City Manager Tom Hatch presented Maintenance Supervisor Ruben Salas with the September City Manager Leadership Award at the monthly Meet and Greet celebration on Thursday Sept. 27.

“Ruben sets a great example to all of his team members with his dedication and hard work,” City Manager Hatch said. “Ensuring the city’s fleet of vehicles are in great shape is an important job and Ruben and his team consistently rise to that challenge. I appreciate all he does for Costa Mesa.”

As the supervisor, Salas is charged with purchasing vehicles, monitoring contracts and overseeing the daily challenges associated with running a successful municipal fleet.

Hired by the City of Costa Mesa in April 2006 as an Equipment Mechanic III, Salas has a diverse background. He spent 17 years working as a mechanic for OCTA and prior to that served in the U.S. Marine Corps.

Salas is an ASE Certified Master Mechanic with certificates in Automotive and Heavy Truck Repairs. He is a state certified Fire Mechanic and was recently awarded the 25-year Master Automotive Service Excellence medallion.

His hobbies include weightlifting, basketball and martial arts. He is an assistant instructor at the South Orange County Martial Arts Academy under Master Frank Ebrahimi. He has been a student of Kung Fu for over 26 years and holds the rank of 6th degree black belt in Kung Fu.

In addition to honoring Salas, City Manager Hatch welcomed several new employees and one for a promotion.

New to the city are Jeff Trujillo, a video production coordinator for the Communications and Marketing Division. Also new in Parks and Community Services are Nicholas Kinnart, Recreation Leader II and Getsemani Orozco Ceja Recreation Leader I.

In Public Services, Elena Polyakova White is the new Engineering Division Intern, and Hatch honored longtime city employee Bruce Lindemann for his promotion to Maintenance Services Manager.