Carlos Mendoza is the City of Morro Bay’s new Maintenance Division Manager.
The City of Morro Bay has reached up into Cambria for its new maintenance manager.
Public Works Director, Greg Kwolek, announced Sept. 1 that he had hired Carlos Mendoza to be Morro Bay’s new Maintenance Division Manager replacing Travis “Dale” Simpson, who came to the City in June 2022.
Mendoza was picked out of four candidates that interviewed for the job. He started work Aug. 28 and brings over two decades of maintenance experience to Morro Bay.
“Carlos brings strong leadership and maintenance management experience to a fantastic maintenance team,” Kwolek said. “With this, I expect he will lead the Division to prioritize a variety of open projects, including beautification of the City with a focus on the upkeep and beautification of the Embarcadero and Downtown Morro Bay. “Carlos’ understanding of local government dynamics, as well as his listening skills and calm, friendly style will allow him to jump right in to understand our community’s needs and the best, most efficient ways to respond to them.
“I can’t wait to see the outcomes he and the maintenance team will produce in the coming years under his tenure.”
Mendoza has over 18 years of experience in maintenance, Kwolek said, including 22 years working for Cambria Community Services District. At Cambria CSD he was responsible for the supervision and management of facilities, grounds, open space, and recreational facilities.
“I am thrilled to bring my experience, leadership, and knowledge to the City of Morro Bay,” Mendoza said. “The City has a robust commitment to enhancing community facilities, parks, streets, sidewalks, buildings, and providing good stewardship to our valuable open spaces and city trees. I am eager to kick-start the numerous projects that the City has set aside funds for.”
One unexpected issue has been cleanup and repairs from last winter’s storms that caused millions in damage to City equipment and infrastructure.
“Since I arrived,” Mendoza said, “the Division has continued addressing the damage and cleanup caused by the winter storms, hazardous trees in various locations, and pressing maintenance needs at our parks.”
Morro Bay’s Maintenance crew has 10 full time workers and 2-4 part time workers. Kwolek said he will manage all day-to-day maintenance of the City’s parks, open space areas, streets, sidewalks, street trees, City facilities, and most aspects of the City’s fleet of vehicles.
“I believe that I can make a meaningful contribution to the maintenance team based on my skills and knowledge,” Mendoza said. “I greatly appreciate the dedication and professionalism exhibited by the team members, and I am impressed by the fact that many of them have been serving the City for over a decade.
“Their extensive experience is a testament to their commitment to providing high-quality services. I look forward to working alongside such a talented group of individuals.”
According to the City’s 2022-23 adopted salary schedule, the maintenance supervisor makes from $87,400 at the Step 1 level, to $106,200 at the top, Step 5, level, plus a benefits and retirement package.
