City manager, attorney get over $70K in incentives

Keeping large capital projects on track and initiating innovative programs amid a pandemic warranted the $42,494 in extra compensation the Hot Springs Board of Directors awarded City Manager Bill Burrough Tuesday night, Mayor Pat McCabe said.

The incentive pay is 25% of Burrough’s $169,977 base salary for 2020, the city’s human resources department said.

The board also awarded City Attorney Brian Albright $29,465 in extra compensation, which is 20% of his $147,326 base salary. They received 10% bonuses at the end of last year. Albright was awarded a $5,000 bonus at the end of 2018.

The board awarded Tuesday night’s incentive pay after convening an executive session to conduct annual performance reviews of the city manager and city attorney, the two positions in city government that report directly to the board. The board said the incentive pay will be included in Burrough and Albright’s final paychecks of the year.

According to Burrough’s employment agreement, the board evaluates his performance based on his handling of the position’s responsibilities and progress he’s made toward objectives determined by the board.

“This year given the performance of each of them individually, we felt it merited a higher incentive pay than what was awarded previously,” McCabe said. “… This in no way should be construed as something that’s going to happen each and every year.

“It’s a function of the environment in which we operate and their performance within that environment. This was a very extraordinary environment in which we operated this year. Yet there were significant accomplishments throughout the way. We continue to look forward to their performance going forward. If there is some slippage or things not getting accomplished, that will weigh heavily in any future incentive pay awarded.”

McCabe said Burrough’s leadership relative to the pandemic has been “exceptional,” crediting him with bringing together groups from the public, private and health care sectors to develop a comprehensive response. His management of the pandemic response, coupled

with his oversight of the city’s more than $130 million budget and roughly 600 full-time employees, has been in parallel to the infrastructure projects he advanced this year, McCabe said.

He cited Burrough’s management of the Lake Ouachita water supply project, a $ 100 million endeavor that will add more than 15 million gallons a day to the city’s finished water supply by 2023. Contractors have started installing the raw waterline from the intake on lower Lake Ouachita to the plant the city will build off Amity Road and the finished water transmission line from the plant to the 20-inch main on the King Expressway.

McCabe noted the progress on the redevelopment of the Majestic Hotel site. The board authorized Burrough and Albright to enter into 90 days of exclusive negotiations with the development group that has proposed building a $110 million wellness and water-centric destination resort on the Park Avenue lot that has sat idle since 2006.

“It took a while to get that going, but we’re on the right track,” McCabe said. “We’re hopeful for some movement on that in 2021.”

He said the city’s solar project is an example of Burrough “thinking outside the box.” The city expects to source most of its electricity from the 1-megawatt solar plant it broke ground on this summer at the Southwest Wastewater Treatment Plant and other solar arrays that will come online. Per the energy services agreement the city entered into last year with Scenic Hill Solar, the city will pay Scenic Hill lower rates than what it pays Entergy Arkansas Inc.

Entergy will pay the city credits for generation the solar facilities add to the utility’s transmission grid.

Moving the city’s utility billing services and finance department to 324 Malvern Ave., near City Hall on Convention Boulevard, has created more convenience for consumers of city services, McCabe said.

The Hope Works anti-poverty program that began in September has also been beneficial, he said.

McCabe said the board is unlikely to condition future incentive pay on Burrough acquiring additional credentials, such as a college degree. Burrough served as interim city manager in 2015 and 2016 and during the last half of 2018 before the board gave him the official title of chief executive in December 2018.

“We can have people hang all kinds of degrees on the wall, but at the end of the day are they getting the job done?” McCabe said. “He’s getting the job done, and we’re very pleased with that. Him going out spending time and energy to get that degree, would it make him more well rounded? Perhaps. Would it aid him in this time of his career to do a better job? I think we’re seeing he’s doing an exceptional job with what he brings to the table today.

“I don’t think there’s added value there for his performance to improve by adding the degree or any additional certifications.”

McCabe said the board balanced the need to show appreciation with how the public would perceive the additional compensation. According to 2018 data from the U. S. Census Bureau, Burrough and Albright’s incentive compensation exceeded the $26,791 per capita income for Garland County.

During the board’s regular session Tuesday night, it reallocated $126,000 from its federal coronavirus relief Community Development Block Grant funding to a rental and utility assistance program, an acknowledgment of the looming eviction wave that could displace many families when the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s eviction moratorium expires at the end of the year.

While many of its citizens face economic uncertainty, the city is on pace for record-setting revenue years in 2020 and 2021. The $ 11 million general fund balance the city forecast for the end of 2021 is more than twice as large as the city’s reserve requirement of 16.5% of annual general fund expenses.

Last month the board approved a $1,200 bonus for all full-time city employees, who will also receive a 3.5% cost-ofliving adjustment for 2021.

“The board is very sensitive to perception of how the public would take such a bonus, but at the same time is equally sensitive to recognizing accomplishments,” McCabe said. “Making sure the individual understands his service, his commitment to the community through his performance is recognized.

“We would hate to have him believe that he was unappreciated, and that we did not think highly of his performance to the point he felt there was greener pastures around the corner.”

Burrough and Albright’s employment agreements also provide $7,800 a year for vehicle allowances and an annual $840 cellphone allowance. The city’s annual contribution to their retirements equals 15.32% of their base salaries.