Number of lay-offs at Glendale City Hall fewer than anticipated

Despite initially issuing dozens of layoff notices, only five Glendale employees have been let go as part of the city’s efforts to close a $15.4-million budget gap.

In addition to the lay-offs, 122 employees opted into early retirement, said city spokesman Tom Lorenz. That’s slightly more than the 117 that originally applied to leave their posts.

Glendale officials slimmed down the number of authorized positions at City Hall to near 2000 levels to balance the budget after cutting $18 million in spending last year.

“The greatest benefit will be the savings over future budget years as we maintain the lower staffing levels,” Lorenz said in an email Monday.

Some additional employees who had received layoff notices opted to retire early. Others were able to take previous positions they held, while the employees they replaced bumped into open positions.

The departments hardest hit by the retirements include Public Works and Community Services & Parks. Top-level retirees include Traffic and Safety Administrator Jano Baghdanian and the assistant general manager for water services at Glendale Water & Power, Peter Kavounas.

The five layoffs included a senior civil engineer, an accounting services specialist and an assistant project manager.

-- Britanny Levine, Times Community News

Follow Brittany Levine on Google+ or Twitter: @brittanylevine