Schenectady's Commissioner of General Services leaving job Thursday, October 9, 2014 By Kathleen Moore (Contact) Gazette Reporter
SCHENECTADY — The city’s go-to man for everything from potholes to park problems to plowing is leaving.
Commissioner of General Services Carl Olsen gave his two weeks notice this week, surprising city officials. He is leaving to take a job with the state office of general services, Mayor Gary McCarthy said.
It’s unusual for major department heads to leave without giving enough notice to create a transition plan. McCarthy acknowledged that the timing was “inconvenient.”
He won’t begin the process of replacing Olsen until the budget is done at the end of the month, he said.
“The first thing is, I have to get through the budget process and see who’s there and what’s there,” he said.
Then he can determine whether he could promote from within or recruit an outsider.
“We have a fairly strong team of managers here, so I feel comfortable we can transition in a seamless manner,” he said.
In the meantime, he added, everyone else will have to pitch in — particularly during snowstorms, when Olsen would often manage the operations while staying awake for two days at a time.
“There’s the city engineer. Mike Cerrone runs the field operations for plowing,” McCarthy said. “There’s people in place. It will cause some inconvenience, but the average person on the street will notice no difference.”
Olsen was given more and more responsibilities in the past decade, until he oversaw nearly half the city’s functions.
He oversaw garbage collection under Mayor Al Jurczynski.
In 2005, he was handed the duties of monitoring road conditions and supervising employees during snowstorms and floods, which had previously been the city engineer’s job.
In 2006, he also took over parks and pools supervision when the parks director retired.
And slowly it grew, with Olsen now supervising all vehicle maintenance, sewer and water repairs, garbage and recycling, pools and parks, and even a body shop.
He was able to save the city money by taking on several administrative positions. He was paid $109,000 this year.
He also cut from his budget extensively, cutting back on workers as mayors asked for ways to reduce costs in each year’s budget.
But he also pushed for the building of a controversial complex on Foster Avenue, where all of the city’s trucks could be stored, maintained and fueled.
The $20 million project was dubbed the “Taj Mahal” by some opponents, although Olsen defended it as a consolidation that would save money in the long run.
In January, Olsen asked for permission to reorganize his management team. It would have led to 3 to 4 percent raises for a select few supervisors, guaranteed for 10 years in a row, as well as a nearly 40 percent raise for one employee. He also proposed cutting back on some budget lines to create enough money for a deputy commissioner, to plan ahead for his successor.
But Finance Commissioner Deborah DeGenova told the council not to approve it, saying that the city could not afford it and that it would not be fair to 38 other supervisors who were not offered raises.
Olsen said the supervisors who deserved raises had been given much more work over the years, but didn’t get compensated for the additional responsibility.
He also said that few workers wanted to become supervisors because the work would involve so much unpaid overtime.
The council listened, but refused to take any action. For months afterward, Olsen warned them that they would wish they had planned ahead, suggesting that he might leave suddenly.
McCarthy declined to comment on whether the pay fight led to Olsen’s resignation.
"I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness, starving hysterical naked, dragging themselves through the negro streets at dawn looking for an angry fix,"
The council listened, but refused to take any action. For months afterward, Olsen warned them that they would wish they had planned ahead, suggesting that he might leave suddenly.
Looks like their pattern is 'they don't listen to anyone'!
Quoted Text
but the average person on the street will notice no difference.”
what is the difference between an 'average person' and an 'not-so-average person'?
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
Let's see if McThief hires someone who has to pay city taxes.
Optimists close their eyes and pretend problems are non existent. Better to have open eyes, see the truths, acknowledge the negatives, and speak up for the people rather than the politicos and their rich cronies.
but the average person on the street will notice no difference.”
McCarthy is right the average person on the street will notice no difference because park lawns are not cut, streets are not plowed, pot holes are all over the place, blighted houses and crime are everywhere, and taxes are going up again!
Olsen jumped ship just like Stratton they all want more money from state jobs! Olsen knows what he did with advocating for the 20 million dollar Taj Mahal. The Taj Mahal has put the city in more debt which we are paying for right now and in the future. I have a great Idea lets sell and privatize the Taj Mahal so we can cut taxes and then hire more people. Then again the Mayor can't even sell the 2,000 foreclosures he has in his lap. Who's going to be stupid enough to buy anthing in Schenectady? But no McCarthy wants to raise taxes so he can hire more mules. McCarthy has no clue and no sense dumb lame duck mayor!
Olsen gets about $110,000 a yr from the city taxpayers, but he does not pay taxes in the city nor the county.
Will be interesting to learn what the salary of his state job will be. We're wondering if this is a short term thing to pad his retirement if he gets a big raise.
He's old enough to retire, but not sure how many years he has in the lucrative retirement system
Optimists close their eyes and pretend problems are non existent. Better to have open eyes, see the truths, acknowledge the negatives, and speak up for the people rather than the politicos and their rich cronies.
but the average person on the street will notice no difference.”
McCarthy is right the average person on the street will notice no difference because park lawns are not cut, streets are not plowed, pot holes are all over the place, blighted houses and crime are everywhere, and taxes are going up again!
A city in neglect is a city in neglect. Don't fill the position and save some money and continue to neglect the city.
A city in neglect is a city in neglect. Don't fill the position and save some money and continue to neglect the city.
LOL
Great comment! And Soooooooooooooooooooooo True!
Optimists close their eyes and pretend problems are non existent. Better to have open eyes, see the truths, acknowledge the negatives, and speak up for the people rather than the politicos and their rich cronies.
Looks like their pattern is 'they don't listen to anyone'!
what is the difference between an 'average person' and an 'not-so-average person'?
Probably the same difference as the "ordinary" American and everyone else. You hear this on the news all the time when the media labels most of us this way.
Yes, by living in the city. Enforcing the Mayors own rule regarding residency requirements for a city job.
Yeah, the mayor enforces his own residency requirements.
- That's why he fired the assessor who did not live in the city and pay city taxes. - That's why he allowed Olsen to avoid paying city taxes by living outside of the city - That's why AFTER he stated residency is a requirement the HYPOCRITE MAYOR allows his police chief to avoid paying taxes by living outside the city, in fact outside of the county. - That's why earlier this year he appointed Senecal as fire chief and allows him to avoid paying city taxes by living in Niskyuna (and Colonie schools).
LYING MAYOR
Optimists close their eyes and pretend problems are non existent. Better to have open eyes, see the truths, acknowledge the negatives, and speak up for the people rather than the politicos and their rich cronies.
THE ROYAL PAIN IN THE A$$ MAYOR MCCARTHY HAS TO GO!
The guy who spoke at the city council meeting a few weeks back who called out McCarthy should run for MAYOR he is more qualified than McCarthy anyone knows his name?
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