PWSA steps up search for leader
Share with others:
Thirteen months after its executive director resigned, Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority board members on Friday said they're ready to speed up the search for a replacement.
A decision about whether to seek a person or management agency for the job could come next month, said state Rep. Dan Deasy, D-Westwood, the board chairman, calling the leadership search "our No. 1 focus right now."
Once the board decides how to replace Michael Kenney, it can begin the actual search.
"With the new year, we need to move aggressively forward," Mr. Deasy said at a board meeting.
In the interim, day-to-day management duties have been divided among senior staff members Stephen Simsic and Tom Palmosina.
Increased efficiency will be another goal this year, board members said, advancing plans for a study of energy costs and ordering a report on how authority vehicles are used.
Mr. Kenney resigned the executive director's post in December 2010 amid questions about his ties to a vendor that provided a line warranty program to authority customers.
Other controversies dogged the authority in following months. A judge ruled the line warranty program illegal, residents complained about chronic flooding in some neighborhoods, and four people died in a flash flood on Washington Boulevard. The flooding raised questions about the design and capacity of the authority's system.
Mr. Deasy said he and two colleagues -- city Councilman Patrick Dowd and city finance director Scott Kunka -- will develop a consensus on whether the board wants a person or company to lead the authority.
He said those discussions will begin next week.
A previous effort at consensus-building stalled late last year because of other issues, including disagreement over the authority's 2012 budget, Mr. Deasy said. In the end, the board approved a 5 percent rate increase, delving more deeply into customers' pockets for the third time in as many years and fueling Friday's interest in increased efficiency.
In the past, some board members had said moving carefully on the leadership issue was more important than moving quickly. On Friday, Mr. Deasy said, "We expect to move quickly and diligently on this issue."
Mr. Dowd, who has repeatedly accused the board of dragging its feet, said new management is part of what's needed to give the authority stability. Noting that one of the seven board seats has been vacant for about two years and that most other board members are serving despite expired terms, Mr. Dowd called on Mayor Luke Ravenstahl to make the necessary appointments or reappointments.
"It's just sloppy to have a board that's not complete," Mr. Dowd said.
First Published January 16, 2012 12:00 am
