Official City Hall statements on shake-up
Mayor Brown and Robert Bobb Announce Bobb's Departure as City Manager
Mayor's Office
July 1, 2003
(Oakland, CA) Today, Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown and Robert Bobb jointly announced Bobb's departure from the position of City Manager after more than five years of service to the City of Oakland.
The new fiscal year began today and initiated many changes in city government.
"Robert Bobb has worked under two mayors and has added immeasurably to the well-being of Oakland. I am deeply grateful for his many and important contributions." Brown concluded.
Further details will be announced later in the week. A statement from Mr. Bobb will follow.
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STATEMENT FROM
Oakland City Manager
July 1, 2003
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Statement from City Manager Robert C. Bobb
I am leaving the post of City Manager, which has led me to reflect on a few of my accomplishments. I came to Oakland in November, 1997 from Richmond, Virginia, where I had served as City-County administrator for eleven years. When I arrived, the City organization had a very unstable administrative management structure, having had three acting city managers.
In my five and one-half years, I have stabilized the city management structure and provided the professional management leadership that the City had been lacking. I eliminated a structural budget deficit of $24 million that had plagued this City for years. I navigated the City bureaucracy through the transition from Council-Manager to the Mayor-Council form of government. I initiated a performance evaluation process for all city associates, and instituted employee accountability measures. I organized teams of City associates who developed 227 recommendations to streamline and improve internal City processes. We have implemented or recommended to the City Council more than half of those recommendations to make the City more efficient.
When I arrived, this City was top-heavy with highly paid administrators. I have eliminated one Assistant City Manager, the Life Enrichment Agency Director, the Community & Economic Development Agency Director, and Department Head positions in Information Technology, Personnel, Crafts and Cultural Arts. I have eliminated positions from the City Manager's administrative staff. I have personally taken on the day-to-day management responsibilities formerly held by one of the Assistant City Managers and the CEDA Director, saving the City more than $1 million annually.
The Mayor, City Council and I have just concluded the development and adoption of a balanced two-year budget, in the face of great uncertainty of funding levels from the State of California. We cut $48 million out of the two year budget, and limited layoffs to approximately 70 people.
In the last four years, upon my recommendations, we have closed $ 76.2 million in budget gaps, eliminating 427 positions. Yet we have laid off only 102 people, due to our paramount concern for maintaining programs and services.
My commitment to professional fiscal and operational management has been demonstrated during the past five and one-half years, and my commitment to continuing and improving services to the people of Oakland has been second to none.
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Isn't that about the testiest self-testimonial you've read this week?
Robert, on behalf of all Oaklanders everywhere, including the ones in Michigan, may I tell you again that we are all so thankful that you changed the name "staff" to "associates." Yessir, that was your powerhouse beginning. It was cheap, useless window dressing, which was what too many of us started to expect from you. Lots of promises followed by... nothing.
Come on, readers, this is interactive. What's your favorite memory of RCB? My friend Janet Levaux, editor of The Montclarion has a pip, which I had completely forgotten. We were at some budget meeting 2 years ago with Robert. I asked when he was going to give money to Studio One and real arts programs instead of a million dollars to pandas? His reply?
"Well, chilren need to have something to draw at the zoo."
And aren't those invisible pandas cute? Thanks Henry Chang!
Funny, I didn't see anything here about how he was so grateful to the hardworking City associates without whom he could never accomplished so much, nor how much he appreciates them or what a pleasure it was to work with them or how how much he will miss them and the friendships he's made that he will treasure...la la la la. Must have been a type-o.
Posted by: Gloria on July 3, 2003 12:52 PMEditor:
Oakland City Council member Larry Reid's foolish and thoughtless invocation of racism as the cause of Mayor Jerry Brown's termination of City Manager
Robert Bobb reflects very poorly on the Council member and is a reckless and cavalier distortion of the truth. In fact, Reid's petulant, inarticulate
ranting in reaction to Brown's decision does a severe disservice to those who are actually victims of racism. It is an absurd prevarication of fact and extraordinarily counter productive to accuse anyone of racism just because it is an expedient means to attack someone's character and integrity.
Rather than cast Brown's motive into question with this slander Reid instead has made a fool of himself. And of course the great irony in this
ridiculous charge is that Robert Bobb embodies all of the attributes and qualities which Reid
lacks and is not damaged in the least by his termination. Regardless of one's opinion about how Mr. Bobb performed as City Manager there is no
dispute that he is an extremely intelligent, well educated and thoroughly capable person and has no need for Reid's simplistic advocacy. It actually
demeans Bobb and deflects proper attention from the admirable work he did for Oakland.
Unlike Council member Reid, Mr. Bobb will do just fine in the private business world. It would behoove the council member to consider his
words more carefully. When a public officials demeans his office he also demeans
his constituents. There are people who don't acquiesce to thoughtless slander.
Jonathan C. Breault
Oakland
Larry Reid should oppose Jerry's policies because they're idiotic -- not because Robert Bobb was forced out.
If he approves of the (idiotic) policies, he should support them.
If he doesn't -- why hasn't he spoken out before?
Posted by: KIJE Project on July 8, 2003 10:11 PMThe City was top-heavy with highly paid administrators when he came- and it still is! And he was one of the highly paid administrators! At least he actually worked- unlike Barzhagi. Bobb's mistake was not firing Barzhagi when he had the chance! I wish someone would pay me $89,000 to do nothing.
Posted by: Jane Powell on July 12, 2003 08:07 AMSo my Mayor (District of Columbia) just announced Robert Bobb as our new City Administrator - what can we expect.
Posted by: Caesar on September 3, 2003 01:22 PM*This discussion has been closed. No more comments may be added.*