LAGUNA NIGUEL : 2 Officials Quit, Creating 4 Openings

Two top city officials appointed on a temporary basis have resigned, meaning this recently formed city could soon be without a city manager, city clerk, city treasurer and community development director.

Warren S. Benson, who held the interim posts of city manager, city clerk and city treasurer, and Alan Rubin, the interim community development director, both announced that they will leave their posts in May. Both men were appointed when the city was incorporated in December.

City Councilman Paul M. Christiansen said the resignations do not mean the city will be left unattended.

“We’re in a state of transition,” Christiansen said. “But we are certainly embarked on securing qualified city personnel. If I thought there was a problem, I’d be down there running the city myself.”

Benson, 58, who is leaving a job that pays about $81,000 a year, said it was coincidental that the two resignations were announced during the same week.

“They came about the same time, but they were individual decisions,” Benson said.

Rubin, 39, who was earning $61,000 annually, declined to comment on his resignation.

The city is searching for a permanent city manager and permanent community development director, and both Benson and Rubin were among those being considered for the jobs, said City Councilman James F. Krembas.

Benson said he has offered to continue with part-time administrative duties until a new city manager is hired.

Benson, who was hired as general manager of the Laguna Niguel Community Services District in April, 1988, before the city became incorporated, has accepted a job with Local Agency Associates, a consulting firm in San Juan Capistrano. Rubin started with the Laguna Niguel Community Services District in May, 1988. He has not yet found another job, according to a news release from the city.