Gustine city manager to retire; replacement ready to go

As the retirement of Gustine’s city manager nears, the City Council recently approved a contract with the man who will take over in the new year.

City Manager Greg Greeson will retire Dec. 31 after about five years as Gustine’s head administrator. He’ll be succeeded by Sean Scully, who has been assistant city manager for about the same amount of time.

Greeson, 59, came to Gustine in 2010 after a few city managers stayed for relatively short stints while the city dealt with fiscal problems that followed the Great Recession and housing market crash.

“One of the things they asked me to do, and I said I would do, is help stabilize things for them,” Greeson said. “Part of that was developing a succession plan, or somebody to take over for me.”

During the past three years, Greeson said, he has worked closely with Scully.

“He’s a good guy,” he said. “He really keeps an eye on not only what’s going on with the council but also the community.”

City Council negotiated a 41/2-year contract with Scully, which was approved Sept. 16, that starts at $105,000 annually.

The new city manager, who starts on New Year’s Day, has also worked in the planning departments in Gustine and Turlock. Scully, 32, said the city has recently finished large projects, and is looking toward more “interesting” endeavors that he’s excited to be a part of.

He pointed to the roughly $1 million City Hall and Police Department renovation that was completed in 2012, and a $2 million water project finished last year.

The next project on the horizon is a $4.4 million highway project the city is looking to begin, that would involve Highways 140 and 33, and includes a roundabout, bike lanes, medians, a walkway and other improvements.

“Greg did a fantastic job helping to put Gustine on a very solid path, and the council has been super supportive of that,” Scully said. “I think there’s really a lot of good things to come here.”

Mayor Dennis Brazil spoke highly of the outgoing and incoming city managers.

He said Greeson was a stabilizing force for the city.

“Over his years of service he’s done a great job of getting the city back on track,” he said. “The city was operating in the red for some time. He was able to get the budget balanced.”

Brazil said the city is “fortunate” to have Scully stepping into the role.

“He’s got some great people skills, which we all believe is very important for everything we do in our town,” he said. “He’s got a great rapport with the staff. He’s got a great rapport with the community.”

This story was originally published December 11, 2014 at 4:28 PM with the headline "Gustine city manager to retire; replacement ready to go."