stated in the Charter. While typically the Mayor makes the appointment and the Council does the vetting, PWMTC Report No.: 1 PWMTC-1 Page 2 January 5,2021 Director Brilhante in this case sent the request to the Recruitment and Examination Division, which applied the excluded management position standards to Mr. Rodenhurst. Based on Mr. Rodenhurst's resume (attached as a part of Communication No. 38), Director Brilhante said he"clearly exceeded the minimum requirements of the position." The director added that in the last few weeks he worked with Mr. Rodenhurst on a labor relations matter, and was impressed with his diligence and ability to engage in discussions. Mr. Rodenhurst, in Director Brilhame's opinion, would make a good department head. Mr. Rodenhurst said he was grateful for the opportunity to serve the public, and that he would welcome any questions. Asked by Committee Member Tim Richards to explain his credentials in his own words, Mr. Rodenhurst said that he has always had some level of administrative capacity in his work, whether managing engineers, inspectors, or coordinating with contractors, utilities, consultants, and designers. He said he has gone through the process of hiring people on his team with Bowers +Kubota Consulting, and has completed routine managerial tasks as an engineer working in construction. Mr. Richards said he takes seriously the comments by the Mayor, due to the Mayor's experience as an attorney. Mr. Smith, the former deputy chief engineer, elaborated that in his own experience with a land planning consultant, he directly supervised one or two people but managed scores of people, which would have counted under the Charter as "experience in an administrative capacity."He reiterated the point he made in public testimony that Mr. Rodenhurst easily meets the managerial and administrative responsibilities that the job requires, and further is an excellent choice for the Department of Public Works. In responses to questions asked by Committee Member Heather Kimball, Mr. Rodenhurst spoke about the importance of being able to communicate information to the public as one of the skill sets important in an administrative position. He said the largest project on which he had worked had a$14 million budget. He said he had experience in multitasking with multiple projects going on at once. He has had the opportunity to facilitate disputes and resolve personnel disputes. Mr. Rodenhurst addressed Ms. Kimball's question about aging infrastructure, supporting the idea of proactive action for bridges in Hdmdkua, and evacuation routes in Waikoloa, for example. He also named several potential ways to improve customer service, including an increased reliance on making the process online. Committee Member Aaron Chung asked Mr. Rodenhurst to address EnerGov, the electronic multidepartment permit tracking and review system that has faced repeated delays in implementation. The permitting system is the No. I priority for Mr. Rodenhurst, and he said he was taking a personal interest in making sure deadlines are met with the eventual rollout. Mr. Rodenhurst added he was trying to find out how to make it succeed. Mr. Chung asked about the status of transportation projects funded by increases in recent years to the County's General Excise Tax surcharge. He was hopeful for better use of the GET surcharge to resurface roads. Mr. Chung also asked about his relationship with Highways Division Chief Neil Azevedo. Mr. Rodenhurst said he and Mr. Azevedo get along well, and he further expressed confidence in all of his division chiefs. PWMTC Report No.: 1 P WMTC-1 Page 3 January 5,2021 I In response to another question from Mr. Chung, Mr. Rodenhurst said there is always room to improve the permit process. It is an area of active research, he said. i Mr. Richards emphasized the importance of having shovel-ready projects able to accept federal infrastructure dollars, in order to take care of aging infrastructure. Committee Member Ashley Kierkiewicz asked Mr. Rodenhurst to elaborate on other department projects where he has taken a personal interest. The nominee said his portfolio included the building permit process, maintaining roads, and shovel-ready projects. On the subject of transparency, Ms. Kierkiewicz asked the nominee to consider a public"dashboard" on the County website to keep the public informed as to progress on projects. Mr. Rodenhurst told Ms. Kierkiewicz that Puna connectivity is a top priority shovel-ready project, as is lava recovery, and that he would work on improving interdepartmental cooperation. Mr. Chung said he would vote to give the Mayor a chance to assemble his Cabinet, and stated Mr. Rodenhurst is qualified for the position,he is "well-intentioned," and has the community at heart. Ms. Kimball said that while she was originally undecided on the appointment, she was impressed by Mr. Rodenhurst's responses. She said Mr. Rodenhurst handled your Committee's questions and responded in a clear and intelligent way that made Ms. Kimball want to see what he could do as director. Committee Chair Susan L.K. Lee Loy similarly spoke in support of Mr. Rodenhurst, noting that he fulfills the criteria. There are multidisciplinary, multifaceted approaches to gaining administrative experience, she said, and for her it was a"no-brainer"to support the nomination. Your Committee on Public Works and Mass Transit is in accord with the purpose and intent of Communication No. 38, and recommends confirmation of the appointment of Mr. Rodenhurst as director of the Department of Public Works. s AYES NOES ABS EX Respectfully submitted, CHUNG X DAVID x COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC WORKS INABA X AND MASS TRANSIT KANEALI`I-KLEINFELDER X KIERKIEWICZ X KIMBALL X LEE LOY x SN L. K. LEE LO"S RICHARDS X PWMTC REPORTN . 1 VILLEGAS X ADOPTED: JAN 2 0 1,0