City Manager John C. Martin retired from a highly-lauded career with the City of Daly City that spans nearly 25 years. He was appointed in 1995 to the top post by the City Council. Service-Driven Organization Under Martin’s management, the City of Daly City developed a reputation as a service-driven organization

that constantly seeks improvements in efficiency to better meet the needs of the largely residential community.

His efforts have entailed extensive collaborations with other agencies and groups, including the highly acclaimed development of the nationally recognized paramedic program in San Mateo County. He also played a key role in establishing after-school educational and recreational programs in a collaborative and cooperative effort with five different school districts in Daly City and the City’s own Parks and Recreation Department.

Addressing the imbalance between jobs and housing within the community was a top priority for the 56-year-old administrator. His guidance of the Daly City Redevelopment Agency yielded the highly successful $175 million Pacific Plaza development, heralded by the San Francisco Business Times as one of the top two best suburban office developments in the Bay Area. He was also able to attract a major community-serving medical facility, Kaiser Permanente, one of the city’s newest commercial buildings.

Capital Improvement Program
One of Martin’s crowning achievements was the implementation of a major capital improvement program, which resulted in the total refurbishment of all city parks, tot lots, clubhouses, and community centers. Among the City faci-lities constructed during Martin’s tenure are: the Lincoln Park Community Center, Hillside Park Clubhouse, Fire Stations 92 and 93, Imagination Station Childcare Center, David Rowe Park, athletic fields at Gellert Park and Marchbank Park, a major expansion of the Wastewater Treatment Plant, a Tertiary Water Treatment Plant, the complete reconstruction of Westlake Library, and the recently opened Thornton Beach Vista overlook on Highway 35. Other major projects currently under construction include the Bayshore Community Center and Library and the War Memorial Community Center and Library.

PATRICIA MARTEL Returns To Daly City as New CITY MANAGER

May 23rd will mark a new chapter for Daly City when Patricia E. Martel is installed as its new City Manager, and its first female CEO. The appointment is a homecoming for Martel, who was the city’s Assistant City Manager from 1995 to 2001. She was the general manager of the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) until last year. More recently, she worked for the City of Hayward, in partnership with local districts, managing a $36 million public facilities and infrastructure improvement program. In all, Martel has more than 25 years of public service management, which included experience with the cities of Inglewood and South San Francisco. “I really left my heart in Daly City,” she shared recently. “I embrace the prospect of working cooperatively with the residents of Daly City to build a consensus regarding the future direction of this community,” she added. Martel was recognized by the San Francisco Business Times as one of the Bay Area’s 100 Most Influential Business Women (2003), and among the Top 100 Women Business Leaders (2002). Last year, KQED and Kaiser Permanente named her a Latino Heritage Month Local Hero. A University of Southern California graduate, Martel holds a bachelor’s degree in public affairs, and a master’s degree in public administration.