After more than 17 years leading Watertown’s economic development and planning efforts, Steve Magoon will be retiring from the City of Watertown at the end of January.
First hired in 2008 as the Director of Community Development and Planning, Magoon was elevated by the late City Manager Mike Driscoll to Assistant City Manager for Community Development and Planning in the mid-2010s. He continues to serve in that role for City Manager George Proakis, who thanked him for his service at the Nov. 12 City Council Meeting.
“In the coming weeks, I know we’ll have a chance to celebrate Steve and his accomplishments in Watertown,” Proakis said at the Council meeting. “Tonight, I just wanted to note that I greatly appreciate Steve’s work over the many years in Watertown, most especially in the three years that he and I have had to work together.”
While he has only worked directly with Magoon in recent years, Proakis said he considered him a colleague prior to that when Proakis was Executive Director of Somerville’s Office of Strategic Planning and Community Development.
“I knew him as an Assistant City Manager for me, and really appreciated everything he’s done and all the work he’s done guiding his team in some in some very successful endeavors here in Watertown that I first got to watch from afar and then got to participate very deeply involved in over the course of the last three years,” Proakis said. “Most significantly, completing the last update of the Comprehensive Plan and working on the Watertown Square Plan, and then serving with me as a member of my senior leadership team, as an Assistant City Manager.”
Other efforts led by Magoon include the Climate and Energy Plan, Open Space and Recreation Plan, Public Arts Master Plan, and the Strategic Framework for Economic Development.
Magoon also took part in dozens of park redesigns, such as Arsenal Park and Victory Field, and efforts to improve transportation in town by helping to establish the Watertown Transportation Management Association. In addition he oversaw the operation of the Commander’s Mansion.
He also served on the School Building Committee as it oversaw the construction of two new elementary schools, the complete renovation of a third, and the building of a new high school.
An announcement of Magoon’s retirement from the City of Watertown said: “These processes are critical to determining the long-term goals of a City, ensuring the community’s voices are heard, and moving these Plans to implementation. These efforts helped to transform the Pleasant Street and Arsenal Street corridors, turning them into regional hubs for new housing, innovation, and industry.”
The announcement continued: “His expertise, commitment, and service provided to this community in a variety of ways cannot be overstated.”
City Council President Mark Sideris has been on the Council for Magoon’s entire career in Watertown.
“Steve has been instrumental in helping Watertown evolve into the leader it is today,” Sideris said in a statement. “His vision, thoughtfulness, his care for this community, and his work ethic are traits I have always valued about Steve, and we will miss his contributions to our city. I am grateful for his dedication to Watertown over the last 17 great years and wish him and his family all the best in retirement.”
Prior to arriving in Watertown, Magoon worked in Gloucester, as well as in Maryland.
The City has started the effort to hire a new Assistant City Manager for Community Development and Planning, said Proakis said, who expected a job posting to be sent out in the near future. The City Council will also discuss the qualities and qualifications for the next person to fill that position.