The city of Española is having a difficult time filling some important managerial positions.
Advertisements for a new human resource director and chief financial officer at the city of Española have not yet yielded any viable candidates, Interim City Manager Veronica Albin said.
The position of human resources director has been vacant since June 15 when former director David Valdez resigned. The position was advertised while Valdez was still at the city, but has attracted only one applicant.
The lone applicant is Alcalde resident Rita Ortiz, who Martinez said had previously applied for the position of recreation director at the city. Martinez would not say why Ortiz was not qualified.
During a discussion about the city’s budget, Mayor Joseph Maestas said it would be hard to attract a qualified human resources director for $47,000, the starting salary being offered by the city.
Valdez resigned after his repeated requests for an assistant and a pay raise went unanswered.
Albin briefly discussed contracting out to a human resources firm, but City Attorney Spence Pacheco recommended the city avoid doing so because of liability issues.
Finance Director Josie Lujan is currently filling in as human resources director.
As for the position of chief financial officer, which Elias Martinez vacated June 18, there have been as many as three applicants, although one dropped out after being offered another job.
Albin interviewed retired Rio Arriba County special projects manager Joe Salazar and Santa Fe consultant Todd Handy July 22, but decided to readvertise the position, which pays $67,500 annually.
The remaining employees in the Finance Department took on the task of completing the city’s budget in the absence of Elias Martinez, and temporary employee Xavier Ortiz has been helping with the additional work. Lujan said Ortiz has been an asset to the Department and said she planned to request that he be allowed to stay at the city longer than July 31, which is when Albin said his contract with the city will end.