Hermosa Beach hires deputy city manager from Newport Beach

Newly appointed deputy city manager Angela Crespi was formerly with the Newport Public Works Department. Photo courtesy of the City of Hermosa Beach

by Dan Blackburn

A month after Hermosa Beach City Manager Suja Lowenthal was granted a four percent raise, Lowenthal has hired an assistant whose base annual pay will be $137,369.

City council members decided last August that Lowenthal’s performance, since her 2018 hiring, justified a pay hike, to $236,868. The council approved the increase at the February 23 meeting, and made it retroactive to last August.

The city council also approved creation of the deputy city manager position last year.

Angela Crespi, who will fill the newly-created post of deputy city manager, most recently spent two years working for the Newport Beach’s Public Works Department as finance and administrative manager.

According to a release from a Hermosa Beach spokesperson, Crespi has held various city and county positions for the past 15 years.

Hermosa Beach Mayor Justin Massey said Crespi’s “experience developing and implementing successful city and county programs will be invaluable.”

Crespi will serve as acting city manager when needed, Lowenthal said.

Crespi holds a master’s degree in Public Administration and a Bachelor of Arts, both from Southern Illinois University, Carbondale. She resides in Orange County and said she plans to move to the South Bay as early as this summer. ER

Water conservation challenge

Hermosa Beach Mayor Justin Massey has enlisted Hermosa Beach in the 10th Anniversary Wyland National Mayor’s Challenge for Water Conservation.

The competition, which runs April 1 through April 30, encourages residents to take the My Water Pledge (at MyWaterPledge.com), to save water, and reduce pollution and energy use.

In addition, its My Volunteer Water Project (at MyVolunteer Water Project) suggests projects to reduce neighborhood water.

“Over the past 10 years, the City of Hermosa Beach has used over 300 million gallons of recycled water at our parks and public areas to conserve water and protect our environment,” said Mayor Massey.

Cities with the highest percentage of residents who take the challenge will have a chance to win $3,000 toward their home utility bills and hundreds more eco-friendly prizes, including irrigation smart controllers and gift cards. ER