Zurn will be a huge improvement

A letter to the editor (“Zurn needs to watch his back,” June 2) suggested that errors in former Glendale Water & Power General Manager Glenn Steiger’s expense account, submitted twice, didn’t amount to a hill of beans. I take deep exception with that. When you’re in a position of trust, that buck is supposed to stop at the top.

The top is supposed to lead by example, with integrity. If this were an error as claimed, then it should have been caught by Steiger’s own staff before being submitted. This boils down to lack of ethics and certainly can’t be tolerated at any level let alone the top officer at GWP. So yes, this is certainly a big deal in padding your expense account, especially for someone like Steiger, one of the highest-paid city officials.

In the article by staff reporter Brittany Levine right after the May 23 resignation, Steiger was given many accolades for accomplishments, but they were made at a very deep price paid by all of us rate users. Under his tenure, water rates from 2007 through 2012 increased 39.5%. This put many in South Glendale in a financial straitjacket. The greatest need at this time was to replace our aging water mains. Also, the department’s future was put in financial jeopardy by investing in the smart-grid system. It was nice, but not needed at this time.

Steve Zurn as the interim general manager was an outstanding appointment. I worked with him during El Niño when damage occurred along Camino San Rafael. He is a person who will listen, is responsible, transparent and always working with you on a team-effort basis. He is certainly in that realm of top-notch department heads along with Jess Duran and Sam Engel.

Hopefully Steiger won’t be asking for a reference from the city.

Gary Cornell
Glendale