Rail Project to Defer Some Consultant Pay

Private consultants to a faltering railway project in Placentia must obtain $50 million in government funding to help prop up the undertaking or face losing half their pay, the City Council decided Tuesday night.

The requirement affects the salaries of the executive director and eight other professionals and companies hired to build OnTrac, a $500-million project to improve a major rail line that runs through the small North County city.

OnTrac calls for a variety of underpasses and overpasses at busy railroad crossings and placing tracks below street level in a concrete trench. The project, which has been underway since the late 1990s, is behind schedule and millions of dollars in arrears.

“We need to create better accountability, better cost controls and better management standards. There is a state budget crisis,” said City Councilman Scott P. Brady, a former OnTrac board member.

The City Council voted 3 to 1 to pass the performance standards, which require the consultants and Executive Director Christopher Becker to defer half their pay for four months at a total savings to the city of $153,000.

Mayor Judy A. Dickinson opposed the measure, saying it sent the wrong message to Congress at a time when the project is seeking $220 million in federal funds.

Councilwoman Constance Underhill abstained, saying other steps, such as budget cuts and the reevaluation of consulting contracts, should be taken before deciding on a payment plan for consultants.

In June, the council plans to review the standards for possible renewal unless $50 million in funding from state and federal sources is found for the project. If the money is acquired, the consultants will be reimbursed their deferred salaries.

The criteria apply to a group of economic advisors, management consultants, lobbyists, a public relations firm, attorneys and an OnTrac liaison who works with railroad companies.

“It’s about time the consultants shared some of the risk,” said Craig Green, a community activist from Citizens for a Better Placentia. “It is a good step, but it does not go far enough. The project should be put on hold until we get the money to build it.”

Over the last year, OnTrac has been hit by financial setbacks, including the delay and potential loss of about $12 million from a $28-million state grant. The project has at least $10.6 million in overdue bills.

Also, the city, which has provided at least $12 million for the project, wants to reduce its future contributions because of its own financial woes.

Community activists have complained that part of the problem was due to the project’s heavy reliance on expensive private consultants, many of whom are paid $150 to $200 an hour.

Some of the controversy swirled around Becker, the city’s former public works director who turned private consultant to direct OnTrac. His annual salary approached $500,000 before his contract was reduced last year to about $300,000.

Defenders of the project’s management say the consultants are needed to give the project a high profile that will help secure government funding. They also have said the city does not have the staff or the expertise needed for the project.

In addition to performance standards for consultants, City Council members said they want to renegotiate Becker’s contract.

They discussed limiting his billings to 40 hours a week and eliminating a clause that gives him 15% of the value of new consulting contracts hired. Becker said he had never collected any money from that provision.