At long last, the city may have its new community services director, who will take the wheel as the Recreation Department undergoes a metamorphosis.
The City Council will be tasked Friday with rubber-stamping the hiring of Brian Haworth to the role, as recommended by City Manager Marcella Marlowe. Haworth would fill a position that’s been vacant since 2018, although temporarily occupied by interim placeholders from time to time.
Although the community services director does also include operations at the Crowell Public Library under its purview, intense focus will be on how the director steers redevelopment of the Recreation Department. The council previously decided to revamp and modernize the program to be more cost-effective while also emphasizing critical community-building programs.
This move will go alongside the department’s presumed move to the San Marino Center, after being housed in the Stoneman School building for years.
The city underwent two recruitment processes to arrive at this decision. The search initially brought in 125 applicants to the city, which was narrowed down to 20 for a first round of interviews. Three finalists emerged there and although two of those candidates ultimately presented as well qualified, both would retract their interest in the job after “evaluating our opportunity against their personal and professional considerations,” according to the staff report.
“Expectations in San Marino are high, especially at this critical time for our recreation program,” the report said.
For the second round, Marlowe utilized the firm Peckham & McKenney — which previously brought Finance Director Paul Chung to San Marino — to search for a “strong generalist management candidate” instead of “in-depth recreation professionals.” This search ultimately yielded Haworth.
According to the staff report, Haworth has worked in local government for 18 years and is the assistant to the city manager in Temple City, where he also is the economic development manager. He earned a bachelor’s degree in geography from UCLA and a master’s degree in urban planning from UC Irvine.
“Over the course of his career, he has worked on a variety of projects, including a library needs assessment and facility renovation, grant writing, a rebranding of city marketing materials, expanded Chinese translation and engagement efforts, and a COVID-19 Continuity of Operations Plan,” the report says, adding that “his references (including four city managers and one council member) uniformly spoke highly of him. He is described as creative and entrepreneurial, successful at accomplishing goals, a self-starter and big picture thinker, someone who takes pride in his work, and collegial and collaborative.”
Assuming the council’s concurrence, Haworth would begin work on Oct. 12.
Relatedly, the council also is slated to commit to a handful of final requests regarding architectural planning for the San Marino Center’s renovation.
The key question will be exterior design: Some argue that the building ought to retain its signature midcentury modern look, while others say it should match the Spanish colonial revival style of its neighbors. The council also plans to direct planning on the location of the building’s kitchen and its restrooms, among other areas.
The meeting begins at 8:30 a.m. Friday, Sept. 25, and will be livestreamed on Zoom due to the coronavirus pandemic.
At Last, Community Services Director Job Close to Being Filled
