Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl has gone on a brief vacation, leaving Public Safety Director Michael Huss in charge of the city.

Mr. Ravenstahl is on vacation with his brothers, Brad and Adam, and will return to work Monday, mayoral spokeswoman Joanna Doven said. In the interim, she said, Mr. Huss is acting mayor.

"Everything's running smoothly. ... It's business as usual," she said.

Ms. Doven did not disclose the mayor's whereabouts or respond to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's request for additional information about his absence.

Mr. Ravenstahl sent a letter to city Controller Michael Lamb and city Clerk Linda Johnson-Wasler, saying he would be absent from work Thursday and Friday and was authorizing Mr. Huss to sign correspondence on his behalf.

The city clerk's office forwarded the letter to City Council members.

At least a handful of council members were unaware of the mayor's vacation plans, even though they met with him Tuesday to discuss a bailout of the pension plan.

Councilwoman Natalia Rudiak said she didn't know the mayor's whereabouts. She said she had no immediate need to speak with him and had detected no change in government operations during his absence Thursday.

Mr. Ravenstahl missed a Thursday news conference at the Zone 1 police station on the North Side, at which U.S. Sen. Robert P. Casey Jr. pledged to seek additional money for neighborhood security cameras. The mayor last week said he was seeking $12 million to $14 million in federal stimulus money for another 220 cameras.

Council President Darlene Harris and police Chief Nate Harper were among the city officials who attended the news conference.

Mr. Ravenstahl was criticized for being trapped outside the city during February's snowstorm. He had gone to the Laurel Highlands to celebrate his 30th birthday -- Mr. Huss was there, too -- and the pair couldn't immediately get back because of the snow. Mr. Ravenstahl said he performed his duties by phone and computer.

Then, on Feb. 16, Mr. Ravenstahl lashed out at reporters who questioned his whereabouts for about six hours amid rumors that he had gone to New Orleans for Mardi Gras. He said he was not in New Orleans and had never planned to go there. He said he was working in the city the whole time and kept his whereabouts private to give the media a lesson in responsibility.

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