2 Dozen With County, City Jobs Have 6-Figure Incomes

San Diego County Chief Administrative Officer Norman Hickey, San Diego City Manager John Lockwood and San Diego city schools Supt. Tom Payzant have, collectively, spent nearly a century rising to the top of their respective fields.

Over the years, in San Diego and elsewhere, each has grown accustomed to being the No. 1 administrator of a huge bureaucracy. But when asked about the six-digit salaries that make them the top-paid local public employees, the three figuratively tripped over one another trying to escape the No. 1 spot.

Payzant, for example, hastened to point out that his $110,916 annual compensation figure provided by school district personnel officers--which would have placed him ahead of both Hickey and Lockwood--included about $8,800 in an automobile allowance. “If you compare apples to apples . . . I think I’m a little behind them,” Payzant noted.

Aides to Hickey, meanwhile, pointed out that his $107,515 salary includes $7,500 in deferred compensation. And Lockwood, who earns $105,984 a year, asked, with a note of hope in his voice: “A few other guys are ahead of me, aren’t they?”

If Lockwood, Hickey and Payzant sound a bit sensitive about their salaries, perhaps it is because their wages--as well as those of thousands of other local public officials--place them well ahead of most San Diegans.

Though public servants often lament the financial sacrifices attendant to government service, payroll records from local cities, school boards and other agencies show that a public career hardly condemns one to a penurious existence.

Indeed, despite public officials’ oft-heard complaints that they earn less than they could in comparable positions in the private sector, thousands of them draw salaries considerably in excess of the $43,000 average household income that the San Diego Chamber of Commerce projects for 1988.

“I’m not sure that the image of the underpaid, overworked public servant was ever true, but even if it once was, it certainly doesn’t seem to be the case these days,” said Mark Nelson, executive director of the San Diego Taxpayers’ Assn. “In general, I don’t think most public employees in San Diego really are making a financial sacrifice.”

Dot Migdal, who monitors local government for the Chamber of Commerce, explained that she recently gained a new perspective on the issue of public-versus-private salaries when she attempted to hire a new secretary.

“I found that there was no way I could compete with the salaries that the city and county pay--they were thousands of dollars higher,” Migdal said. “If it’s that way at the secretarial level, it’s probably the same at middle management and up.”

When discussing their own salaries as well as those of their major subordinates, top public administrators such as Hickey, Lockwood and Payzant often draw private-sector parallels in an attempt to put the issue in context.

“When you get into the area of six-digit salaries, the question of whether Lockwood or anyone else is worth that kind of money is beside the point,” Lockwood said. “The fact is, as city manager, I’m in essence the CEO of an 8,000-employee business with more than a $700-million annual budget.”

“To a person making $25,000 a year, I guess my salary looks pretty good,” Hickey said. “And as far as the public sector goes, I’m doing well. But if you compare it to what you’d make in the private sector if you were in charge of 13,000 employees and a $1-billion-a-year budget, it’s really peanuts.”

However, an examination by The Times of the payroll records of local cities, school boards and a variety of other local governmental agencies reveals that many employees earn salaries that would not be considered “peanuts” in either the private or public sector.

Led by Hickey and Lockwood, roughly two dozen local public officials receive annual salaries slightly above $100,000. Most of those officials are psychiatric doctors employed by the county under a $50-per-hour contract that, assuming each does a regular year’s work, would produce a $104,000 annual salary.

In addition, many of the highest paid administrators also receive auto allowances and other fringe benefits beyond their base salary. Top county officials, for example, receive monthly auto allowances ranging from $300 to $440, with San Diego city and school officials receiving similar benefits. Free tickets to many civic, social and sporting events also are among the other perks typically accorded those officials.

The Times’ review showed that nearly 200 public officials across a wide range of positions countywide earn between $75,000 and $100,000, and more than 1,000 others top $50,000. (For purposes of this story, only local governmental agencies were reviewed. Salary figures for state and federal officials were not included.)

“Sometimes it’s very difficult for taxpayers to understand that anyone in publicly supported institutions is worth the kind of salaries that top officials get these days,” Payzant said. “And with good reason, because sometimes it might appear that it isn’t really being earned. But it’s necessary to attract and keep quality people.”

