With all the coming’s and going’s in California local government, it can be hard to keep track of where your friends are or what’s happening in your neighboring municipalities. But Trackdown Management helps keep the state up-to-date with their newsletter.
PublicCEO presents his Picking Up the Pieces:
Helen S. Kawagoe, the Carson City Clerk for more than 37-years, has retired. Trackdown congratulations to Helen and best wishes for a long and enjoyable retirement.
Atascadero City Manager Wade McKinney, California City Management Foundation Board President, has been appointed to serve as the next City Manager in the City of Indian Wells in Riverside County’s Coachella Valley. Wade took the Atascadero City Manager position in August, 1997. Prior to that he served 11- years as the Shafter City Manager. Wade began his career on the La Puente and Taft city staffs. Wade has earned a reputation as a highly professional and ethical public manager.
New Moreno Valley City Manager Michelle Dawson appointed former Administrative Services Director Tom DeSantis, 50, to the Moreno Valley Assistant City Manager position as one of her first actions as City Manager. Tom previously worked for the City of Riverside and he held positions with the Counties of Riverside and San Bernardino prior to that. Michelle worked with Rancho Cucamonga and Chino prior to joining the Moreno Valley staff in 2007. She was elevated following the resignation of veteran City Manager Henry Garcia.
MMASC past President Clay Curtin of the Manhattan Beach staff has been appointed Assistant to the City Manager in Menlo Park. Clay earned a BA from Washburn University and an MPA from the University of Syracuse Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs. Clay has been working with Manhattan Beach City Manager Dave Carmany‘s executive team.
San Marcos City Manager Jack Griffin previously served as the City Manager in Sebastopol in Sonoma County, and before that he was the Director of Public Works and the Director of General Services in Chula Vista. Jack has a BA from Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania.
Farmersville City Manager Rene Miller will retire at the end of this month. She originally joined the Farmersville staff at the Finance Director and was appointed City Manager in 2006. Farmersville Chief of Police Mario Krstic will serve as Interim City Manager. Rene earned a BA from California State University, Stanislaus. Prior to her appointment as City Manager she worked for a private CPA firm.
Ripon City Administrator Leon Compton retired in April after more than 25-years on the job. Kevin Werner was the Ripon Deputy City Administrator and is now the new City Administrator. Leon had worked for the City of Ripon for some 27- years. A community ice cream social was held in April at Stouffer Hall in Mavis Stouffer Park to commemorate Leon’s retirement.
Campbell City Manager Mark Linder has named Todd Capurso to serve as the Campbell Public Works Director. Todd comes from the Town of Los Gatos where he worked as the Public Works Director and Interim Community Development Director. Mark also appointed Regina Maurantonio to be the city’s new Recreation and Community Services Director. Regina is currently the Mountain View Assistant Director of Community Services.
Albany City Manager Beth Pollard, 56, will retire in August, 2013. Beth grew up in Massachusetts, with some time spent in Houston. Early in her working career she served as a newspaper reporter covering local government. She earned an MPA from California State University, East Bay. She worked for San Anselmo for 15-years; the last 7-years as City Manager. She was appointed to the Albany City Manager post in 2001.
Blaine, Washington City Manager Gary Tomsic, who has served in the position since February, 2000, will retire at the end of June. He will be replaced by Mammoth Lakes City Manager Dave Wilbrecht. Dave resigned from the Mammoth Lakes post in February. Prior to serving there he was the County Administrative Officer in Mono County for 8-years.
Former La Mirada Public Works Director Steve Forster, 48, who resigned February 1, was taken into custody by the Long Beach Police Department on the evening of May 27 and released on bail. Steve said that he resigned due to “some unfortunate events” that took place in his life. He maintained a good professional reputations regarding his job performance while serving in La Mirada.
Hercules City Clerk Doreen Mathews will retire at the end of June. Menlo Park City Clerk Margaret Roberts, a Past President of the City Clerks Association of California, has been appointed to succeed Doreen. Margaret previously served as City Clerk in Davis and Rio Vista. Doreen has served as the Hercules City Clerk since the late 1990s.
Chino Hills City Manager Mike Fleager, 57, plans to retire in November. Mike, a former member of the Cerritos staff, will work his last day as Chino Hills City Manager on November 27.
Montclair Chief of Police Keith Jones, 58, will retired after 32-years with the city. He has served as Chief since 2009, first in an “acting” capacity. Since last year (2012) Keith has served as the Director of Public Safety, in charge of both the police and fire departments in a reorganization instituted by City Manager Edward Starr.
Owners of the oil field between Pismo Beach and Edna Valley want to add 350 new oil wells and ramp up full-capacity production by almost double – from 5,000 to 9,000 barrels per day.
American Canyon City Manager Dana Shigley previously served as City Manager in Anderson (2009-2011), where she work for 11-years as Finance Director, and in economic development, budgeting, and as Assistant City Manager before she was elevated to the top spot. She took over in American Canyon from retiring veteran City Manager Richard Ramirez. She earned a BS in Accounting from California State University, San Bernardino and an MA in Public Policy and Administration from California State University, Sacramento. Dana is a Class of 1981 graduate of Ponderosa High School in Shingle Springs.
Fountain Valley City Manager Ray Kromer has retired after 28-years in that position. A New Jersey native, Ray came to Fountain Valley in 1985. Before coming to Fountain Valley he served as City Manager in Penbrook and Ridley, Pennsylvania, and in West Deptford, New Jersey. It is reported that Ray and his wife plan to visit Yellowstone National Park this fall.
Walnut Creek has appointed a consultant firm to evaluate the job performance of City Manager Ken Nordhoff, and his handling of a reported city employee’s sexual contact with a minor last year. Ken is a former San Rafael City Manager who came to the Walnut Creek post in December, 2010. He earned a BS in Accounting from California Polytechical University, Pomona.
Erica Darplee, formerly with the City of Rancho Cucamonga, has worked in the Energy Contract field with the Southern California Edison Company since July, 2010. Erica earned a BA from California State University, Fullerton, and an MPA from California State University, Long Beach. Chino is her hometown where she graduated from Chino High School.
Janesville, Wisconsin is recruiting for a replacement to their City Manager Eric Levitt, who has been appointed to the Simi Valley City Manager post. Eric served as the Sedona, Arizona City Manager for 7- years previous to his 2008 appointment in Janesville. Janesville has retained Karl Nollenberger of Voorhees Associates to help with the recruitment.
Former Portland Trailblazer Grant Taylor is the new Community Development Director in Lake Elsinore. Grant previously served as the Director of Development Services for the City of San Juan Capistrano. He is a graduate of the University of California, Irvine. Nicole Dailey is a new Management Analyst in the City of Lake Elsinore. She previously worked with the San Bernardino County Employees’ Retirement Association. Nicole previously served on the Lake Elsinore Public Safety Advisory Commission. She earned a BA from San Diego State University.