Village Manager Al Gatta to Retire After 20 Years in Scarsdale

Scarsdale Village Manager Al Gatta has announced that he plans to retire this coming June. Gatta has run the Village for as long as most can remember, managing many major infrastructure improvements and a professional staff who some say are among the best in the county. We spoke to Gatta about his time in Scarsdale and why he plans to step down this year. Here is what he shared:

How long have you worked in Scarsdale and where did you work before?

I have been in Scarsdale for twenty years and before that I was City Manager in Hartford, CT; Ann Arbor, MI and Methuen, MA and held management jobs in New Jersey.

What do you plan to do when you retire?

I am looking to do more policy work which means housing, employment, regional approaches to services, funding schools, income maintenance, transportation and how best to fund local governments. I may also teach a class or two which I did at Trinity College in Hartford and University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.

Why did you decide to retire now?

It is time to move on. Any good organization has to have movement at the top to bring in new perspectives and approaches to addressing challenges. We have done a lot of employee training and education and have made the organization one of the better ones in the County;

What are you proud of?

Twenty years is a good run and I was the first educated and trained professional manager in Scarsdale and brought management improvements to the finance system, budgeting, decision-making process and line services. Former managers followed the old pattern of either being a trained engineer or attorney to serve as managers.

I managed many capital projects over the years such as downtown traffic, parking, pedestrian improvements, sidewalks; the Christie Place Development and parking facility; the new Popham Road Bridge; the new Public Safety Building; pool improvements; new athletic fields including one artificial turf field at the High School; Kids Base program and long term lease; restrooms and tennis building at the high school and new restrooms and a tennis building at Brite Avenue. We closed the compost facility at Crossway and built the leaf transfer station at the same location, renovated the Supply Field Building, completed major multi-million stormwater projects and renovated all 16 village playgrounds. What else? We did a rehab of the Scarsdale Railroad Station; a land lease with SVAC; multimillion renovations to the Ardsley Road and Reeves Newsome Water Pumping Stations, initiated the rehabilitation of the Fire Station #1 and the rehabilitation of Wayside Cottage.

What were some of the biggest challenges you faced?

The challenges all involved being part of and managing a non-political system that made decisions by trying to achieve consensus. It takes patience, understanding, tolerance and faith. There were no shortcuts or decisions made easy because of the political votes. It's a very good structure for local governments.

What were some of the most controversial issues during your tenure here?

Controversial issues are always budget, taxes and particular land use issues as illustrated by the constant tension between the need to change and the limited growth theory. Also the interference of the State government in the management of local affairs, particularly budgeting and taxation by ranking bureaucrats who have no local government experience but do have great political acumen.

Who were some of the more "colorful" residents you encountered?

There have been a few and I have always taken it in stride. Looking for the humor in most instances is the only way I have survived for 45 years.

Who did you enjoy working with?

I have been fortunate in having had the best elected officials anyone can hope to work with as a local government manager. The elected officials have been smart, educated, sensitive, caring, wanting to do the right thing for the community honest, and nonpolitical. Also the Village employees and Department Heads have been among the most trained and educated I have worked with over the decades and compared to other local government workers in the county are head and shoulders over their performance.

What will be your legacy to Scarsdale?

I am not interested in a legacy; after all I am not the president of the United States and one thing I am very proud of is that I never took myself and position too seriously. The quality of work and honesty and straight talk was always a desire of my wanting to do my job as well as possible. I never tried too "out slick" anyone and those that did it to me drew my disdain.

In an email to Village staff announcing his retirement, Gatta said, It has been a pleasure towork with all of you during the last two decades as there is no way any manager can be successful without a loyal hard working workforce."