The backgrounds of Payzant, Lockwood and Hickey help illustrate that point. Among them, they have more than 90 years’ experience in their respective fields--in the process, building resumes that they and others argue would easily translate to higher private sector salaries. Hickey began his public career 34 years ago, while Lockwood joined the city in 1949 and Payzant has been a school administrator for 21 years.

Of the three, Payzant has been in his current position the longest, having become superintendent in November, 1982. Hickey became the county’s chief administrative officer two years ago, while Lockwood, a lifelong city employee who rose through the ranks after beginning his career as a mail messenger and mimeograph operator, assumed the city manager’s post in October, 1986.

Each of the three men say various opportunities to multiply their incomes by shifting to the private sector have come along over the years, but that they opted to remain in their public jobs for reasons only partly related to money.

“There’s a special feeling that comes with public service,” Hickey said. “If money was my only concern, I’d quit and go out and become a consultant and could make a lot more. But that’s not what’s important to me. It’s Russian roulette around here every Tuesday (when the Board of Supervisors meets), but I love it.”

Describing his attitude in similar terms, Lockwood said: “Frankly, I’m working for the fun of it. Money isn’t my motivation. I don’t care if I ever get another raise. At the same time, I’m not apologetic at all about my salary. I’ve never said I thought public service was a financial sacrifice.”

The Taxpayers’ Assn.’s Nelson, meanwhile, argues that salary comparisons between the public and private sector often overlook other significant factors in that financial equation.

“The CEO of a half-billion-dollar corporation might make three or four times more than a city manager or school superintendent,” Nelson said. “But I’d argue that the pressures in the private sector are greater and that the consequences of success or failure are more severe and more immediate.

“When public officials talk about making sacrifices, it’s all relative. Maybe a planner for a private development company makes $50,000 and a county planner only makes $40,000. But if a project ends and new business doesn’t come in, the private guy might be out of a job. That’s something the public employee doesn’t have to worry about. In a public job, you don’t have to worry about where your next paycheck is coming from. Plus, you have civil service protection and other advantages that don’t come with other jobs.”

While many middle-income workers perhaps envy the impressive salaries earned by some top local public officials, they also probably would find the fishbowl existence that goes along with the positions and wages to be considerably less attractive. Among other things, a top public position means that even one’s salary--for many people, an intensely personal topic not discussed even among family--is a matter of public record.

“The whole world knows what you’re earning,” Payzant noted. “That’s not so much an embarrassment as it is something that goes along with the turf that you just have to accept. The human response is, ‘Why do I have to justify getting paid for what I agreed to do?’ That’s not as hard or awkward for me as it is for my family. It’s not pleasant, but you get used to it.”

TOP 10 PUBLIC SALARIES IN SAN DIEGO COUNTY 1. Norman Hickey, County Chief Administrative Officer

$107,515 2. John Lockwood, San Diego City Manager

$105,984 3. Gerald Trimble, former Centre City Development Corp. Executive Vice President

$105,322 4. 21 county psychiatric doctors

$104,000 5. Tom Payzant, Superintendent, San Diego Unified School District

$102,093 6. Perry Bach, County Medical Director

$102,065 7. Thomas Liegler, San Diego Convention Center Corp. Executive Vice President

$97,020 8. Edwin Miller, County District Attorney

$96,324 9. Lloyd Harmon, County Counsel

$96,012 10. John Witt, San Diego City Attorney

$95,064

* These figures reflect base salary and do not include monthly automobile allowances or other fringe benefits. PUBLIC EMPLOYEES EARNING MORE THAN $75,000 ANNUALLY

Carlsbad--none.

Chula Vista--City Manager John Goss--$87,671; City Atty. Thomas Harron--$78,615; Director of Public Safety William Winters--$75,000-$79,130.

Coronado--none.

Del Mar--none.

El Cajon--City Manager Robert Acker--$79,186

Encinitas--City Manager Warren Shafer--$76,000.

