After 18 years of ushering in infrastructure projects and leading the city of San Mateo through years of change, City Manager Larry Patterson announced Tuesday he will retire at the end of the year.
Though Patterson will have served as city manager for five years in December, he was previously director of Public Works for some 13 years. He was appointed to serve as the city’s interim city manager when Susan Loftus stepped down from the position in 2013 and was unanimously chosen by the council to serve in the role permanently in 2014.
“My 18 years serving this community have been the highlight of my career. This has been a wonderful place to work and I truly believe public service has a valuable and lasting impact on the community,” Patterson said in a city press release. “We have pursued big ideas and I’m proud to have had the support of a strong, forward-thinking council.”
In reflecting on his time with the city, Patterson said the wide range of major infrastructure projects the city has made headway on are among the achievements that stand out. Included among them are a Caltrain grade separation project involving intersections at 25th Avenue, 28th Avenue and 31st Avenue and improvements to the State Route 92 and El Camino Real interchange, which are near completion.
Patterson pegged efforts to chart out traffic patterns near the downtown San Mateo theater and craft a plan for Bay Meadows, the redevelopment of a former horse race track, as others that spanned his work as a traffic consultant for the city as well as its Public Works director and city manager. Prior to his work with the city, Patterson owned his own engineering firm that provided traffic consulting services throughout Northern California.
“Those kind of things both required a lot of years to actually come to fruition and actually make a difference,” he said.
Patterson commended the councilmembers he worked with over the years in maintaining the funding for projects even during recessions and ensuring much-needed improvements continued to progress.
Noting Patterson’s ability to build consensus on a wide array of initiatives, Mayor Rick Bonilla commended Patterson’s keen communication skills.
“Larry is uniquely qualified and his experience enabled him to take the helm of a complex organization,” Bonilla said in the release. “He pulled council together to get us moving cohesively and in an improved direction.”
Bonilla said Patterson would be a hard act to follow and pegged experience with cities undergoing change as a priority as the council discusses next steps in the hiring process in its Monday meeting.
For San Mateo County Supervisor Carole Groom, who worked with Patterson as a Public Works commissioner as well as former mayor, Patterson’s ability to explain complex projects and make others feel comfortable played a role in his many contributions to the city and county as a whole. Groom remembers working with Patterson on the plans for Bay Meadows and commended him for facilitating an effective process.
“He’s just one of the best public officials I’ve ever known,” she said. “He’s just got the best way about him. He’s great with people, he’s got a wonderful sense of humor.”
Though Patterson acknowledged the decision was a difficult one, he said it felt like it was a good time to allow a new city manager to participate in hiring as several department heads are nearing retirement. Acknowledging he was fortunate to have served as city manager during a strong economy, he said whoever filled the role would need to prepare for an economic downturn.
A 67-year-old coastside resident, Patterson said he hadn’t initially imagined filling the city’s top spot when he started working with San Mateo, but remembered mentioning the role when asked what he wanted to become during his interview to become the Public Works director.
“You have to be careful what you say,” he joked. “It’s been an interesting kind of nonlinear journey.”
(3) comments
Thank you Mr. Patterson for your many years of dedicated service to the City of San Mateo.
In response to the comment above, according to the City's posted salary schedule, (https://www.cityofsanmateo.org/DocumentCenter/View/46428), Mr. Patterson's pensionable salary is $255,938 per year, not $323,508, which is the market rate for City Manager salaries on the San Francisco Peninsula. The City's pension plan for miscellaneous employees is 2.0 percent for every year of service at age 55. In accordance with the California Public Employees' Retirement Law (PERL) § 21354, and given Mr. Patterson's age, the percentage of annual salary that will be included in his pension will be 2.418% per year of service. As stated in the article, Mr. Patterson served the City of San Mateo for 18 years, thus 18 x 2.418% = 43.524%. Applied to his current salary of $255,938, Mr. Patterson's maximum annual pension will be approximately $111,395, with a 2% annual COLA.
With a compensation package of $323,508.00 in 2016, he will enjoy a "comfortable" retirement on the public's dime.
Mr. Patterson served the city for nearly 20 years in major leadership roles. If he were in the private sector, he would likely be a high level executive making a great deal more. We are lucky to have had him. Not sure what your beef is, Hawkeye.
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