Crescent City councilors backed a proposal to recruit local human resources professionals rather than continuing to rely on a third-party consultant after their city manager called the current arrangement effective but not ideal. The city has had a contract with a Sacramento-based human resources provider following a resignation in December 2023, City Manager Eric Wier said. While that provider was able to meet the city’s HR needs, Wier said the distance proved challenging. “HR does so many different functions for us as a city,” he said. “Employee relations and having the employees have the ability to go to that person and ask questions about the various HR topics that they might have and having that relationship is very important.” Crescent City also needs someone who’s dedicated to employee recruitment, Wier said, pointing out that the city has about 100 total employees including 75 full-timers. A third-party consultant with other clients isn’t able to provide that focus, Wier said. The city manager said that the city clerk, finance director, city attorney and, occasionally, himself have had to perform HR duties. The Crescent City Council unanimously granted Wier the authority to recruit for a human resources analyst and a human resources manager, though only one employee will be hired. According to Wier, the HR manager position is the more senior role and would be able to manage the HR department. The analyst’s expertise wouldn’t be as extensive — they wouldn’t manage the HR department, for example, Wier said. Instead they would perform their duties with more direct oversight from the city manager, according to his staff report. “We would then supplement them most likely with some outside consultant who could provide help as they needed,” he said. “We’ve done that with some of our other positions in the past where we had a finance analyst I and a finance analyst II.” Wier said the HR analyst was included at a salary step 3 in the city’s 2025-26 budget, which means an adjustment isn’t necessary if they hire someone in that role. However, a budget adjustment will be necessary if an HR manager is hired. Wier said the HR manager position was included in Crescent City’s 2025-26 budget with a salary range of $59,483 to $72,320. However, pointing out that their duties and responsibilities will be comparable to other city management positions, staff proposed increasing the salary range to between $75,935 and $92,300. The HR analyst would be a non-exempt hourly position with a salary range from between $59,483 and $72,320. Wier said the HR analyst salary would be comparable to the city’s finance analyst I position. He said he expects the city to have one through the recruitment and hiring process by September.