Escondido--City Manager Vern Hazen, $90,000; City Atty. Dave Chapman, $84,996; Asst. City Atty. John Serrano, $76,656; Marilyn Whisenand, executive director of the City Development Commission, $80,268

Imperial Beach--none.

La Mesa--none.

Lemon Grove--none.

National City--City Manager Tom McCabe, $76,000.

Oceanside--Interim City Manager Bill Talley, $96,000 ($8,000 monthly under temporary contract); City Atty. Charles Revlett--$77,964.

Poway--City Manager Jim Bowersox, $76,000.

San Marcos--City Manager-Treasurer Rick Gittings, $79,680.

Santee--none.

Solana Beach--none.

Vista--none.

Superior Court--54 judges earn $84,765.

San Diego Unified School District--Supt. Tom Payzant, $102,093; Deputy Supt. Bertha Pendleton, $91,225; Asst. Supt. Albert Cook, $83,760; Asst. Supt. Eloisa Cisneros, $83,760; Asst. Supt. Catherine Hopper--$83,760, Asst. Supt. Beverly Foster--$83,760; Asst. Supt. George Russell--$82,932; Asst. Supt. John Perko--$82,932; Asst. Supt. Frank Till--$79,776; Asst. Supt. George Frey--$79,776; Controller Ron Oakes--$79,776; General Counsel Christina Dyer--$79,776

San Diego County Office of Education--Supt. Thomas Boysen--$90,000; Asst. Supt. Don Rucker--$78,000.

San Diego Unified Port District--Port Director Don Nay--$94,096; Gabriel Galina, assistant port director and treasurer--$86,197; Chief Engineer John Wilbur--$79,724; Attorney Joseph Patelo--$77,028

San Diego--City Manager John Lockwood, $105,984; City Atty. John Witt, $95,064; Asst. City Manager John Fowler, $92,904; Asst. City Atty. Curtis Fitzpatrick, $89,268; Senior Chief Deputy City Atty. Ronald Johnson, $87,804; Senior Chief Deputy City Atty. Stuart Swett, $87,804; Chief Deputy City Atty. Ted Bromfield, $86,340; Chief Deputy City Atty. Fred Conrad, $86,340; Chief Deputy City Atty. Eugene Gordon, $86,340; Chief Deputy City Atty. Susan Heath, $86,340; Chief Deputy City Atty. C. Alan Sumption Jr., $86,340; Chief Deputy City Atty. Jack Katz, $86,340; Deputy City Atty. Thomas Calverley, $85,944; Deputy City Atty. Harold Valderhaug, $85,944; Deputy City Manager George Conrad, $83,448; Deputy City Manager Jack McGrory, $83,448; Deputy City Manager Maureen Stapleton, $83,448; Police Chief William Kolender, $83,448; Deputy City Atty. William Shaffran, $79,692; Deputy City Atty. John Kaheny, $77,808; Personnel Director Rich Snapper, $77,616; Asst. Police Chief Robert Burgreen, $76,896; Deputy City Atty. John Riess, $76,560; Deputy City Atty. Anthony Shanley, $76,560; Deputy City Atty. Kenneth So, $76,560; Fire Chief John Delotch, $76,164; Deputy City Atty. Janis Gardner, $75,936; Deputy City Atty. Thomas Steinke, $75,936.

Centre City Development Corp.--Gerald Trimble, former executive vice president, $105,322 (Trimble left CCDC last week.); Pam Hamilton, acting executive vice president, $91,000; Max Schmidt, assistant vice president for planning and engineering, $76,650.

Data Processing Corp.--Executive Vice President Bob Metzger, $93,975.

Convention Center Corp.--Executive Vice President Tom Liegler, $97,020.

