(May 3) TWENTYNINE PALMS — The city of Twentynine Palms has settled on bringing in Joe Guzzetta, the former city manager of Desert Hot Springs and the current general manager of the Joshua Basin Water District, to replace recently departed city manager Richard Warne.
Guzzetta will officially begin with the city June 1.
After a short but intensive search for Warne’s replacement, the city council at a specially scheduled meeting on April 30 voted unanimously to hire Guzzetta, providing him with a $184,000 salary and a $6,000 per year contribution to his retirement fund.
Under the contract extended to Guzzetta, who currently lives in Riverside, he will be required to take up residence in Twentynine Palms by March 1, 2014.
For the last nine years Guzzetta has been the general manager of The Joshua Basin Water District, while that entity has carried out capital improvements, infrastructure replacement, a groundwater recharge program and the facilitation of a wastewater treatment plant partnership with the Hi-Desert Medical Center in Joshua Tree.
In addition to managing Desert Hot Springs, Guzzetta was the city manager for periods in both Hemet and Corte Madera.