We often hear constituents commenting about the city’s roads, traffic, traffic signals, parks, street signage, and other items at meetings or through social media and phone calls. From the Engineering and Public Works perspective, these are the tangible things that our residents see on a daily basis. There is, though, another Department within the City that typically stays behind the scenes and keeps things operating smoothly in the city without being noticed. This is the City’s Facilities Department.
What does the Facilities Department do? The simple answer is… everything related to City owned buildings and property. They handle air conditioning repairs, leaky roofs, installation of office furniture and equipment, and the general maintenance of plazas, sidewalks, and stairs.
The Staff of this Department are in charge of hundreds of items that that allow employees to better serve you, our residents. As stated, air conditioning functionality, temperature and maintenance is one of the very important functions they serve, especially in the summer as I write this on a 117° day. I am sure the visitors coming into a cool City Hall appreciate their service as well.
Not only at City Hall does the Facilities Department leave its fingerprint, they also take care of all the other City buildings including the police department, fire stations and the city library. This includes bathrooms, kitchens and jail holding cells as well as the hardscape and landscape grounds surrounding each of these. Even the city landmark, the “Gregory S. Pettis Fountain of Life,” is under this Department’s purview. Elevators, cooling towers, garage doors, rolling gates, locks, plumbing, valves, alarm systems and solenoids are a list of words used in the daily “lingo” of these professionals. They coordinate services for exterminating, carpet cleaning, landscaping, parking structure sweeping, janitorial and roof inspections. The list goes on. Most of us manage to take care of our homes and property, just amplify that responsibility by 100 times and you will get a sense of what these employees do every day.
In order to move from one task to another, these professionals must have a diverse skill set that allows them to complete their tasks. Hence, their backgrounds are in construction, electrical, framing, locksmithing, plumbing and air conditioning/heating. The knowledge they obtain allows them to monitor equipment, identify problems, and make appropriate repairs.
The Facilities Department also keeps you, our taxpayers, in mind as they are always looking to save money, be efficient and environmentally friendly. A prime example is their current project of converting all the lighting throughout city buildings and structures to energy efficient LED light fixtures. Additionally, when old parts fail, they do not just simply replace the part, they often look at ways to install more efficient parts that will last longer, provide better service, and save on energy costs. This is true with not only electrical components, but also water components. The City takes pride in being a leader in water conservation, and Facilities, continually looks for opportunities to hardscape, replumb and introduce more water efficient plants to reduce the City’s overall water usage.
I hope you enjoyed this introduction and overview of our Facilities Department which supports the employees of the City and you as well. They are constantly working behind the scenes to ensure our level of service to our residents and make your experience with the city better, both day and night.
If you have any questions regarding this Community Update, please call me, John A. Corella, at 760-770-0327 or email me at JCorella@cathedralcity.gov .