San Diego County--Chief Administrative Officer Norman Hickey, $107,515; psychiatrist Michael Vafiadakis, $104,000; psychiatrists Harold Konia, Ronald Pompei, Warren Higgins, David Schein, Karl Baer, Dean Archer, Robert Knight, Gerald Lake, Cecil Elmore, Timothy Murphy, John Shale, Richard Keiger, Junius Rose, Ronald Rae, James Pitts, Ronald Read, John Erdos, Donal White, Lee Bowlus, Christopher Gallen, all $104,000; Medical Director Perry Bach, $102,065; Dist. Atty. Edwin Miller, $96,324; County Counsel Lloyd Harmon, $96,012; Ronald Rivers, chief of forensic pathology, $95,014; Medical Director David McWhirter, $92,976; Deputy Chief Administrative Officer Randall Bacon, $92,489; Health Services Director J. William Cox, $92,372; Albert Sheff, supervising psychiatrist, $92,123; Assistant Chief Administrative Officer David Janssen, $91,436; Donald Ramras, deputy director of public health services, $90,750; Harold Mavritte, clinical director, mental health services, $89,606; Sheriff John Duffy, $88,545; Social Services Director Richard Jacobsen, $88,524; Deputy Chief Administrative Officer Lari Sheehan, $88,524; Robert Stasko, supervising psychiatrist, $87,713; Asst. District Atty. Richard Neely, $87,568; forensic pathologist Douglas Dixon, $87,235; forensic pathologist John Eisele, $87,235; William Townsend, chief of community disease control, $87,068; Georgia Reaser, chief of maternal and child health services, $87,068; Mark Chenven, supervising psychiatrist, $86,673; Asst. County Counsel Joseph Kase, $86,424; Public Works Director Granville Bowman, $86,153; Marshal Michael Sgobba, $85,306; Deputy Chief Administrative Officer Bruce Boland, $84,989; Chief Deputy Dist. Atty. Brian Michaels, $84,676; Deputy Chief Administrative Officer June Komar, $84,614; Chief Deputy County Counsel Daniel Wallace, $84,385; Chief Deputy County Counsel Alfred Albers, $84,385; Auditor-Controller Rod Calvao, $84,364; William Bailey, medical director Edgemoor Hospital, $80,496; Mark Zwiefach, supervising psychiatrist, $79,747; psychiatrist Eric Anders, $78,228; psychiatrist Bernard Hansen, $78,228; psychiatrist Eugene Culbertson, $78,228; psychiatrist Richard Wachsman, $78,228; psychiatrist James Brophy, $78,228; psychiatrist Sherwood Wilson, $78,228; psychiatrist Thomas Henley, $78,228; psychiatrist William Vargas, $78,228; psychiatrist David Irwin, $78,228; psychiatrist Joyce Bickford, $78,228; psychiatrist Charles Larkin, $78,228; Undersheriff Richard Sandberg, $77,292; psychiatrist Robert Littman, $77,250; Jury Commissioner William Pierce, $76,731; Chief Probation Officer Cecil Steppe, $76,606; Ethel Chastain, director of Office of Employee Services, $76,606; Court Administrator Kent Pedersen, $76,190; Assessor Gregory Smith, $75,982; Tomas Gonda, health services medical director, $75,816; Warene Wall, temporary professional employee, $75,712; Gabriel Rodriguez, director of Housing and Community Development, $75,004.

Sandag--Executive Director Ken Sulzer, $89,571

Metropolitan Transit Development Board--General Manager Tom Larwin, $81,381

San Diego County Water Authority--General Manager Lester Snow, $85,000; Acting Chief Engineer Robert Melbourne, $77,000.

NUMBER OF PUBLIC EMPLOYEES EARNING $50,000-$75,000 ANNUALLY

CARLSBAD . . . 25

CHULA VISTA . . . 21

CORONADO . . . 12

DEL MAR . . . 1

EL CAJON . . . 24

ENCINITAS . . . 5

ESCONDIDO . . . 32

IMPERIAL BEACH . . . 1

LA MESA . . . 8

LEMON GROVE . . . 1

NATIONAL CITY . . . 10

OCEANSIDE . . . 25

POWAY . . . 8

SAN MARCOS . . . 7

SANTEE . . . 8

SOLANA BEACH . . . 1

VISTA . . . 10

SAN DIEGO COUNTY . . . 470

SAN DIEGO . . . 195

SANDAG . . . 19

MTDB . . . 5

COUNTY OFFICE OF EDUCATION . . . 46

SAN DIEGO UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT . . . 236

PORT DISTRICT . . . 16

COUNTY WATER AUTHORITY . . . 5