Golis: Hey, Sean, thanks for being here

On Saturday, Sean McGlynn, former deputy city manager of El Paso, Texas, became the new city manager of Santa Rosa.

Dear Sean,

Welcome! We're glad you're here. There's work to do (and truth be told, there were times during the last year when we wondered if anyone would want the job).

We're hopeful better days are ahead.

You're moving your family to one of the most beautiful places on earth. Vineyard valleys, oak-studded hills, picturesque small towns, redwoods and rugged shorelines — there are reasons people come from all over the world to experience the natural diversity of Sonoma County.

Your new hometown has a proud history. This is the valley of the Southern Pomo, the place where Mexican settlers in 1837 founded an outpost on Santa Rosa Creek. This is the farm town that survived a great earthquake and became home to the famed plant scientist Luther Burbank.

Burbank said, 'I would rather own a piece of land the size of a good healthy house lot in Sonoma County than an entire farm anywhere else on earth …'

You are joining people who have demonstrated their determination to create more livable communities. Non-profits and volunteerism flourish here. School bonds and school taxes pass routinely. Not once but twice, voters raised taxes to protect open spaces. Later, they passed a tax that is building a new regional transit system.

You noticed in the news that we are not immune to the forces of nature. Earthquakes, droughts and forest fires happen here. We like to think we are prepared, but there is always more to do. Here's a question: What will Santa Rosa do if the coming winter is as dry as the last?

When you checked out a job opening in northern California, you learned that Santa Rosa city government has experienced its share of turmoil in recent years. Like many organizations — people, too — it endured the financial reversals that came after real estate markets cratered in 2008.

And Santa Rosa officials seemed determined to make it harder on themselves. You read about the shouting matches and the controversial vote to censure a sitting member of the City Council, the indecision and the secrecy, the critical moments in which the City Council couldn't seem to get out of its own way.

Those were days when every conversation came filtered through the factionalism that afflicts local activists and the passions of people disinclined to consider the opinions of others.

It wasn't much fun for anyone. This year, three members of the current council decided not seek a new term. Two others tried (and failed) to leave by winning election to other offices.

Meanwhile, your predecessor left after 3½ years, having maintained her home in a city 240 miles away, and the city recently hired its fourth chief financial officer in six years.

As you know better than anyone, your job will be to challenge the next city council to put the well-being of the city before old rivalries and personal differences. The next council, of course, will be obliged to do its part as well.

If you can help people feel good again about public service, if you can banish the discouragements of recent years, we will be grateful — and your adopted city will be better for it.

Based on what we know about Texas, you will learn patience in your new job. For better and worse, government in California moves at its own pace. We, Californians, love our committees and our studies, and if everything we do costs more and takes longer, we try not to let on.

You should know that Santa Rosans are still catching up to the changes happening all around them.

One of your jobs will be to help a growing Latino community feel respected. The controversies that followed the shooting death of 13-year-old Andy Lopez testify to a city that continues to struggle with divisions of class, ethnicity and geography. The complete annexation of the Roseland district will be a cornerstone of efforts to overcome those divisions.

You will be challenged, too, to prepare for a growing population of seniors. Will health care services, housing, transit and more be up to the task?

We are only now coming to understand that the local economy has been changed, not just by the recession but by the impacts of globalization.

Too many jobs sailed away to Malaysia and India. Even with the new economic activity of a post-recession economy, the jobless rate remains higher than it was a decade ago — and more people are working in jobs that pay less.

As a result, the city's long-term financial outlook remains uncertain. As with many state and local agencies in California, we wait to learn whether city government has set aside enough money to pay for the benefits promised to retirees.

Prospects will improve if you can play a role in promoting economic development, especially in the downtown.

It's a big job, managing 1,200 employees and a $340 million annual budget. Your presence here tells us you don't shy away from challenges. Please know that Santa Rosans want you to be successful.

Congratulations and best wishes,

A Santa Rosa voter and taxpayer

Pete Golis is a columnist for The Press Democrat. Email him at golispd@gmail.com.