There’s been a lot of transitioning going on for Yountville Town employees, and one of the positions that’s up for a change is the Public Works Director.
So what is a Public Works Director, and what is their role in government?
According to Government Jobs, “A public works director is responsible for all personnel within a public works department including, but not limited to day-to-day maintenance of the City’s infrastructure services such as sewer maintenance and facility operation, sanitation, street maintenance, city storm, and sanitary sewer operations, and emergency response for snow and ice, flood, severe weather mitigation.”
Basically, the public works director monitors and oversees the physical facilities of a local community or area. The Public Works Director reports to the Town Manager and collaborates with other high-level officials to oversee town development. This can include everything from managerial responsibilities like hiring outside contractors and overseeing public projects to administrative tasks. One of the essential duties of a public works director is to create and plan long-term programs that will develop the growth of a community and execute these plans according to the Town Budget. They also continually evaluate and monitor project status and employees and make any necessary adjustments.
So there isn’t much that happens within a town that the Public Works Director doesn’t know about. To give some examples, you can bet that the Town’s Public Works Director played a significant role in the Washington Park Paving Project, the Gas Leaf Blower Ban, and current water restrictions for Yountville. Needless to say, every town needs a Public Works Director.
The Town of Yountville’s Public Works Director
The current Public Works Director for Yountville is Joe Tagliaboschi, who has held this position since 2014. Before that, he served as the Public Works Director for the City of Concord. He and his wife Kathy have lived in Yountville since 1991. In May, Joe Tagliaboschi announced his retirement as of July 31st, 2021.
Stepping up to the job after Joe Tagliaboschi will be Deputy Public Works Director John Ferron’s who joined the Town of Yountville in 2019. His tenure includes working for three private consulting firms performing classic engineering, land development, environmental restoration, eight years in the St. Helena Public Works Department, and most recently, three-plus years in the City of Napa Public Works Department.
You can read their full biographies here.