BRUNSWICK — City council is considering a ballot issue that would eliminate two positions within the city’s administration and transfer more responsibilities to the chief building official and city manager.

Proposed charter amendments would eliminate the safety director and the planning and community development director from the city’s administrative hierarchy. The city manager would take most of the safety director’s responsibilities, and the chief building official would be responsible for planning and community development issues.

City Manager Robert Zienkowski said the changes would save around $140,000 annually.

As of this fall, the safety director and the planning and community development positions will be open, he added.

Safety Director Pat Beyer will retire Oct. 1, and chief building official Roger Westfall has been serving as interim director of planning and community development for about 1½ years. Sid Welch was the city’s last full-time planning director.

“We constantly look at how, when the opportunity exists, we can streamline or reduce costs by reviewing positions as they become available,” Zienkowski said, noting several other positions within the city have remained unfilled or been reduced to part time to save money.

The proposed amendments would transfer the divisions of engineering and permits and inspections from the department of public services to the building department.

Zienkowski said he and Westfall are prepared for the added responsibilities should voters approve the amendments.

“It’s just part of what we need to do,” he said.

Zienkowski said the proposed changes would make city government run less expensively and more efficiently.

“Wherever we can eliminate a management position and consolidate — that’s what we’ve been trying to do,” he said.

Zienkowski added the police and fire chiefs would be responsible for emergency management — which is now the safety director’s responsibility — along with a few other tasks.

If the amendments are approved, assistant safety director and community policing coordinator Nick Solar would drop “assistant safety director” from his title, but his job description wouldn’t change, administrative services coordinator Julie Murawski said.

“In the 10 years I’ve been here, I’ve never seen that position function as the assistant safety director,” Murawski said.

The deadline to submit items for the November ballot is Aug. 23. Council plans to vote July 23 on the issue because it is in recess during August.

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