The Mission of the Public Works Department is to plan, design, construct, operate, and maintain public infrastructure, including streets, sidewalks, storm drains, building facilities, forests, parks, beach, and other assets that contribute to the health, safety, and well-being of the Village community.
Located at the Public Works facility and Corporation Yard on the east side of Junipero Street, south of Fourth Avenue, the Department has made honorable progress over the past seven years under the leadership of Public Works Director Robert Harary. As Bob approaches retirement after a 42-year career, 34 of which were serving local governments, he is making a final presentation for the benefit of the City Council, incoming Councilmembers, and the community at large. The presentation will cover the following key topics:
1) Review of the Department’s structure, resources, and key services provided by each division.
2) Overview of significant and diverse accomplishments over the past seven years.
3) Comparison of the City’s infrastructure conditions, based on the original Infrastructure Report Card presented in 2017, and the state of the infrastructure today.
1. Public Works Department Overview
Public Works consists of an administrative unit and five operating divisions: Environmental Programs, Facilities Maintenance, Forestry, Parks and Beach, Project Management, and Street Maintenance.
Administration Unit: Prepares Council agenda reports, monthly status reports, and the annual and 5-year Capital Improvement Plans (CIP), makes presentations, serves as Executive Team liaison to the Forest and Beach Commission, and on the TAMC Technical Advisory Committee and Traffic Safety Committee, performs engineering services, and provides administrative support, budgeting, scheduling, and performance oversight of the operating divisions.
Environmental Programs: Enforces State storm water quality and waste reduction/recycling regulations, oversees the City’s waste hauler contract, implements projects outlined in the Climate Action and Adaptation Plans, serves on the ReGen Monterey and Monterey Regional Stormwater Management Program committees, manages habitat-sensitive projects in the North Dunes and Mission Trail Nature Preserve, evaluates energy reduction initiatives, provides CEQA guidance for Public Works projects, and coordinates with partners on resiliency, environmental stewardship, and sustainability-focused projects.
Facilities Maintenance: Maintains and repairs 20 City-owned buildings and facilities totaling 137,000 square feet, including eight historic buildings nearly 100 years old, supports facility renovation-oriented capital improvements, oversees janitorial contract, obtains quotes and manages building trade contractors, implements ADA compliance projects, and performs annual fire safety apparatus inspections, generator servicing, and backflow testing.
Forestry, Parks, and Beach: Manages 12,000+ City trees, including planting, pruning, and removal services, prepares reports and presentations for Forest & Beach Commission meetings, maintains eight City parks, Carmel Beach, open spaces, and landscaped islands, collaborates with volunteer organizations, processes tree removal and pruning permits, reviews private development applications, manages multiple on-call tree care and landscape maintenance contractors, and provides emergency response during storms.
Project Management: Implements planning, engineering, design, public bidding, and construction of capital improvement projects, including transportation, drainage, and facility renovation projects, conducts condition assessments, manages consultants and contractors, coordinates with utilities and other City departments, prepares special conditions of approval for major encroachment permits, reviews technical reports and plans, obtains permits, and prepares specifications, contract documents, and cost estimates.
Street Maintenance: Supervises Public Works field personnel, prioritizes and allocates equipment, tools, and materials, repairs streets, potholes, sidewalks, curbs, fencing, storm drainage system, berms, and traffic signs, restores pavement striping and markings, performs street sweeping, provides fleet maintenance services, reviews utility and encroachment permit applications, supports City events, and provides emergency response.
2. Review of significant and diverse accomplishments
Below is a sampling of the Public Work’s Department’s key accomplishments over the past seven years:
· ADA Transition Plan: Prepared to guide annual ADA Upgrade Projects.
· Carmel Forest Master Plan: Developed draft plan, and conducted community survey and workshops.
· City’s first ever Storm Drain Master Plan: 2020 and 2023 Update prepared.
· City’s first official Bike Route and first application of Micro-surfacing Pavement treatment: San Carlos Street, between Eighth and Thirteenth Avenues.
· Climate Action and Climate Adaptation Plans: Prepared and adopted.
· Coastal Engineering Study, Phase 1: Completed, and $500k Coastal Commission Grant awarded for Phase 2.
· Electric Street Sweeper: Purchased with a $250k rebate from 3CE.
· Forest Theater: Developed Lease Agreement with Pacific Repertory Theatre.
· Harrison Memorial Library Gathering Room: Constructed.
· Mass SOQs: Implemented process to streamline consultant selections and contracting.
· No Plastics Ordinance: First of its kind in the region.
· North Dunes Habitat Restoration: Significant transformation.
· Pavement Condition: Best pavement in Monterey County.
· Sunset Center: Painted exterior of the north wing.
Additional accomplishments will be highlighted in the upcoming presentation.
3. The City’s Infrastructure Report Card 2024 compared to 2017 conditions
Modeled after the American Society of Civil Engineer’s nation-wide Infrastructure Report Card, the Director will review the condition of six key infrastructure components within the City:
1) Streets: includes pavement condition, sidewalks, curbs, medians, and traffic flow
2) Drainage System
3) Buildings and Facilities
4) City Fleet
5) Forestry and Parks
6) Beach and Shoreline
Each of these components will be assigned a grade from A to F, reflecting their current condition. These grades will be compared to the baseline year 2017 to track progress made and/or identify areas requiring further attention.
This exercise is intended to be a holistic assessment of our infrastructure, emphasizing that rehabilitation costs increase as infrastructure deteriorates. Maintaining infrastructure at a reasonably satisfactory level is more cost-effective in the long run than allowing it to decline into disrepair and requiring costly, and sometimes urgent, reconstruction.