The search for a new leader of the Los Osos Community Services District has begun in earnest.
The LOCSD has launched its search for the replacement of G.M. Ron Munds, who announced plans to retire later this year.
“Are you an experienced, detail-oriented public sector manager with strong municipal administrative and management expertise?” asks a job notice posted on the LOCSD’s website. “Do you have experience working with the California Coastal Commission, groundwater issues, fire service contracts, property management, and rate studies? If so, you should strongly consider applying for this unique opportunity.”
The notice goes on to describe Los Osos as a “charming community in San Luis Obispo County, often overshadowed by its flashier neighbors,” offering “a perfect blend of natural wonders, small-town charm, and outdoor adventure.”
With those enticements it goes on to say the board is seeking someone who is “creative, confident, approachable, and team focused.”
Requirements include a bachelor’s degree in public administration or a related field and 5-years experience “in an increasingly responsible public agency management position.”
The pay isn’t bad either. “The annual salary for this at-will position is $196,691-$214,200 [per year] depending on qualifications and experience.”
The District also has a full course of benefits including fully paid medical, dental and vision insurance for the employee and “significant contributions towards family premiums.”
The retirement is 2-percent of highest salary at 55-years old (multiplied by the number of years put in), plus “a generous paid leave program.”
The deadline to apply is Feb. 8, according to the notice.
The District hired a search firm, Peckham & McKenney Executive Search, to screen through the applicants. The hiring decision will ultimately be made by the Board.
Munds said he informed the Board last September that he was planning to retire in 2026 and gave them a plan for the transition.
With the recruitment now underway, Munds said he expects they will hire someone in May or June. His contract with the District is up in August, he said, so that would give him a month or two to help the new person ease into the job.
“I will step back and assist the new GM at least until August,” Munds said, “but I’m open to continuing on longer to complete or get as close to completion of some of the important projects that the CSD is currently working on.”
Among those big projects the LOCSD has cooking are building a water pipeline from the Chorro Valley Pipeline (running to Morro Bay adjacent to Hwy 1), to deliver drinking water to Los Osos; and a potential ballot initiative to ask voters to approve a new tax to buy Sunnyside School, expected to appear on the November 2026 Election Ballot, among numerous other issues in the works.
“I don’t want to inhibit the new GM’s vision for the District,” he explained, “so how long I stay will be dependent on that person’s needs and what the Board expectations are for my continued service.”
Munds will be closing out a lengthy career in local government. He worked for 27 years for the City of San Luis Obispo in the Utilities Department, mainly on the town’s various water issues.
Over the years he worked on the water system, wastewater, recycled water, energy, water conservation and solid waste management, Munds told Estero Bay News.
Before coming to Los Osos, he worked for SLO County Public Works Department for some three-and-a-half years.
He’s been with LOCSD for nearly seven years now. At 71-years old, he’s worked long past the age when most public servants sail off into the sunset. “I’ve been trying to retire since around 2015!” he joked.
