Jury awards damages to city of SLO

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• Parents awarded $74 million in malpractice lawsuit against doctor

  Parents awarded $74 million in malpractice lawsuit against doctor

  A jury awarded Andrew and Jennifer Blunt of San Luis Obispo more than $74 million, finding that Dr. Kurt Haupt was negligent in the delivery of their daughter, Sofia, who has cerebral palsy.

• SLO city managers to cut pay, forgo raises

  SLO city managers to cut pay, forgo raises

  Top city managers in San Luis Obispo have taken pay cuts ahead of major union negotiations in the hope of persuading workers to do the same.

  San Luis Obispo’s top managers have agreed to forgo any salary increases for two years and to reduce their compensation by about 8 percent. That will save the city an estimated $807,000 annually.

  The move comes at a critical time as the city works to negotiate about $3.1 million in employee compensation cuts — or 6.8 percent per employee. The proposed savings from management covers about 26 percent of the $3.1 million the city is trying to save.

• Lawsuit filed over ban on sleeping in cars in San Luis Obispo

  Lawsuit filed over ban on sleeping in cars in San Luis Obispo

  A lawsuit challenging a San Luis Obispo ordinance that prohibits sleeping in vehicles on city streets has been filed on behalf of people who say they have been unfairly targeted by recent police enforcement.

  The lawsuit, filed by attorneys Saro Rizzo and Stewart Jenkins in San Luis Obispo Superior Court on Friday, alleges that the law is unconstitutional, vague and results in arbitrary enforcement.

  “Basically, the ordinance criminalizes innocent conduct, sleeping and/or living when either is associated with a recreational vehicle,” the lawsuit argues.

• Pay cut for top SLO managers

  Pay cut for top SLO managers

  A proposed pay cut to the city’s top earners narrowly passed Tuesday night —drawing a clear line between the San Luis Obispo City Council members who feel that the city is doing enough to cut expenses and those who don’t.

  A 3-2 vote, with Councilwoman Kathy Smith and Councilman Dan Carpenter dissenting, passed the $807,000 cut in annual pay and benefits to the city’s top managers and unrepresented employees.

  Smith chastised City Manager Katie Lichtig, whose total compensation was reduced by $39,500, for not doing enough.

• False alarms costing the county

  False alarms costing the county

  Since the County Government Center opened seven years ago, the San Luis Obispo Fire Department has been called to 60 false fire alarms at the building, 13 of those during business hours.

  The cost to evacuate the buildings when they are fully occupied by the county staff is $12,600 an hour “at a minimum,” or a total of $163,000, according to a report to the Board of Supervisors from the General Services Agency. That figure does not include the cost of off-hours false alarms, or the cost to city taxpayers for its firefighters.

  Dissatisfied with the pace of negotiations with the contractor for the building, Kajima Construction, the county has decided to either upgrade or replace the system, at a cost of $513,000, as it continues to pursue settlement talks.