Amador County – Ione City Council now hunts for a new city attorney, along with its search for an Interim City Manager.

City Attorney Kristen Castanos is leaving the employment of the city, as is City Manager Kim Kerr. Kerr gave notice in April, after accepting a position as assistant Chief Administrative Officer of El Dorado County, under Terry Daly.

Ione Mayor David Plank said the city has been searching specifically for an interim city manager and has had a lot of people apply and they have conducted some interviews. He said people may say, why would anyone want that job, but “you’d be amazed.” They have gotten inquiries from several good, very qualified candidates.

The city is also looking at hiring a new attorney service, as city Counsel Kristen Castanos has notified the city that she is leaving. Plank said Castonos has told the City Council that “she will be available to us for particulars for the wastewater treatment plant.”

Plank said Castanos is “recognized as one of the leading water and wastewater control legal minds in Northern California, and in land use as well. She is an extremely brilliant, knowledgeable woman, a busy gal, and a very hard worker.”

Castanos has helped the city get its new wastewater treatment plant to the point where it is nearly ready to sign a contract to design, build, finance and operate the plant, though the council tabled that decision Tuesday.

Plank said Castanos’ fee is $300 an hour, and on certain highly specialized work, it goes to $350. He said “she’s right there in the norm as far as rates.”

He said “we’ll probably reduce our rates by maybe a 100 bucks an hour,” as attorney costs for basic city council work may be around $170 an hour. He said “you don’t get anything for free,” and you don’t get as much as you used to for it either.

At a recent meeting, one woman asked about the legal fees the city has paid, and was given a full itemization. Plank said the costs include lawsuit fees, wastewater fees, and when you get into creating a wastewater plant, you must deal legally with the federal government, the state and the Environmental Protection Agency. He said they also have done the city General Plan Update, and had a couple of lawsuits that were unsuccessful.

Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.