Houston Metropolis Council unanimously authorized Mayor John Whitmire’s request Wednesday to alter metropolis guidelines requiring the Houston Public Works director to be a licensed engineer.
The guidelines now require the director to have “both” an engineer’s license, 5 years of expertise as a public service govt or “an equal mixture of coaching, training, and expertise adequate to supply management and carry out the duties of the workplace.”
Whitmire’s decide for public works director, Randall Macchai, would not possess the primary two {qualifications}. The previous management coach and lawyer has been Chief Working Officer at Houston Public Works for lower than two years and he’s not an engineer. Nonetheless, Whitmire argued that he was certified for the job.
“I ran to sort things, and Randy was fixing issues earlier than my dwelling eyes,” Whitmire stated. “The route of environment friendly metropolis authorities has been to place the perfect individual within the place that may make a distinction.”
Whitmire credited Macchai with main a speedup in changing defective water meters after prospects reported points with erroneously excessive payments. Macchai stated the scenario was a chance for the division to enhance customer support.
“We forgot that actually, we have been there to serve them, not simply to gather cash,” Macchai stated. “We needed to repair our personal home first. That included bringing alternatives for individuals to return and go to with us in individual, a follow that went away after some time in order that when somebody had an issue with their water invoice, they might put a face to the individual attempting to resolve it.”
Council Member Julian Ramirez identified “we modified the regulation so you would have this title.”
“That’s how a lot we consider you; that’s how a lot the mayor thinks of you,” Ramirez stated.
Because the Houston Chronicle reported, the American Society of Civil Engineers criticized the change in a letter to Whitmire’s administration.
“He’s opposed by the American Society of Civil Engineers out of Washington, D.C., as a result of they’re defending their turf,” Whitmire argued. “They don’t need an instance of a non-engineer conducting a superb operation in our division. It’s solely going to get higher.”
Macchai had already been co-directing the division with interim metropolis engineer Richard Smith. In response to division spokesperson Erin Jones, that will not change.
“Town engineer would nonetheless log off on a serious engineering determination,” Jones stated. “They might nonetheless work with the Director of Public Works on these selections, however the director wouldn’t want that skilled engineer license requirement.”
Macchai replaces Carol Haddock, who resigned in April after almost 20 years with the town. Her departure and Macchai’s appointment are a part of a sequence of sweeping modifications to the management of a number of departments in Whitmire’s first 12 months. He is additionally modified the heads of the police and fireplace departments, airport system, finance division, housing division and planning division.
