Del Mar city manager awarded bonus

After a favorable performance review from the council, Del Mar City Manager Scott Huth on July 20 received a one-time bonus of 4 percent of his base salary.

“He works hard,” Mayor Al Corti said. “He’s considerate of the public and the council, which is not an easy job in any city, never mind ours.”

In a 3-0 vote, the council approved a $7,760 bonus based on Huth’s 2014 performance review. Councilman Dwight Worden abstained from the vote, as it was based on the 2014 calendar year, when he was not yet in office. Councilman Don Mosier was absent from the meeting.

“This was a result of a very thoughtful process by all members of the council based on a lot of good information that we asked Scott to provide,” said Councilman Terry Sinnott.

“Scott was evaluated on a wide range of outcomes and his management style,” added Deputy Mayor Sherryl Parks. “I think that he received high marks in all those areas. He’s provided solid support in a very busy time in the city.”

Council members said the performance bonus is also aligned with the city’s goals.

According to the staff report, Del Mar’s “general compensation philosophy has been to retain positions within 5-7 percent of the median. Before the council’s vote, Corti noted that Huth’s salary was below the median.

The median salary for city managers in the region is $211,405, according to the staff report. At an annual salary of $193,988, Huth’s salary is 9 percent below the median.

In June 2014, the council approved a three-year extension to Huth’s contract, effective Jan. 1, 2015 to Jan. 1, 2018. The contract requires that the council review his performance at least once a year.

In related business, the council also established a new subcommittee to work with Huth on policies related to staff compensation and benefits.

“Even though we’re a small city, there are pretty complicated issues,” said Sinnott, whom the council appointed to the subcommittee, along with Corti.

According to the staff report, the human resources subcommittee will work with Huth on policy issues, rather than management or operational responsibilities. Policy issues include managing the pension, pension policies, pension liability and overall compensation philosophy, among others.

The subcommittee will provide feedback to Huth on issues recommended for consideration and will report back to the council for direction on the issues during a closed session meeting or during a public meeting, when appropriate.

“It’s a way to better inform this council about these complicated issues,” said Worden, adding that the subcommittee will create an opportunity for some of the issues to be discussed publicly.

“It’s not going to change anything major — the city manager is still going to run the city administratively, we’re still going to be doing policy stuff — but hopefully it will help all of us do it a little bit better and a little bit more of it in public,” Worden said.