By Khalida Sarwari
Saratoga city manager Dave Anderson announced last month that he’ll retire in July after nearly 14 years as the city’s top administrative officer.
“I think that I pretty much accomplished what I set out to do here,” Anderson said.
“When I first came here, the city had a very difficult political culture, and I think that over time that’s become much better,” said Anderson. “I think also when I came here, the city’s infrastructure was in decline. It was in a dilapidated state, and we’ve been able to improve that.”
In Saratoga, the city manager serves as the main contact for the mayor and city council and provides guidance and oversight to the city’s staff in fulfilling the council’s objectives.
“Dave is a man of wisdom and experience,” Mayor Emily Lo said. “It will take some big shoes to fill his position. I wish him the best in his retirement.”
Said Vice Mayor Howard Miller, “Dave has been an outstanding city manager, and his retirement is a huge loss for everyone in the city. He will be dearly missed.”
City officials have not yet decided on a timetable for finding a successor, but the goal is to have one by the time Anderson leaves, said Monica LaBossiere, human resources manager for the city of Saratoga. The city council held a special meeting Jan. 29 to kick off the recruitment process.
Anderson said that he felt the moment was ripe for his retirement.
“I’ve worked a good number of years past my minimum retirement age, and I wanted to retire while my health was still good and I could enjoy my retirement. Personal considerations in terms of wanting to be able to travel and explore different things in life rather than work were compelling,” said Anderson, citing landscape photography, cooking and learning about genealogy as hobbies he’d like to focus on.
Anderson, 61, has served as assistant city manager for the town of Danville and assistant to the city manager for the city of San Jacinto. A native of Everett, Wash., he was introduced to city government at a young age.
“My dad was mayor of Everett for nine years,” he said. “I was answering city complaint calls at 15. This whole business was fairly intuitive for me because I experienced it from the inside with my dad being involved for so long.”
He received his bachelor’s degree in urban planning from Evergreen State College and his master’s in public administration from the University of Washington. He was hired in Saratoga in August 2000.
The most challenging years of his tenure, said Anderson, were during the economic downturn, when the city had to juggle delivering high-quality services to its residents amid a difficult budget environment. Still, he said, the job has not been without its rewards.
“I’ve really enjoyed working here all these years,” he said. “I hope I’ve been able to make a positive contribution to improve the lives of the residents in the community during this time.”
Anderson’s last day will be July 23.
